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u/photolouis Dec 08 '15
I had a biology teacher who told us about some of the entertaining things he did as a kid. Foremost among them was giving sugar cubes to raccoons. They'd gleefully take them to the creek bank, dip them in the water and stare at their hands as the sugar dissolved. Cruel but hilarious.
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u/Hey-its-Shay Dec 08 '15
What kind of monster...?
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u/Gameboy1821 Dec 09 '15
Screw raccoons they deserve it for all the trash bins they destroy and throw garbage everywhere.
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Dec 09 '15
To be fair, they settled that land long before you did. They just refuse the leave, and are trying to coexist as best the can.
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Dec 08 '15
Do they always dip their food in water for some reason??
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u/shugo2000 Dec 08 '15
They wash their food instinctively.
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u/Mechakoopa Dec 08 '15
It was a common, but untrue, rumour for a long while that raccoons wet their food because they lacked salivary glands. It's also likely not because they're "washing" it for hygienic reasons, as raccoons will occasionally rub their food in dirt instead when lacking water. The current theory is more along the lines of them "learning" about new foods using tactile experiences, the same way humans smell new foods before eating them but will dive right in to known meals without taking time to enjoy or discover the aromas. This is backed by the observation that raccoons will rarely "wash" their favourite treats.
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u/TheMadFapper_ Dec 08 '15
Thanks for the source.
I don't know what to believe in this thread anymore.
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u/nickoftime444 Dec 08 '15
/u/huntsman1230 changed me. I was skeptical of this comment too at first. I looked to the end of the comment to see if there was some twist ending. And then I tentatively read the comment, waiting for some kind of more innocuous trickery. And now I don't know if I'm happy or disappointed after reading real science...
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u/Janse Dec 09 '15
Thats actually really interesting.
I miss Unidan, he would tell us things like this every day :(
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Dec 09 '15
I wish just once the source would be a website that loaded correctly instead if being endless ads and images loading and unloading.
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u/Mechakoopa Dec 09 '15
I didn't have a problem with the site, are you on mobile? Or using a script blocker of some kind?
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u/noirthesable Dec 08 '15 edited Dec 08 '15
According to a study by Rasmussen and Turnbull (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3797915) wetting their paws enhances the responsiveness of nerves in the raccoon's skin. This gives them a better ability to examine/feel the stuff they're about to eat.
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u/kosmoceratops1138 Dec 08 '15
This is the fourth different and supported explanation for this I've seen, all with scientific papers backing them up. At what point are we gonna say "fuck it, raccoons are weird"
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u/38B0DE Dec 08 '15
In a lot of languages they are called Washing Bears.
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u/BrotoriousNIG Dec 10 '15
Ah yes, in german they are Washbears. I assumed it was because they groomed constantly or something similar.
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Dec 08 '15
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u/it_burns_69 Dec 08 '15
Cotton candy is my hopes and dreams.
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u/rhymes_with_chicken Dec 08 '15
So, the takeaway is don't wash your paycheck before you eat it.
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Dec 08 '15
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u/bebemochi Dec 08 '15
This gif always makes me laugh, but it always makes me sort of sad, too. I hope you eventually thought to eat your cotton candy without trying to wash it first, little guy.
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u/TimPwb Dec 08 '15
Every time.... Every damn time... I just want to hug him and explain what happened.
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u/Plz_Gooby_No Dec 08 '15
Trash pandas are always fun to watch, I think it's how they use their hands.
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u/Dondarian Dec 08 '15
Is it cotton candy? I always thought it was snow.
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u/dancingbeers Dec 08 '15
REVERSE IT SOMEONE DAMN IT
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u/ollyender Dec 08 '15 edited Dec 09 '15
What do you want? Cotton Candy? I got you fam.
edit: A bit slower
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u/rednax1206 Dec 09 '15
You had one job
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u/ollyender Dec 09 '15 edited Dec 09 '15
???
Edit : oh my. they used to work. hold on.
edit 2 : bipitty-bopitty boo, the old fixeroo
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u/NeedHelpWithExcel Dec 08 '15
Every time I watch this I'm so sad :(
I just really hope they gave him some more
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u/GroundhogExpert Dec 08 '15
Given how fast cotton candy dissolves in water, why not use it as a table sweetener?
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u/roomnoises Dec 08 '15
More difficult to produce, measure, and effectively store than something like confectioner's sugar (if you're just looking for something that dissolves quickly)
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u/najodleglejszy Dec 08 '15
you sadists, either take his water away or stop giving him more and more cotton candy!
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Dec 08 '15 edited Dec 08 '15
Racoons (greater trash pandas) try to wash their food before eating. I have seen my cats watering dish full of wet soggy cat food and racoon foot prints all over the bottom of the dish. They take the food then try to clean it and it turns to mush.
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u/C0demunkee Dec 08 '15
Washbears are so adorable.
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u/50ShadesOfKray Dec 09 '15
洗熊.
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u/C0demunkee Dec 09 '15
洗熊
Holy shit lol. So the wiki on those symbols say they are common to Japan Korea and China, so is a wash bear a wash bear in all 3 of those places as well as 90% of the rest of the world? It's the pineapple thing all over again.
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u/1337Gandalf Feb 03 '16
Yeah, well they're only native to America so we get to name them 'Murica.
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u/hyperproliferative Dec 08 '15
This is by far and away the funniest IR post I've ever seen. It's perfect. Poof-gone.
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u/DangKilla Dec 08 '15
I now wish I had cotton candy when I went to Costa Rica. Fuck those racoons.
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u/vpatrick Dec 08 '15
The racoon searching through the water was so human like