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#DeadRaccoonTO: Torontonians mourn fallen furry friend on sidewalk and social media
The Canadian Press and Globe staff

This article was published more than 8 years ago. Some information may no longer be current.

Toronto may have famously declared war on “raccoon nation” this spring, but on Thursday, Torontonians showed touching sympathy for a fallen enemy.

The first tweet about a dead raccoon on the sidewalk at Yonge and Church Streets was posted at about 9 a.m., prompting a quick response from the city that Animal Services had been notified.

But as day turned to night, the raccoon remained on its back on the sidewalk, prompting a makeshift memorial as more users tweeted about the animal – soon dubbed “Conrad” – under the hashtag #DeadRaccoonTO.

Flowers and notes continued to pile up more than 12 hours after the initial post and even city councillor Norm Kelly chimed in with several tweets urging the city to remove the raccoon.

Finally, at about 11 p.m., a city worker removed the animal and left the makeshift memorial intact.