A heavy-set, fox-like wild dog of East Asia, named for its raccoon-like face. Unusually for a dog, it hibernates through cold winters and can climb trees. It was brought to Europe for the fur trade and has spread so widely that the EU now lists it as invasive.
Quick answers
What is it?Mammal
Carnivore?Omnivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Night
Mainly nocturnal.
Hibernates?Yes
The only member of the dog family known to hibernate, putting on fat in early winter to get through it.
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?In places
Eaten in Japan, where its fur is also used for calligraphy brushes.
At a glance
Found inAsia, Europe
ColoursBrown, Black, Grey
SizeSmall
Length45–71 cm (total length)
WeightAbout 3 kg in March; males 6.5–7 kg by late summer
Legs4
Covered inFur
Lives inpairs
Lives for7–10 years
Can swim
In the wild
- Where it lives
- Native to East Asia; the closely related tanuki lives in Japan. Introduced and invasive across much of Europe.
- What it eats
- Almost anything: insects, rodents, frogs and toads, birds, fish, reptiles, molluscs and crabs.
Did you know
Unusual among dogs in hibernating through cold winters, and a shapeshifter in Japanese folklore.
In Japanese folklore the tanuki is a mischievous, jolly master of disguise and shapeshifting.
Since 2019 it has been illegal to import, sell or release it anywhere in the European Union.
Often confused with
- Raccoon
A raccoon dog is a fox-like wild dog from East Asia, named for its raccoon-like face markings. It’s most closely related to foxes.
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