UPI – A baby raccoon taken for a nail trim at a Petco location in Maine, United States was euthanised and checked for rabies, as investigators seek more information about the woman who had sought to groom the animal.
“The raccoon tested negative for rabies, so those who came in contact with the raccoon at Petco do not need to seek treatment,” the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife said in a news release.
Animals that are submitted for rabies testing are required to be euthanised first.
The woman, who has not been identified, took the raccoon to a Petco in the town of Auburn around 1.30pm last Tuesday where “many different people handled the raccoon and some even kissed it”, authorities said.
The store manager was ultimately alerted to the presence of the raccoon and asked the woman to leave the store before contacting the Maine Warden Service and the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention.
“It is illegal to possess wildlife in Maine, and Petco does not trim raccoon nails,” authorities said.
Raccoons are one of the most common carriers of rabies, a disease that can be lethal unless quickly treated.
