Rescued Baby Raccoon Learns How To Swim With Dad | The Dodo Wild Hearts 

Let me never have to rescue a wild animal. I don't have the courage to let go. I would love them like my own flesh and blood. Thank you for caring for Smokey and letting him go!

I really don't know why raccoons have such a bad rep. They are freaking adorable and so damn smart! Thank you for saving this little bean ♥️

You were the perfect FOSTER parents for him. You knew from the start he was only a temporary family member and you gave him all the love, nourishment, care and most of all LIFE SKILLS needed for him to be released into his natural environment - truely selfless - what an amazing family you are. You have given Smokey the best chance of living happily in the woods where he was meant to be. Thankyou for putting his needs above your own (something rare these days) x

My mom adopted a baby raccoon when I was 11 years old. That raccoon followed me around like a dog for like 10 years. Best friend I ever had.

This is the best executed catch and release I've ever seen. Took as little time as possible, taught him to forage for food, fish, climb, swim, and then made sure he was comfortable in the area they planned to release him. Very well done, my hat off to the couple, I'm sure Rocky will live a full, and happy life in the wild!

Sometimes, when I've had enough of the things that are happening in the world, I turn to The Dodo to bring hope and joy back into my life

I think this is the best process I've seen for getting a wild baby prepared for being released into its natural environment. Awesome! I love what Cindy and her husband did with and for this furry baby.

You two did a GREAT thing with Smokey....you did everything right to keep his wild instincts instilled in him so he could survive on his own....BRAVO TO BOTH OF YOU!!!!

What fantastic people, knowing exactly how to care for him and what he needed. 🥰🥰❤️

The fact that they released him back into the wild is what truly makes this video great. Some animals are just not meant to be pets.

You are a great parent! Teaching all the right things step by step!

Thank you for saving him. You gave him the best start possible. Hope he lives happily ever after in the wild.

Aww I respect this soo much ..

God bless you both you did a great job

Such precious little animals. Thank you for taking care and letting them return to the wild 💖

Smart 3 months with Smokey. Good for you to let him be wild. Maybe he'll visit you someday, I've heard of that happening.

They don't just feel things with their hands. The nerves are so numerous on their hands they are believed to be able to taste with their hands, especially in water.

I know he is wild but I would miss him so much. He's so cute.

I have a raccoon that climbs a tree limb outside my window and watches netflix with me lol. One of these days I'm expecting him to tap on the window and ask for the remote. He's so dam cute I can never tell him to go away.

So cuty baby raccoon thank you for helping them❤👍

Thanks for taking care of Smokey and teaching him how to be on his own.

Omg soo cute! You 2 are the best for saving this little guy! Raccoons are very smart. You did it the right way. So precious he was. Thank you 🦝❤

Raccoons are very smart and can learn all kinds of things.

You guys are the best foster parent, i would not have been able to let him go, no way!

What a heartwarming video! Thank you for taking such great care of this raccoon. Thank you for sharing this beautiful video!!! 😍

Thanks for saving him

_"I turned my backyard deck into_ _a giant playpen"_ Thank you for the effort you put in to ensure that he was comfortable 🙏❤️

Aww. I hope he finds a group of raccoons to be friends with. He’s so used to interaction, I don’t want him to be alone

Great job on taking care of Smokey. He is going to have a happy life thanks to the caring people who rescued and raised him.

People who foster/rehabilitate wild animals have such huge hearts 🥺 for them to give so much care and love to animals who will eventually be released is such as selfless thing to do. You guys are amazing!!!

Thanks for releasing Smokey to the wild Cindy. Your heart must be torn during the time he was going away.

Looks like you did everything right. Thank you.

Such a cutie. I loved how Smokey slipped down the rail and then upside down to the ground, lol. ❤️👏🦝

I have cousins who lived out in the country and have had raccoons as pets since they were young, they would play with them outside and feed them. As they approached puberty they would get more independent and stay away longer until they would only come around every few months or so, always friendly.

