When a baby raccoon fell out of a tree and into Rosie Kemp’s backyard, she didn’t know that the animal would become part of her family, and a good friend to her daughter’s two rescue dogs.
Pumpkin, as they’ve come to call her, was only one month old when she fell into Kemp’s yard in the Bahamian capital of Nassau, and had a broken hind leg, according to CBS. After waiting for half an hour, Kemp and her daughter, Laura Young, realized Pumpkin had been abandoned by her mother.
Since the Bahamas Humane Society could not care for her and local law does not bar families from owning raccoons if they are properly vaccinated, the Young family decided to take her in.
Young told CBS that they “love her dearly”. She said that Pumpkin “is a cheeky little thing” but also “so wonderful and highly intelligent and always very entertaining”.
“Raising her was [and still is] a full-time job,” Young said. “They are so unbelievably intelligent, very aware, and I would say they are even able to express emotions.”
But the human members of the family weren’t the only ones who warmed up to their unexpected houseguest. The family’s two dogs, Toffee and Oreo, quickly formed a friendship with Pumpkin.
“Pumpkin considers the dogs her mums,” Young told CBS. “She respects them when they have had enough rough play and she loves to cuddle next to them when she is tired.”
The Young family has shared Pumpkin’s daily life with the public through various social media accounts. Her Instagram account has over 137,000 followers.
The pictures show Pumpkin doing everything from enjoying some watermelon, to reading a letter from a fan, to playing with some shoes. And many of the photos show her cuddling with her canine pals.
