Fast-Acting Friends Save Wild Raccoon Choking On Piece Of Cheese From Trash.

A chance encounter with a wild animal in distress has turned three Michigan friends into local heroes. John Ptaszenski, Bill Boski, and Tyler Whalen were hanging out by a campfire in Bill’s backyard when a raccoon wandered over to them. The raccoon didn’t look too scared of them and even came right up to Bill. Moments later, the raccoon wandered over to a trash can.

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“It delved into our trash, and it looked like he had a piece of cheese with him, he was eating it, started choking, he did this weird thing, he reared up on his hind legs, it was really strange. I was like, ‘Billy you might want to check this out.’ Next thing I know Billy is over there patting him on the back,” Tyler noted.

John pulled out his camera and filmed Bill doing a version of the Heimlich manoeuvre on the choking raccoon while his friends gave him input. John can be heard telling his friend, “A little bit lower, Bill. Upward motion.” After several vigorous taps, the cheese shot out of the animal’s mouth. Bill successfully dislodged the cheese! The raccoon was a bit unsteady, but then walked away. The three men decided to nickname the raccoon “Rocket” after the Guardians of the Galaxy character.

Since posting the video of their rescue, it’s gotten over 17 million views.

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