Wonderful! Thank you for rescuing dan releasing him back to the wild!

Thank you for saving him, but I couldn’t let him go! Not completely, I go back everyday to check on him! 😃

So beautiful to see so much care for the animal! Congrats!

I'm sorry the other little raccoon didn't make it, but I'm very glad that these nice, patient people helped Smokey.

You guys are great! Thank you so much for doing what you did for smokey! The time, the love, the dedication and commitment that you put in is so admirable, and appreciated! Thank you! May you be blessed 10,000-fold!

Their so sweet

Very heartwarming, Smokey's raising & release (sad about his sbiling). Many thanks to all involved. ❤

Smokey is so cute 😁

Good decision you kept him outside. I think he learned faster because of that.

Menomale esistono ancora persone che amano i Animali grazie ❤️❤️❤️

Awe they grow up so fast 😢 I don't know if I could let them go

What a great job! He is truly wild! That had to be a lot of work. Bless you

They are so adorable wen they run

The hardest part is always letting go; fighting that urge to look back. But it’s all worth it when you realize you helped give them a second chance at life 😁

So cute thanks for rescuing him I am sorry for your loss that is awful😭😿 it is amazing how many animals can be rescued by second😺💕🦝

thank you so much for getting this little sweetheart ready for the wild 🤗

Look how cute.

So cute

God bless you for saving him and giving him a chance for a life 💙

That's the way to rescue!!

Love this! I raised two baby raccoons a couple of years ago, and our 'release' was right in our back yard - it's acres of woods back there with a stream. We have a trail cam set up and every now and then we see them on it, but it's been two years since we saw them 'in person'. They were still hanging out together for quite a while, and then we saw four recently... so that's interesting!

Perfect! That's the way to do it, when you're thrown a wild curve ball 😊

So cute little animal, thanks you for taking them

Love this 😘

While it's nice to eventually release a wild animal, still it would be nice to *visit him* once in awhile though.

The day Smokey met this kind, resourceful couple was the best day of his life, the life he wouldn’t have had otherwise.

Fabulous people you are xx

Rescue people have hearts of gold and titanium.

💖💖💖

I have a feeling he'll be visiting you every so often. Racoons are one of those animals that don't forget. Especially if they know a good spot for food and safety.

The first time I saw them “THEIR SO FLUFFY!!!” 🦝 I went full on Agnus 🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄

That must have been hard to let this adorable little creature go.

I know it's the right thing, but I must admit I really couldn't do the letting go. Watching Smokey walk away would've broken my heart.

Don’t you think he was stressed by not seeing the people that raised him ???

I love raccoons so much

Good job acclimating Smokey to the wild and independence. You did a fine job.

I've thought about keeping a raccoon but it's a wild animal. It belongs outside in the wild no matter how cool they look. I'll try to friend one up tho 😆

Da igual que sean cachorros de gato de zorro de mapache, de cualquiera, TODOS DISFRUTAN DESCUBRIENDO EL MUNDO NUEVO

How wonderful to see such smart people rescuing an animal, understanding that it's not a pet. ❤❤❤

I know Cindy. She has rehabbed/saved a lot of animals and she holds so much love for them and other humans. I was waiting for her to appear on the Dodo one day!

His trust of humans could easily be his demise,I would let him live with me with total access to the forest,I'm not a racoon so how could I possibly know if being left alone after being raised by people is the best decision

So incredibly cute. Love it 😊.

So sorry the mother was not around and the other little baby died. This baby is adorable. Thank you for helping Smokey learn and then live his own life.

I love racoons. I live in the city but they pass by & eat cat kibble. I've had baby racoons come inside my apartment & it looked like a tornado hit the place!! My cats don't bother them & vice versa. Their paws have all their tactile sensors....I think all creatures are lovely. Better than people, any day!!! Thanks for sharing & caring,❤️

So sweet and thank you for caring for him. I just love my adopted work fur kids, the kits have grown but will come and hang with me every shift. I just love them.

