Dad is smiling?  

Yes, when I was little my mom had a chipmunk. He was always loose in the house.. I remember him having a cage with the door open so he could come and go. He liked perching on the planter in the house. One day I tried to pick him up when he didn't want me to and he bit me. He finally died, I don't remember if it was from old age or what.

I know how you feel about that racoon. My uncle used to have one as an outdoor pet. He had an open home made cage up in the fork of the tree up high in his yard.. he would put food up there for it.

I'm glad your dad enjoyed the contact with the raccoon.. fur-babies of all kind just perk a person up.

That's great that your dad got such joy from the racoon. We aren't allowed to keep wild animals as pets here in IL so, no, we never had one. Hubby wants a baby skunk but no can do.

That's great. Yeah, I have 4 furry dogs and they bring many smiles to me too. So, I guess Minnie figured out it was a girl raccoon. I like the name "Missy".

aww..well no doubt about it...maybe you need to get some kind of pet for your dad...how about a little kitten or would Buster be too jealous? He does look very happy though
For awhile there I was taking care of baby birds..sparrows, one I adopted as a pet and named him Chippy, and cause he was never too strong enough to let him go is the reason I kept him..then one time I "adopted" a starling that for some reason couldn't fly...there was nothing wrong with him either...no broken wings or legs...he just couldn't fly--every time he did try the silly bird, Arnie I called him, would fall over backwards.

It's great what a animal or child can do to anyone's attitude. I'm glad he smiled, he genuinely looked happy. But taunting your dad like that, you should be ashamed... lol i'm kidding about that.

I was actually going to say that I hadn't had a "wild" animal but I suppose I have had a "wild" animal... maybe not in the same sense of the word.

A frog, yes I had a frog. I think it was a bullfrog but I'm not sure, it was a big frog.... and he was a nice pet, I don't remember what we called him but I remembered that my dad accidentally killed the frog by slamming the door open one time.

it's been so nice to hear something great about your dad..i myself will laugh out loud if i was your dad..that was so tickling even when my dog is licking me on my ears i laugh out loud..he he..the only wild animal i had before was a ferret, FOXY, i called her foxy because she looks like a fox..at first she bit me when i first got her..then she got friendly, and oh i also had my monkey too..i almost forgot about her..they get along together..

hi Grandpa Bob thats great news about your dad, and no I never had a wild animal as a pet. Right now we feed the sparrows finches and blackbirds streaming onto our balcony, its like an airport with arrivals and departures. The balcony table is a mess with bird food all over as they sort it out of the bowl, everyone to own tastes and the rest lands on the floor.........
We consider them our pets and I would like to have a tame sparrow, a friend once had one and it had a nice long birdie life in her household.

Not necessarly what I consider wild, like raccoons or squirrels, but my hubby does like to collect fence lizards, and you know those are smart little buggers! They love to be held, and petted once they get used to you. The only part I don't like is their favorite meal is moths, and I had to help catch them to feed the lizards. I know though that if it was me catching them or the lizards doing it naturally outside, it would still happen, survival of the fitess and all that.

yes, it looks like he is really happy..although i never tried having wild animals as pets...only dogs...

I can say I've had a "wild" animal as a pet. Growing up we raised hogs and I trained them. They all had names and would come to me if I called them. When we'd have to move them from one pen to the next I was the lead person because they'd follow me anywhere.

Friends of ours had a racoon, even went to the vet to get it's shots. It was a funny little thing, but got tempermental as it got older and they had to let it go. It still hang out by their farm place, but it would distroy the house at night (in the garbage, etc). I think that natural instincts kicked in and they let it be an outside pet then.

Other than that I worked with a family that lived with rabbits. They kept them in the house, they used a litter box even. I don't think I could do that. Living with housecats, I just don't see a rabbit as being able to clean themselves enough to be in the house all the time.