Raccoon becomes a social media star after getting stuck without food or water at the top of an office tower

In June 2018, a concerning situation caught everyone's attention when a poor raccoon was found stranded at an office tower in Minnesota. The helpless baby had apparently climbed the 25-story office tower in downtown St. Paul to "raid pigeon nests on the skyway over 7th Street," Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Nelson (@timnelson_mpr) reported in an X (formerly called Twitter) post. Thankfully, the raccoon was saved just in the nick of time and released back into the wild by the animal control department, following a daring rescue mission.

"It's been there for two days now, without food or water," read the post, sparking a wave of outrage on the internet. In the heart-wrenching picture, you could see the raccoon curled up at the edge, like a frightened baby scared for life. According to a report by The Washington Post citing the Wildlife Management Services, technicians caged the female raccoon and got her down through a freight elevator. "It’s definitely a healthy raccoon. It’s in good condition. It’s eating normally," Christina Valdivia, the company’s general manager, who escorted the technicians to the rooftop, shared.

While everyone prayed for the raccoon's safe rescue, needless to say that she instantly became an overnight internet sensation. In another post, Tim Nelson shared a video of the raccoon grooming herself like true royalty. "The #mprraccoon is doing a little grooming now that he's a social media star. You know, on a 23rd-floor window ledge," Nelson wrote. Well, people often think that raccoons are silly, but in reality, according to Wildlife X Team, they are actually quite intelligent. The report says that intelligence tests of urban raccoons have revealed that these animals are significantly smarter than dogs and cats, with an IQ just below monkeys. Perhaps this is why the stranded raccoon, even in such a risky situation, remained mostly calm.

Meanwhile, the story received an overwhelming response on social media. While some people were worried about the little creature's well-being, others were relieved that the poor raccoon was saved just in time. For instance, a user who goes by @speednet commented, "Two days! No wonder this one looks tired and thirsty! It's 81 degrees F; I can only imagine the heat coming off the building. Certainly makes the skin clinging to bones appear as a symptom of dehydration." Similarly, a person @justice wrote, "This cutie raccoon took about 90,000 people and counting on a wild and nail-biting journey! At the same time, it showed all of us a lesson! I’m so thankful he’s safe!"

Another user who goes by @miaquintomj on X shared, "At first, when I read about this, I was like, whatever... then I saw this pic of this poor little scared baby, and I was hooked!" Echoing the sentiments, @judt_t commented, "He/she made it. Good going to all those who helped. Raccoon is safe and sound. We all needed a feel-good story!" @boos_lauren suggested, "They should have put a live trap when it was right there. It most likely would’ve found the bait, and this could’ve been avoided." On the other hand, @ladyhaja asked, "What...it was here for two days in this reachable place? Why did no one help it then before it scaled 23 floors?"

You can follow Tim Nelson (@timnelson_mpr) on X for more animal-related stories.