The daredevil raccoon that became an internet sensation after its incredible journey scaling a 25-story office tower in Minnesota has been safely trapped and will be released.
Firefighters left cat food on the top of the building in the hope of being able to catch the animal safely, and on Wednesday morning, the raccoon finally made it after its two-day climbing adventure.
‘After a delicious meal of soft cat food, #mpraccoon has been caught and will be picked up by Wildlife Management. Goodbye friend!’ UBS Plaza tweeted shortly before the critter was captured.
The animal was caught in a live trap on top of the UBS Plaza in St Paul, according to Chelsey DeMers, the assistant general manager of Wildlife Management Services.
A raccoon (pictured) that became an internet sensation after its incredible journey climbing a 25-story office tower in Minnesota has been safely trapped and will be released. This photo was tweeted by UBS Plaza after the raccoon had been trapped
Firefighters left cat food on the top of the building in the hope of being able to catch the animal safely, and on Wednesday morning, the raccoon finally made it after its two-day climbing adventure
The animal was caught in a live trap on top of the UBS Plaza in St Paul, according to Chelsey DeMers, the assistant general manager of Wildlife Management Services
Miraculously, the raccoon made it to the roof (pictured) early Wednesday, where the baited traps were waiting
The raccoon was loaded in the back of a Wildlife Management Services pickup truck in the loading dock of the UBS Plaza
DeMers said the raccoon is in good condition and is eating.
The raccoon actually devoured two cans of cat food on its way to be released ‘somewhere safe’.
A company technician is expected to set the animal free at a site yet to be determined.
DeMers said the company would need permission to release it on public property, but could also set it free on private property north of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul.
The raccoon’s adventures caused a stir on social media as it scaled the tower Tuesday, with many Twitter users voicing concern for its safety or joking about the drama as its climb was livestreamed by several broadcasters.
But miraculously, the raccoon made it to the roof early Wednesday, where the baited traps were waiting.
And many of those Twitter users were able to breathe easy after they found out the raccoon was rescued after it safely made it to the roof.
Several Twitter users were able to breathe easy after they found out the raccoon was rescued after it safely made it to the roof
‘My dead heart upon hearing that the #mpraccoon is safe,’ one user tweeted.
Another wrote: ‘Can we please have a victory parade for #mpraccoon.’
Others joked that President Donald Trump invited the #mpraccoon to the White House but it ‘declined the invitation’.
While a few others compared the critter to Rocket from the Guardians of the Galaxy.
‘GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL.3 set photo leaked! #mpraccoon,’ one person tweeted.
Some saw the raccoon’s adventures as: ‘One small step for raccoons. One giant step for raccoonkind.’
The raccoon became so popular that it was even out-trending the landmark Singapore summit where President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un came face-to-face.
Others joked that President Donald Trump invited the #mpraccoon to the White House but it ‘declined the invitation’
While a few others compared the critter to Rocket from the Guardians of the Galaxy
Some saw the raccoon’s adventures as: ‘One small step for raccoons. One giant step for raccoonkind’
Nearby Minnesota Public Radio, which broke the story and closely followed the raccoon’s climb from its headquarters less than a block away, branded the animal #mprraccoon.
Video from the station also shows the nocturnal mammal being hauled away inside a cage by two technicians.
Police said they believed the raccoon would have begun its journey up the building on Monday night, and by Tuesday afternoon, it had stopped on a ledge more than 20 stories high.
The raccoon was first spotted on a ledge Tuesday morning, just a few stories high.
St Paul Animal Control said it believed it may have been there all night before it started heading skyward.
A journalist for Minnesota Public Radio, which has been reporting on the woodland creature’s progress, said that the raccoon started its climb on Monday.
The raccoon’s adventures caused a stir on social media as it scaled the tower Tuesday, with many Twitter users voicing concern for its safety or joking about the drama as its climb was livestreamed by several broadcasters
Nearby Minnesota Public Radio, which broke the story and closely followed the raccoon’s climb up the UBS building (pictured) from its headquarters less than a block away, branded the animal #mprraccoon
The raccoon’s adventure up the building on Tuesday interrupted work and caused anxiety for some onlookers
At one point, the raccoon decided to chill on the ledge before continuing his climb upward
Video shows the daredevil raccoon (pictured) climbing the building on Tuesday night
The reporter, Tim Nelson, tweeted that the raccoon ‘got itself stranded on a ledge…like on an errant mission to raid pigeon nests on the skyway’ over 7th Street in St Paul.
The story of the climbing raccoon soon went viral, with social media users tracking the animal’s adventure up the tower online with the hashtag #mprraccoon.
Many called for emergency services to step in to try to save the raccoon, prompting animal control workers to embark on a mission to try to coax the raccoon to the roof using cat food.
Workers at the building built a makeshift ladder to try to bring the raccoon down to safety.
This likely spurred the raccoon to keep climbing.
The raccoon seemed to have no fear as he scaled the building
The critter decided to take a break and stretch out on a windowsill during his courageous climb
By Tuesday afternoon, it had stopped on a ledge more than 20 stories high
At a time of great division in America, there seemed to be unanimous support for the raccoon’s safety. Pedestrians below look up at the raccoon in St. Paul on Tuesday
Nearby Minnesota Public Radio branded the raccoon with the hashtag #mprraccoon on Tuesday
Several Twitter users expressed how stressed out they were as they watched the raccoon cling to the side of the tower.
‘Mood: I am stressed about a lot of unknowns, and I am crying about a raccoon trapped on the ledge of a building in Minneapolis. WILL IT BE OKAY?! #mprraccoon,’ one user wrote.
‘So stressed about #mpraccoon come on lil guy you got this!’ another user tweeted before the critter made it safely to the roof.
Experts said that raccoons normally climb structures when they sense they are in trouble.
Most urban wildlife like raccoons can last between seven to ten days without food or water.
On Tuesday, several Twitter users expressed how stressed out they were as they watched the raccoon cling to the side of the tower
