Vicious raccoon attacks dogs and resident in Vancouver neighbourhood

shutterstock | Paul Staseweich

New Vancouver resident Paul Stasiewich found himself in the hospital recently after a “very aggressive raccoon” attacked him and his dogs.

Stasiewich told Daily Hive he was walking his dogs Monday evening around 11:00 pm in the Kitsilano neighbourhood. He owns a Basenji named Jarvis and a Border Collie Mix named Henry, both medium-sized dogs.

As Stasiewich walked out of his townhouse complex and turned onto the sidewalk near the corner of 2nd and Cypress, he said, “There was a raccoon that was already charging at us.”

Once he noticed the raccoon running towards him from about a block away and his dogs, Stasiewich said, “I had turned to run away with the two dogs but then I realized pretty quickly that it was gonna it was gonna catch up to us.”

Photos of Paul Staseweich’s dogs.

Once Stasiewich turned to face the raccoon, he said he saw it attack his dog Jarvis, so he kicked the wild animal.

However, as he tried to help his dog, Staseweich said he got tangled up in his dog’s leashes and fell on his back.

“And the raccoon jumped on top of my chest and scratched up my chest,” he continued. “So I picked up the raccoon and threw it off of me and went after my other dog [Henry].”

After dropping Henry’s leash, the dog ran off after the raccoon jumped on his back.

“And then the dog took off down the street and then me and my other dog chased after the dog,” Stasiewich said. “At that point, the raccoon left us alone.”

Stasiewich said he soon visited the hospital and, from there, shared a post on Reddit about the attack saying, “I had no idea those f*ckers could move so fast.”

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In May of last year, Stasiewich had moved to Vancouver from Toronto and was aware that pets and locals had been attacked by raccoons in the area.

“We had sort of seen signs posted around the neighbourhood … so we have a heightened awareness … but you know how it just kind of thought that if we gave them some space, it wouldn’t really be a problem,” he said. However despite taking precautions, Stasiewich said the raccoon they encounter last week “was already attacking us by the time we noticed.”

Dog injured after encountering an aggressive raccoon last summer. (Photo submitted by Jake Moss)

At the hospital, Stasiewich said he thought he’d receive tetanus and rabies shots “just to be safe.” But was told he would not need either.

Doctors told him there’s no risk of rabies in raccoons in the province.

According to the SPCA, raccoons are not dangerous to people and don’t carry rabies in BC, “so this is not a risk to you or your pets.”

“If a raccoon approaches you, yell, stamp your feet, clap your hands, and make noise to scare the raccoon away. This may feel silly, but it is the best way to keep raccoons safe from people,” the SPCA site reads.

Stasiewich also learned he was current on his tetanus shots.

While he broke his phone and lost his glasses in the incident, scraped his knee and walked away with some bruises, Stasiewich said he was doing okay.

He said his dogs were able to escape without injury.

Who is responsible?

Stasiewich said he reached out to animal control but felt “no one’s really taking responsibility for the problem.”

Raccoons fall outside the City of Vancouver’s regulations as they are protected under the Provincial Wildlife Act.

Daily Hive has contacted BC Conservation Officer Service (COS) for more information and will update this article if a statement is received.

While Stasiewich successfully fought off the raccoon, he said he is worried for his neighbours, who could be more vulnerable.

“I’m in good shape, no mobility problems or anything like that, and even I was really taken aback and surprised by the raccoon by how strong and fast it was,” he said.

“I can see someone with mobility issues or a young child … it could very quickly escalate to a much more serious problem.

“It would be nice if someone took a more proactive approach to dealing with the raccoon issue. As opposed to waiting for something more serious to happen, which, in my mind, is only a matter of time based on my experience this week.”

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