12/03/2025
ANOTHER RACCOON IS FOUND DRUNK;
THIS ONE BY A LIQUOR STORE TOILET
It’s almost enough to make you wonder whether raccoons get angry after learning one of their own gets national attention when they don’t. How else to explain a second raccoon — this one from the neighboring state of Virginia — gaining a few minutes of fame for itself after it was found unconscious in the bathroom of a liquor store that had been closed for the night?
Is there such a thing as a “copycat ’coon”? No, that would be preposterous. But it’s still interesting to learn that for the second time in less than four months a raccoon got into something it shouldn’t have and was found passed-out drunk as a result.
If you’ll recall, a young raccoon named “Otis” became one of the nation’s favorite critters in late August after Letcher County Health Department workers found it unconscious and in danger of drowning as it slept at the bottom of a dumpster in downtown Whitesburg. After a health department nurse helped the raccoon regain consciousness, it was taken to the offices of Isom veterinarian Ben Cornett, who realized it wasn’t sick, but was drunk.
Later, it was determined the raccoon got its buzz by eating fermented fruit that bagged up and tossed away after being used to make peach-flavored moonshine at the Kentucky Mist Distillery.
Not to be outdone, the raccoon from Virginia found its way inside a liquor store this past Friday night (November 28) and got so**ed after smashing bottles of booze and drinking some of what spilled out on the liquor store’s lower shelves.
On Saturday morning (November 29), an employee opened the Ashland, Virginia-area store and was greeted by smashed bottles, a collapsed ceiling tile, and alcohol pooled on the floor. She also found the raccoon, passed-out drunk on the bathroom floor.
“I personally like raccoons,” said Samantha Martin, an officer who works at the local animal control. "They are funny little critters. He fell through one of the ceiling tiles and went on a full-blown rampage, drinking everything.”
Martin said she took the raccoon back to the animal shelter, though she had her fair share of giggles along the way.
“Another day in the life of an animal control officer, I guess,” she said.
The Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter commended Martin for handling the break-in and confirmed the raccoon had sobered up.
“After a few hours of sleep and zero signs of injury (other than maybe a hangover and poor life choices), he was safely released back to the wild, hopefully having learned that breaking and entering is not the answer,” the agency said.
With Ashland, Virginia being located more than 370 miles from border that separates Letcher County, Ky., from Wise County, Va., it would be beyond ridiculous to believe raccoons could talk. It would be even more absurd to believe “Otis” could have hitched a ride and made the six-hour trip from Whitesburg to a suburb of Richmond, Va., to brag to other raccoons about all the attention he got in August. But it’s still fun to think about.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report. The AP also distributed the two photos accompanying this story. The photos, taken by animal control officer Samantha Martin, show the drunk raccoon passed out in the liquor store’s bathroom as well as the damage the masked marauder inflicted on the store located in Ashland, Va.)
