Woman Thinks There's a Cat in Her Christmas Tree, Anyone Who Has Hunted Coon Will See the Problem Right Away
One Florida woman found “an early surprise” waiting in her Christmas tree on Dec. 10.
At around 4 a.m., Aubrey Iacobelli woke up to the sound of her dog barking at the tree.
She assumed a cat had somehow entered her home and climbed inside the Christmas tree.
As it turns out, the animal wasn’t a cat — it was a raccoon.
Iacobelli posted a video of the encounter on her Facebook page, along with the caption: “An early surprise waiting for me in the Christmas Tree this morning.”
The video depicts Iacobelli repeatedly attempting to get the “cat” out of the tree, before finally realizing it’s a raccoon.
Anyone who’s hunted raccoons can see there’s a clear problem here.
Dogs are traditionally used to “tree” a raccoon before hunters shoot them down.
If Iacobelli’s goal was to force the animal out of her tree and subsequently out of her house, the dog’s incessant barking was not aiding that goal and only exacerbating the problem.
Eventually, the tree got knocked over, sending the raccoon into a scuffle with the Florida resident’s dog.
Raccoons are much more dangerous than some stray cat. They can be ferocious animals, especially when fighting dogs.
Thankfully, Iacobelli’s canine didn’t appear to suffer any major injuries.
The Humane Society recommends removing pets from the situation when dealing with a raccoon that has entered your home.
“Contain pets before dealing with the raccoon. If you have a dog, close them in a room away from the raccoon. Try to move cats away from the raccoon as well. The raccoon is going to be mainly concerned about getting back outside, which is helpful—you just need to show them the way!” The Humane Society suggests.
Overall, The Humane Society’s recommendations for removing a raccoon from your home are exactly the opposite of Iacobelli’s approach.
Instead of antagonizing the creature, homeowners are recommended to utilize “the art of persuasion.”
Using food to lead the animal out of the house is one option. Opening doors and windows near the animal and simply leaving the room is another.
Either way, hopefully, no one else has to deal with a similar “surprise” this Christmas season.
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