A woman showed up frantic at an Indiana fire station last week seeking help for her pet raccoon—who apparently was stoned out of its poor little mind.
Firefighters at Station 82 in Wayne Township were “awakened at 2am last week to a person seeking treatment for her pet raccoon,” the department explained on social media. “What was his illness you ask? The raccoon had smoked too much weed.”
Story of the day! Our FF’s at Station 82 were awakened at 2 am last week to a person seeking treatment for her pet Raccoon. What was his illness you ask? The raccoon had smoked too much weed. Yes! It happened! As much as we love animals, there wasn’t much they could do. pic.twitter.com/lypHvrBZSJ
— Wayne Township Fire Department (@Waynetwpfire) April 16, 2018
Fire department spokesman Michael Pruitt told the Washington Post that there wasn’t much firefighters could do to help the creature, who was a little early to celebrating 4/20.
“We typically love to help, especially when it comes to animals. We have a lot of animal lovers in the fire service,” Pruitt said. “But in this case, they just recommended, ‘Hey, the raccoon is going to have to sleep it off.’”
According to the Post, the woman said the raccoon had gotten into someone else’s weed stash—which is convenient since marijuana use isn’t legal in any form in Indiana. Pruitt joked that the animal had “moved from Colorado, and he didn’t know.”
On Facebook, concerned commenters inquired whether the firefighters had provided the proper antidote to munchies.
It’s unclear whether the raccoon was given a snack, but as the Post noted, firefighters were right to recommend sleep. Veterinarians say as more states legalize marijuana and edibles become abundant, more pets—especially dogs—are ingesting the drug. Luckily, a trip isn’t usually fatal.
The stoned raccoon brought up another concern for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, who wanted to know if the woman had the state-required permit for keeping a raccoon as a pet. But, firefighters said, that’s honestly not their problem.
“We’re not in the business of policing who has permits for their animals and who does not,” Pruitt said. “We do not expect her or the raccoon to come out of the woodwork to claim credit for the story.”
H/T Washington Post