Video shows raccoon casually greeting diners in stroll through Canadian McDonald's
A Toronto raccoon shocked and delighted diners in a local McDonald’s this week after somehow getting inside the restaurant and casually ambling up to various patrons, presumably in search of a chicken nuggie or 10.
A now-viral TikTok shows the rotund critter making its rounds in the bustling dining area of a Scarborough McD’s during broad daylight, at one point approaching the filmer at very close range.
As guests are heard exclaiming “aww” and “wow” in the background, the cameraman asks, “Hi, what are you doing here?” when the not-so-wild animal comes right up to him under his table.
“Do you like my shoes?” he jokes when the little guy looks up at him and places a paw directly on his foot. The raccoon then decides to investigate the bench beside the customer, poking around a jacket. “That’s for my son, come over here!” the man says.
When the raccoon realizes there are no treats to be had, they wander off, sniffing around under some empty seats as staff figure out what to do.
They then make their way under another table, sneakily evading a worker trying to corral them with a broom. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given that this took place in Toronto, no one present seemed particularly scared of or disgusted with the creature. Most people simply stayed in their seats and looked on, chuckling.
One person can even be heard shouting that someone should get the furry friend a burger.
@krinousec #mcdonalds #racoon ♬ original sound – DDT
While some viewers brought up concerns of rabies and distemper in the comments section of the post — which has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times in less than 24 hours — others pointed out the calm and friendly nature of the critter, who appeared to just be looking for food.
“Nah, it’s a toronto raccoon. they’re a different breed,” one person said. “I live in Toronto and I can definitely say this raccoon is used to human interaction… no aggression… definitely feels safe around people,” another added.
The original poster also wrote that the raccoon had very coolly followed a customer into the location through the main door “as if it was coming to order some food too.”
When asked why he allowed the animal to get so close to him, he noted that he didn’t want to scare them, which could have resulted in someone getting hurt.
“I noticed he wasn’t afraid and walking calm. I didn’t see the need to scare it and escalate things,” he said, which someone else called “a perfect Canadian response.”
Toronto raccoon takes it upon himself to get job at Tim Hortons https://t.co/XZZacMNFtl #Toronto #Raccoon #TorontoRaccoon #TimHortons
— blogTO (@blogTO) October 26, 2020
Of course, while people should always keep a very safe distance from raccoons and all other wildlife in the city, the Toronto Wildlife Centre notes that “a raccoon that is alert, responsive, and behaving normally during the day is probably fine.”
“Raccoons might come out during the day if there is a food source available at a particular time, if they have been frightened out of their daytime sleeping spot, or if there is high competition in the area at night from other nocturnal animals,” the organization states on its website.
“Baby raccoons are also commonly seen outside during the day, and mother raccoons might be out looking for food during the day.”
A raccoon prepared for lockdown this week by visiting a Toronto Best Buy https://t.co/ZjZ3jlEJmH #Toronto #BestBuy #Raccoon #TorontoRaccoon
— blogTO (@blogTO) November 26, 2020
TWC adds that Ontario went nearly a decade without a single documented case of rabies in raccoons until an outbreak in Hamilton in 2015, and “there have been no positive cases in the city of Toronto to date,” in part thanks to the government’s ambitious oral vaccine baiting program.
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