Raccoons: when they're not breaking into Brooklyn brownstones, they're... breaking into Brooklyn brownstones. Previously it was unknown what they wanted in these brownstones: organic food from the Co-op? A copy of Freedom? But in light of a recent incident, we can say with confidence that these raccoons are after the cats.
Park Slope Patch tells the tale of Brooklynite Justin Hogan, and the grisly scene he walked into upon returning home one recent morning. Last week, Hogan entered his 3rd Street apartment and noticed a screen was torn out of the window frame, looking down he saw bloody paw prints, and then... his 6-month-old tabby Nigel lying lifeless in the bathtub (heartbreakingly noting that the tub is where the kitten would go when he was scared).
Hogan described the scene as "gruesome, like blood-spattered-on-the-wall gruesome." He believes a raccoon is the prime suspect, due to the bloody paw marks and claw marks all over a shredded bag of cat treats. He believes it got there by climbing a tree onto the roof just below his window. The press officer with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation says, "It is unusual for a raccoon to kill a cat. Very unusual. It does sound like something was wrong with this raccoon for this to happen, and most likely that would be rabies." (The borough is the new hot spot for rabid raccoons.)
To wash away this horrific scene from our mind, let's watch this clip of Alf... who joked about eating cats but never actually followed through with it (at least, not in the Tanner household). Follow his lead, raccoons.
