One tough pack of wild raccoons........

[eroomlorac]

I knew raccoons could be strong and tough but I've never heard of THIS before........

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/polk/raccoons_attack_polk

I wonder what would make them do that. I have never heard of raccoons working in a pack like that and I have never heard of them attacking a human, either, unless the human cornered them. I think they mostly run off when they see us.

 

[Stackie]

Yikes. I hope they weren't rabid. Most accounts of raccoon attacks I've heard of are because the coon was afflicted by rabies.

 

[eroomlorac]

Well, the authorities are investigating that. I think they should just start that poor woman on the rabies series in any case.

I just found this. I bet they are rabid.

http://www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/2003/Summer/rabies.shtml

 

[Stackie]

I think they should start her, too. You must treat for rabies ASAP because once the symptoms begin to show, it is already too late to begin treatment. At that point, they have to let the disease run it's course and hope for the best.

 

[RDZCRanch]

That looks like a mom and her babies...

It's possible that the woman had some lingering scent of food on her that got them going at her. When I was a kid at summer camp, they had to rush a kid off to an emergency room because a raccoon has slashed up her face really bad. They found out later that it was because she had hidden food in her luggage bag under her bed and the raccoon was just trying to dig down to the food or find it.

 

[Chinniechantel]

Wow that is crazy, people always get attacked by crazy animals here in Florida!

 

[Rickman]

That more looks like a Momma and Youngsters, to me! I think she may have been startled by a close human - maybe hit by the screen door, and protecting her young!
What else would account for the quick attack, and the 'run away' factor?
With Rabies, I believe, they keep attacking, fearing nothing!

 

[mercynursie]

Looked like a family group in the pics to me too. People have got to realize that the more wild areas we develope with housing developements and such,we are taking away natural habitat!!! The critters have got to live somewhere!!!! I grew up in a very rural farm area that in the last 10 yrs has been completely ravaged by builders.People who have owned "family farms and land" for years are forced to sell their property because they simply can't afford the increased property value taxes and farm land is worth more sold to developers than folks can earn in a lifetime of farming. I no longer live in the area, we bugged out early in the process but it saddens me so to see what was once beautiful woodlands and fields of cows,corn,wheat,etc now nothing but huge homes and manicured lawns.People came into the area because they fell in love with the "country life look" and yet they are the very same people who gripe because of smoke from nearby areas(just how the #### do they think their lot got cleared),dogs barking, or gosh forbid deer eating precious landscape, or the smell of nearby chicken houses(which were there long before the developements were). OOOOhhh I gotta shut up before I get my country girl blood boiling:hair::hair::hair:

 

[Brittney]

Looked like a family group in the pics to me too. People have got to realize that the more wild areas we develope with housing developements and such,we are taking away natural habitat!!! The critters have got to live somewhere!!!! I grew up in a very rural farm area that in the last 10 yrs has been completely ravaged by builders.People who have owned "family farms and land" for years are forced to sell their property because they simply can't afford the increased property value taxes and farm land is worth more sold to developers than folks can earn in a lifetime of farming. I no longer live in the area, we bugged out early in the process but it saddens me so to see what was once beautiful woodlands and fields of cows,corn,wheat,etc now nothing but huge homes and manicured lawns.People came into the area because they fell in love with the "country life look" and yet they are the very same people who gripe because of smoke from nearby areas(just how the #### do they think their lot got cleared),dogs barking, or gosh forbid deer eating precious landscape, or the smell of nearby chicken houses(which were there long before the developements were). OOOOhhh I gotta shut up before I get my country girl blood boiling:hair::hair::hair:

I know exactly how you feel.. I grew up in Tennessee and my grandparents owned (and still do) 60 acres of land that they use to farm cows and goats. They live off of their land. only 20 of the 60 acres is cleared, usable land, the other 40 is straight up woods. He has even posted the property so no one can hunt on it. The developers keep knocking on their door begging to build on their land. They gave away 2 acres, that's it, and they put up 2 houses that look completely out of place. You drive down the road and it is a log cabin, cabin, cabin, shack, mobile home, cabin, 1 million dollar home, 1 million dollar home, and then my grandparents farm, then another farm next to it. I can't stand it. In their will, I have all of the property. There is no way I would sell it. Way too many memories there.

As for the coons, they are starting to become accustomed to humans and no longer see them as a threat. My cat back in TN is an outside barn cat. Coons will come eat his food and we can walk right next to them and they don't move, nor do they attack us. It's scary, but as long as they don't associate humans with food, there should be no attacking. My cat though, does not take lightly to the coons eating his food haha.

 

[AZChins]

Supposedly we have raccoons out here, but I have never had a run in with them and haven't seen them. I see a dead one on the side of the road every now and then. I've heard that they are scary if you corner them. I'd never do that, I don't want to get bitten!

Developers are always wanting all of us out here to sell out our land to them, so I understand what everyone is saying. It's not going to happen unless something bad happens and I can't afford the property taxes or something. I love my desert, I don't want to see it become 12 houses to an acre...I've fought too long and hard to keep my own property to let that happen.

Brittney - I'm sorry that your grandparents were pressured to sell some of their land off. Tennessee is gorgeous! No one should want to destroy it to build more houses. They have enough houses.

Anyway...I bet that this was a mom and her babies. They don't look that rabid...don't rabid animals attack each other, too? They looked too organized as a little pack walking along that fence.

 

[eroomlorac]

I agree with all complaints about developing all our wonderful farmland. When I moved into my town, I bought an older home. Now there are subdivisions with people who complain there's no mall nearby and they have to drive 12 miles to get groceries. They want it like the suburbs which is where they all came from. I'd gladly kick their a$$e$ all the way back to the suburbs for them if they'd like. I moved into a farm town because I wanted to live in a farm town and now it's slowly fading away. It annoys me know end.

 

[AZChins]

I know. I hate the complaining that people do out here because they see this place as being uncivilized. If they don't like it, why'd they move here? Go back to wherever you came from if you liked it so much there.

It's a shame when farmland gets developed because it's farmland, it's productive! All that subdivisions produce is sewage and garbage.