Walking a dog on a dog-friendly beach can be a fun and meaningful way to spend a few hours, but several heads were turned on September 21 when a man was spotted on a Tampa, Florida, beach walking his dog alongside a more unusual pet. It was a raccoon on a leash!<\/p>\n
Although he continued as if it were the most normal thing in the world, bystander Nina George was so stunned that she couldn’t help but take a video on her phone. Now, the sneaky raccoon<\/a> is going viral for all the right reasons: excellent leash manners, confidence on the beach, and love for their human dad. Still, some people are suspicious about whether this is even allowed at all.<\/p>\n This video only gets funnier the more I watch it! The man with the pet raccoon is as nonchalant as can be, and no one on the beach even notices that a wild animal<\/a> (well, that may be up for debate) is walking mere feet behind them. Meanwhile, Nina must have eagle eyes, because she spotted the unusual pet from the beachside restaurant!<\/p>\n “This is not news in Florida,” @reallynotakaren commented on @abcnews<\/a>‘ September 30 video. This is just Wednesday. Move along! Nothing to see here.”<\/p>\n Related: A Wild Animal With Huge Eyes and a Raccoon Tail Showed Up at a Nevada Balcony and Left Everyone Stumped<\/a><\/p>\n A surprising number of commenters felt the same way, leading me to believe there are more pet raccoons in Florida than I would expect. Certainly, the number of ‘Florida Man’ headlines<\/a> in the news should’ve been my first hint!<\/p>\n Despite the novelty of the scene, dozens of viewers expressed the same question: Is having a raccoon as a pet even legal?<\/p>\n Is It Legal To Have a Pet Raccoon?<\/p>\n Cats, dogs, and other common domesticated pets are legal for anyone to own, but it’s not so straightforward to keep wildlife as a pet<\/a>. Every state has its own laws and permits, however, so it’s essential to research the legality of unusual pets in your area.<\/p>\n In Florida, a permit is required to keep a wild animal as a personal pet, but that permit only covers keeping the animal at home, at the vet, and during transport. To bring the animal in public, a different permit from Florida Fish and Wildlife<\/a> is required.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc36<\/a>\u00a0SIGN UP to get “pawsitivity” delivered right to your inbox with inspiring & entertaining stories about our furry & feathered friends<\/a>\ud83d\udc3e\ud83d\udc3e<\/a><\/p>\n And what about leash laws? In Hillsborough County, which includes Tampa, leash laws<\/a> extend to pets of any species, including raccoons.<\/p>\n In that case, it’s nice to see that this man was being a responsible pet parent, even with an exotic pet. We could all take a few notes from him!<\/p>\n This story was originally published by PetHelpful<\/a> on Oct 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the Pet News<\/a> section. Add PetHelpful as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n