A couple were stunned when they spotted this raccoon in the beer garden of their pub – over 4,000 miles away from its native North America.
Alan Law, 46, and his wife Sue, 42, could not believe their eyes when the black and white critter casually strolled around their beer garden – feasting on a leftover carvery.
The raccoon has been fondly adopted by locals at the Holt Fleet pub and restaurant in Worcester – who have nicknamed him “Bandit”.
Mum-of-two Sue said: “It is very bizarre. They’re not even found in this country so we don’t know where it could have come from.
“It could be someone’s pet or has escaped from somewhere – it’s a mystery.
“It’s behaviour is just like a cat – it just sat and looked at us.
“He seems to like the pub, the smells from the kitchen probably entice him into the garden.”
Bandit was first spotted by chef Richard Smith eating by food skips at the back of the pub and restaurant on Friday, December 4.
Fellow workers laughed off his claims, dismissing it as a fox until barman James Stanley, 20, captured a picture of the creature on his mobile phone.
There has since been additional sightings of the mammal, which is believed to live in woodland behind the pub.
A spokesperson for the RSPCA said raccoon’s were not native to the UK and it was illegal to release them here.
She said: “At the moment there have been sightings of the Raccoon but we don’t know where it is to rescue it.
“It may be a case of setting a safe humane trap so we can catch it.
“It is likely that this Raccoon could be an escaped or abandoned pet.”
|
RACCOON FACTFILE Raccoons are easily identified by its black mask like colouring around its eyes. It is also endowed with unusually long toes, which are often mistaken as fingers. They originated in North America and were later introduced to other countries such as Japan. The animal is mainly found in forests, marshes, prairies, but they also known to venture in to cities and make homes in the attics of houses. The raccoon’s main predators are the fox and dog. It is also killed by humans and its fur is used for clothing including coats and hats. In 2009 a raccoon set up home in a garden in Hampshire. |
