(Reuters) - A raccoon that climbed to the top of a 25-story St. Paul, Minnesota, skyscraper early on Wednesday was captured after becoming a star on the web, where it won the hearts of followers across the United States and around the globe.
"After a delicious meal of soft cat food, #mprraccoon has been caught and will be picked up by Wildlife Management. Goodbye friend!," said a Tweet issued by building management of the building, UBS Plaza.
At a little before 3 a.m. local time, the animal made it to the roof of the building after it took a hours-long break on a 17th floor window sill, according to live feed posted by local media.
Atop the building animal control officers put pungent cat food in traps, the St. Paul Pioneer-Press reported.
A reporter for the newspaper also tweeted that a private wildlife management company will release the animal "somewhere safe."
"I am so proud of this little rascal - such a fricking champ!!!!," said Dana Frazer as she watched a live feed of the raccoon's climb on Periscope, a live streaming site.
The raccoon's saga began about two days ago when the brown, masked critter was spotted stranded on a ledge of the office tower.
On Tuesday, the raccoon slowly scaled the building, reaching the 23rd floor as its legend grew on social media with every floor it climbed.
As it ascended, well-wishers gathered on the sidewalk below to take photos and root for its safety.
On Twitter, office workers posted photos and videos of the raccoon resting on sills and climbing up the building's pebbled concrete exterior.
The hashtag #mprraccoon was trending on Wednesday where fans anxiously watched developments of the raccoon's stunt.
"Way to go little raccoon. The world was watching & rooting for you!," said a Twitter user that goes by The Lockwood Echo in the United Kingdom.
One Twitter post said that the celebrity raccoon has succeeded in uniting the country the way no politician could.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee and Bernie Woodall in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
