Playful Backyard Raccoons Tug on a Thirsty Skunk’s Tail

Dan of Texas Backyard Wildlife captured the amusing sight of raccoons playfully tugging on the fuzzy tail of a thirsty skunk who had stopped to drink.

Raccoons, for reasons that are a complete mystery to me, love to sniff the rear ends of skunks and love to handle the rear ends and on occasion like to even pull the skunk’s tails.

Dan noted that the tolerant skunk, who was enjoying a cool drink, was neither defensive nor preparing to spray the rowdy procyons. In fact, Dan had seen this type of scene dozens of times without any spraying.

Skunks get a terrible reputation for being hair-triggered. They’ll spray anybody. They’re nasty. They’re cranky. … This video should prove, I think, that skunks are actually the most tolerant beings on the planet. This skunk dropped by the water bowl just to get a drink of water and is minding its own business completely and continues to mind its own business.

He also noticed that the raccoons did this to one another and figured they simply saw the skunk as one of their own.

They do it to each other, and it’s like, well, I guess if it’s okay for each other, then it’s good enough for the skunks, and we’ll just treat them like they’re raccoons and are part of the family here.

Texas Backyard Wildlife is the work of Dan Ballard and Jane Hunter, who film the animals that visit their five-acre property in southwest Austin with a network of cameras.

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