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Earlier this week, a New Jersey raccoon decided to visit the big city and hitched a ride on a bus. The bus driver was taken aback when he saw the two-foot raccoon "walking up the aisle to the front of the bus" while driving along 11th Avenue in Midtown. The police helped out by apprehending the stowaway and taking her to Animal Control; a detective guessed, "It probably climbed into a window overnight, seeking shelter." Yes, with the murder rate going down, detectives are studying animal behavior.
The Daily News also focused on shooting victim Farshad Eshigi's black cat (also named Eshigi). Eshigi was shot outside Midtown store that sells candy and Tasti-D-Lite, and the cat seems to live at the store, since it's now locked up there. A friend said the Eshigi felt the cat was good luck; perhaps so, since Eshigi is awake, though in serious condition.
Finally, a woman was bitten by a rabid skunk when she "tried to comfort" it in New Jersey. The skunk had been in a fight with a dog, and while it's sweet the woman wanted to make sure the skunk was okay, shouldn't a childhood of watching Pepe Le Pew cartoons lesson enough?
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I can't understand why on earth the raccoon was euthanized. I was reading along in the story, expecting it to have a happy ending ("and the police handed it over to wildlife services for safe transport back to the forest"), and was totally stunned to see that it was euthanized. The part about rabies is b.s.--think they'd euthanize a human to test for rabies??
There are at least four raccoons living in the northeastern corner of Central Park. One regularly forages along Harlem Meer around 9-10pm. I've also seen a mother raccoon with two young in the Conservatory Garden.
Yeah, I was shocked by the euthanizing too, poor critter didn't bite nor scratch anyone. Is this the policy of Animal Control?!
On the topic of Animals, any updates on the two panda newborns in SD and DC?
this was in my brooklyn kitchen.
Beth, it's kind of hard to know why it was euthanized from just reading a short Daily News article which goes into zero detail. Without any real information, saying the part about rabies is bs is itself bs. Who the hell knows what was happening.
Well, I understand the concern in a society where sentinent, intelligent (and let's face it, pretty darn cute) beings are often dismissed as "pests" and killed without a second thought. Still, I suspect you're right... there probably was a good chance that the raccoon was rabid, considering how (according to the article) it didn't seem to display any fear, "casually strolling up the aisle" after the passengers got out, it was probably displaying classic rabies symptoms.
When they found a coyote in Central Park in '99, (another known potential rabies carrier) not only did they not kill it, they actually hooked it up w/ a prime spot in the Queens Zoo. (Probably in no small part from all the calls and e-mails to Animal Control!)
A family of Racoons lives in my industrial part of Williamsburg. They have figured out how to get on my balcony. A turtle was also spotted. A pet? a refugee from the river? who knows. I've also heard tales of wild turkeys showing up on apartment balconies as high as the 28th floor in manhattan. I think the most recent sighting was 2003.
Does anyone here realize that rabies tests for animals can only be done on brain tissue? And the only way to get a brain tissue sample is to kill the animal and do a biopsy? Scratching or biting a person or any other aggressive behaviors aren't the only signs of rabies. Stop watching so many movies. Any anomalous behavior like this raccoon's apparent lack of fear of humans and moving buses is cause for concern.