Scientific name Procyon lotor
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Up to 26kg 
Wow ! I did not know thatā¦ What a magnificent creature, and some pretty awesome bush/forest you have there too 
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Racoons are amazing animals. They are very intelligent. https://www.pest-control-products.net/961/raccoons/twenty-essential-facts-about-raccoons/
Some people keep them as pets, although I donāt think they domesticate very well.
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Many years ago, there was a manga with a racoon character that was popular in Japan. Some entrepreneurs decided to capitalize on this started importing racoons and selling them as pets. Many people who got one ended up abandoning them. The racoons were very successful at adapting to Japan, and have caused some problems for the local version of racoons, tanukis.
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I didnāt know bats are/can be like this. 
Will be less scared of them from now on. 
Also, people who are this dedicated to take care of various animals really brings Metta to the heart. 
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I didnāt know bats could be so affectionate! Or live such long lives. Itās amazing how learning just a little bit about other beings can open your heart to them. Thank you so much for sharing this! 
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unfortunately Patrick is in the process of devouring Spongebobā¦
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I had no idea that SpongeBob was REAL.
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āOne does not meet oneself until one catches the reflection from an eye other than humanā.
My cat, Joan Jones.
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I have a LOT of snakes where I live. My front verandah, and main door, has become a bit of a snake ānurseryā in the last few yearsā¦
The first pic is of a baby copperhead, about 6 months old. So cuteā¦
The second is of a Tiger snake about 3 years old. He started out just like the other one. But he has the worst attitude of any of the snakes around here and this bad attitude has persistedā¦ nicknamed the ājuvenile delinquentā. He feels he owns the place, and unlike regular snakes refuses to move and even strikes. You can see the dog checking him out through the window. I had hoped heād moved on as he grew older, but noā¦
A couple of days ago, both were there at the same time, and the dog really wasnāt happyā¦ even i found 2 snakes at once on my doorstep a bit much! And it is just extremely dangerous for the dog, in his favourite snoozing spot.
So i captured and relocated the Tiger a few kmās away. Itās the first time Iāve done this in the 20 years that Iāve been living hereā¦
It is an interesting thing to live with all the wild creatures, large and small, cute and deadly allā¦
Added: 
I uploaded the pics from my phone and for some reason theyāve come out sideways and upside down I canāt seem to fix it.
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So what I took to be a paling fence is probably floorboards. 
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With a bident and a sack?
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Yes 
the pic is upside-down, it is the ādeckā of the verandah. Thatās why the baby snakes love it, they sneak up through the gaps and sunbake against the glass door/window. It is the perfect nursery, because there are also heaps of baby frogs under the verandah 
Re: Bident
Iād never use a tool like the bident. If you want to catch them, the best method is to catch them by the tail with your handā¦ One can use a snake hook as an assist. In tricky situations where they are not in the open, and it isnāt safe, then one uses snake tongs. I bought some specially last summer, knowing that this boy would have to be moved if he didnāt just leave on his own. I use a plastic garden rake if I just want to deflect them.
I used to be terrified of them, but pretty quickly I realised that if I wanted to live here, I had to get over that! So I undertook a venomous snake handling courseā¦ Probably one of the hardest things Iāve ever done. I think I lost 5kg in sheer nervous sweat 
It is mostly practicalā¦ catching deadly snakes and bagging them 
And then slowly reconditioned myselfā¦ including years of actively giving metta to them whenever I saw one - trying not to faint I can honestly now say that the fear about snakes comes from lack of knowledge , and fantasising about all the bad things.
I normally live happily with the snakes now, and we treat each other with respectā¦ I have numerous big males who live in set places like under the bungalow, under the laundry, in various wood piles etc and they are pretty predictable re their movements etc but this one was different. I have to say that the adrenalin was pumping ā¦ itās the first time Iāve ever used tongsā¦ and itās very different to engage with one. Mistakes have consequencesā¦
So I placed him in a bin, secured it to the back of the ute, and found him a lovely new homeā¦ Unfortunately, in the country here, the prevalent attitude/conditioning is āthe only good snake is a dead snakeā 
So I made a point of including a picture of a snake on my Sanctuary sign 
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last indulgence in snake storiesā¦ This big Tiger snake lives under the bungalow.
His name is Ssssariputa - Definitely worthy of respect 
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Youāre brave! Iāve been taught (but never had to put the teaching into practice) that the safest place to pic them up is where their neck should be ā¦ it stops the head doing a U-turn and coming back to bite one.
EDIT @viveka: yesterday I read your post too fast and missed the Official Snake School bit: so sorry 
. Did your instructors debunk the U-Turn Theory completely?
ā¦ Iāve been waiting over a week to use bident in a sentence of my own.
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After a collision, I took my car to a body shop and said bye, dent.
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Was it the US Presidentās car that crashed into yours? 
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Good Morning, Happy Friday 
I took this pic a few minutes ago 
A group of 20 Bucks (male deer) grazing and testing each other with antler butting competitions
The interesting thing is that the 2 species of deer, fallow and samba (both introduced), are happily interbreeding and there are so many variations in colour, size and antlers as a result. There are also occasional pure white ones. I have a Buck that has been living here (not the one in the pic) for about 6 years who is pure white - a majestic Stag. 
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