Last June, Twitter user Chibi_tori discovered an abandoned tanuki, rescued him, and has since prompted the world to fall in love with this breed. Despite the fact that many believe tanukis to be badgers or raccoons, they're actually a Japanese raccoon dog (though they're not closely related to raccoons and only look like them). After saving his very own tanuki, Chibi_tori decided to call him Tanu for short and, over the course of the last few months, has learned a lot about these creatures.
On Tanu's Twitter account, his human posts photos showing followers that tanukis actually hibernate during the winter months. In other words, there's a lot of downtime involved. Once he's done resting, Tanu also enjoys eating a wide variety of foods and he's obsessed with a little stove that helps to keep him warm. Interestingly enough, tanukis don't bark–they instead have a high-pitched whine or growl like a fox. So while it may not always be quiet in Tanu's home, it seems like he provides his human friend with plenty of adorable moments.
All photos via Chibi_tori.
