company wildlife or wildlife company?

I’ve got a new story for the Misadventures of Tiffany. Pour yourself a cup of coffee and settle into your favorite comfy chair, and I’ll tell you all about it.

I was on my lunch break. We get twenty minutes. We aren’t allowed to leave the property. I was outside, alone at the picnic table. I’d finished eating and was just staring off into space.

Suddenly, something plowed into my left leg. It felt like when Loki (our nearly 16 pound cat) plows into me. I’m not sure what I expected to see when I looked down. One of the many shop cats I’ve seen around, I suppose.

I wasn’t expecting the cute little face that looked up at me in shock. I don’t think he was expecting me either, though. He was a chubby little raccoon with very fluffy brown and gray fur. I wish I’d had the presence of mind to photograph him.

I froze looking at him looking at me. He froze looking at me looking at him. After a few seconds that felt like very long minutes I greeted him.

“Oh, hello there little fella.”

That’s what you do when you encounter wildlife, right? Sit very still and talk to them like you’ve known them forever. That’s what I did. Then, I encouraged him to move along.

He retreated about 6 feet and turned around, peering at me expectantly. I discouraged him from returning to my side. He retreated another 7 or so feet before turning back to me again.

“Go on, little guy,” I encouraged.

He finally turned around and ran off alongside the warehouse. I secured my mask and safety glasses, gathered my things together, and headed inside (cutting my lunch short 5 minutes).

My heart was pounding in my chest. I’ve never been so close to a raccoon in my life.

Do you have a wildlife encounter story to tell?