Tanuki

The Japanese raccoon dogs (or tanuki, as they say)
Are canids, not raccoons, with fur from rust to yellow-gray,
Except the black of face mask, shoulders, legs, and tip of tail.
Their whiskers, too, are black, whereas raccoons’ are very pale.
They lack raccoons’ dexterity, because they’re short a toe.
They never bark like dogs; they only growl, and not as low.
Unlike all other canids, they go torpid when it’s cold
And climb on trees. They also like to pair for life, I’m told.
In folklore, they are tricksters out to make us look inane
With morphing and possession, but they’re basically humane
Compared with other monsters out of Japanese tradition.
They’re rather fun and goofy with a jolly disposition.
They harness luck for wealth, and so they get portrayed as chubs
Quite frequently in statues outside restaurants and pubs,
As if to say, “There’s surely nothing here you can’t afford.”
But mythical or real, tanuki widely are adored.

Advent Calendar, Day 6

See it here.

( Or here. )