Raccoon Learns to Nose Target
1,695 views · Published 11 April 2013 · 1:09 · Indexed 5 October 2026
Channel: Weekly Whiskers · 2013 · Pets & Animals
This is Spicer who is Cinnamon's son (born May 2012) who has a bite injury on his right nostril. He's not a raccoon we can touch - like the majority of the others who visit us - so we wanted a way to be able to have a better look at the injury as well as treat it with an antibiotic ointment. In order to accomplish both tasks simultaneously, I smeared a thin layer of antibiotic ointment under the bottom edge of the opened window which I had him target (touch) with his nose. His nostril is healing quickly now after we've been doing this for a week. Throughout the video you'll hear a click sound, which serves as a marker when training, meaning "That is correct; a reward is following." Animals who are taught with this method will learn new behaviours (aka tricks) incredibly at a rapid rate and thus will try to figure out how to get the trainer to make the "clicking" sound to earn their rewards; this is very fun for them as it engages their "seeking circuit". Spicer caught on quickly and was eager to participate. NOTE: Our rescue raccoons resides in a region where there hasn't been a case of raccoon rabies for over three decades which is tracked by the local public health department. We are fortunate to be able to observe and professional work with a variety of wildlife species since we reside next to a protected wildlife preserve. Our rescue raccoons lounge and play on our terrace as well as use it as a thoroughfare. No children nor pets are ever harmed, especially the wild animals captured in these videos. Please note that none of the raccoons are our pets thus please follow your local wildlife guidelines for the safety of humans and animal wildlife alike. © Weekly Whiskers All Rights Reserved 13-IPH5
