When she sees a furry little friend that needs a helping hand, she doesn’t hesitate to leap into action.

And that’s exactly what she did when she came across an adorable but strange looking dog outside of her home in Japan.

She quickly welcomed the little guy inside and hoped he would make himself right at home.

Her new friend did just that, but chibi_tori couldn’t shake the feeling that something was a little off due to his odd appearance…

That led her down the rabbit hole of research on the internet, and she would soon discover that her new pal wasn’t exactly a dog.

In fact, it wasn’t a dog at all!

It turns out that the creature was a tanuki, which basically translates to “raccoon dog.”

Things started to make a lot more sense, as her new pal, who she would name Tanu, had a distinctive looking face that resembles that of a raccoon.

The body of tanukis do resemble dogs, but they share characteristics inherent to raccoons as well, such as climbing trees and being a bit on the mischievous side.

Despite her discovery, chibi_tori has decided to keep her new friend.

It has been a bit of an adventure, but things have actually worked out pretty well.

Tanuki isn’t a dog and he can be a handful, but he’s also very happy and content. And isn’t that the goal of all kind-hearted animal rescuers?

Tanu loves to play, eat, and power nap wherever he sees fit, and chibi_tori has adapted the surroundings to accommodate his curious side.

She’s pretty happy to have welcomed Tanu into her life, but she’s still trying to get used to the fact that he has a high-pitched whine as opposed to a bark.

We wonder if the neighbors get a little freaked out whenever they hear that whine…or maybe they’ve gotten used to it.

In general, it’s not advised to keep tanukis as pets, but it looks like chibi_tori made the right call!

Source: Honest to Paws

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