Scoop got scooped.
The baby raccoon that spent days trapped on a window ledge at the Toronto Star building has been rescued.
Toronto firefighters worked with Toronto Wildlife Centre staff to retrieve the little fur ball Thursday afternoon.
It was a tricky manoeuvre.
The fire department backed a ladder truck onto the sidewalk outside the Starbucks near the building’s entrance. While the truck crew extended the ladder and basket towards the shivering Scoop, so nicknamed by Toronto Star staff, their colleagues stretched out a safety net and blanket below to catch the critter should he panic and fall.
Workers from the building lined the western stairwell just metres from Scoop while a crowd of around 50 passers-by formed on the sidewalk to watch the rescue.
As the rescue team approached, Scoop uncurled himself from a tight ball and peered over the ledge.
A wildlife centre staff member, accompanied in the fire truck bucket by two firefighters, threw a large net over the little raccoon, and dragged him free of the ledge. Scoop fought back, but was eventually lifted to safety.
Wildlife centre staff on scene would not say what will happen to the little critter now that he’s been rescued. Calls to the centre’s spokesperson were not immediately returned.
“He’s pretty stressed out,” said one worker, who would not give her name.
Security staff at the building said they first noticed Scoop on Tuesday, and contacted the Toronto Wildlife Centre to help bring the animal down to safety.
The centre initially decided to postpone the rescue for a couple of days, hoping the baby raccoon would find a way down itself as the building material, which appears to be gravel-like, should be easy for the species to climb.
On Wednesday afternoon, the raccoon made several attempts throughout the day to lower itself back down to the ground, but slipped dangerously and nearly fell several times before finding refuge in the corner of the ledge, closer to the window.
 |
| Poor little guy . |