OMG It’s so cute

Thank you so much for helping Smokey. You did such a good job! What a beautiful raccoon! I hope Smokey does well.

💞😍

Your story is so magical..I love raccoons❤ we have a family of 3 that comes to our neighbors home, bc she has lots n lots of fruit tree plus she has some cats so there's always kibbles out in the backyard. But they normally show up in late July n then their gone in Dec. It's a trip bc our neighbors have all kinds of different trees n they always make a din in the same tree ur after ur n this has been going on for st least 10yrs now. So to watch them up close is priceless. We would at nite feed them cereal n Banana or other things so they got use to us. I too could not just let them go after 3mon6of caring for them. But u guys r a blessing, esp7aftet he loss his sibling. Who knows don't be surprise if he shows up at ur place again.❤🙏🤞

You are amazing my uncle was a cop and rescued one in the late 70’s he was so cute he did not release him though we loved him but it’s better for them to love a natural life!!!! ❤

My heart would rip if I had to release something so cute like that

it's really hard to let an animal go into the wild but you're right it is a wild animal and that's what's good for the animal and you stayed strong well it happened good job!!!!

What a phenomenal and selfless thing you did for Smokey! I’m sure it was very hard to see him go but wow- what a good and right thing to do!

Thank you so much for taking care of Smokey. I have always loved raccoons.

Thank you for putting him back in nature. Please people, don't keep wild animals as pets. There are more than enough cats and dogs in shelters that will make wonderful companions.

I love your story and want to thank you for caring for this adorable baby.Great job.

I miss my baby racoon.

🍃🐾❤🐾🍃Well done!

You both did a wonderful job being foster parents , great video.

Beautiful story. Thank you for helping our animal friends. It looks like it took a lot of dedication and time.

U R an amazing couple--thank you for saving him and training him

Adorable very very cutie

I just love this video and story and this raccoon 🦝

IMO you guys did an outstanding job to get him acclimated back to the wild. That being said. I think it is up to the animal if they want to be in the wild or live with you. Domesticated dogs can go feral faster than you think. That doesn't mean that is what they want vs living with a human. That means it is what they have to do to survive in the wild. Not to say that most wild animals should live in the wild. That is their nature for the majority.

The pain of separation must be overtaken by the knowledge of what's best for him. God bless you both ! 😇

Yrs ago I lived w/a couple roomies right at a docking area at the bay to the ocean. One found a baby raccoon pretty weak in some brush. Left it till the next day, thinking maybe mom would be by. Nope. So brought ‘Rocky’ up to our 2nd floor back deck & we made an area for him w/fresh water & food, bricks, rocks & branches. One of us slept in a lounge chair the first 2 nights w/Rocky. He seemed OK & stronger after eating, so we just left him there, always making sure he had 2 big bowls of fresh water & food. 1 bowl was for him to wash in, & wash food in, if he wanted to. They are clean animals who like to bathe themselv & wash for before eating. He was great to watch doing both! A couple of us worked at a seafood rest, so lots of good leftovers came daily for Rocky. He was very friendly w/us. And during the day, would be sleeping, or come out to connect w/us, sitting in the chair or being wrapped around a shoulder. We didn’t tell ppl he was there. A few who knew, he was wary of, so that was good. He would hide, or vacate. He never went inside. After several weeks, he wasn’t always there during the day anymore. He was climbing up/down the deck & getting more independent from us. By sept, he just never came back. We kept leaving a little food, but it was rarely disturbed/eaten. We figured he had found a mate & had learned to be a raccoon on his own, from instinct. Which is what we hoped for. We missed Rocky, but we were glad he grew independent from us & was living his coon life elsewhere. We left the apt late Oct, & he had not returned in a month by then. So, the Summer of ‘Rocky’ was a fond memory. We all have pics of him w/us as a youngster, enjoying our company as he grew up on our long deck, at the inlet/bay. ♥ Rock on, Rocky!. 🦝🦝