Japanese raccoon dog

Raccoon Dog by Jirí Míchal-- The raccoon dog, also known as the mangut or tanuki, is a canid indigenous to East Asia. It's named that because it resembles a racoon, but it is not one.

I like the composition of this picture...

Raccoon Dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides) endemic to East Asia and endangered

A photograph of a tanuki.

racoon dog

The tanuki or Japanese raccoon dog has been significant in Japanese folklore since ancient times. The legendary tanuki is reputed to be mischievous and jolly, a master of disguise and shapeshifting, but somewhat gullible and absentminded. It is also a common theme in Japanese art, especially statuary. Compared with kitsune (foxes), which are the epitome of shape-changing animals, there is the saying that "the fox has seven disguises, the tanuki has eight (狐七化け、狸八化け)".