Toronto raccoon rescued after head stuck in peanut butter jar

We humans have so much to learn from the majestic raccoons of Toronto — such as how to nap comfortably in public and open impenetrable vaults.

Are they brilliant creatures? Yes, when there's a chance to score food, but they can also do laughably dumb things for the very same reason. Garbage lust knows no bounds.

Last weekend, one such hungry raccoon got her head stuck in a jar that rescuers believe contained peanut butter. 

Toronto Wildlife Centre, a charitable wild animal rescue organization, shared video footage on Facebook and Twitter today of the small raccoon being rescued, as they have in the past when saving similarly unlucky night-bois from jars.

The clip is as cute as it is triumphant, with a rescue worker easily sliding the jar off of the animal's head after bringing her down from a tree. The message behind it, however, is a lot more serious than "LOL look at that this silly raccoon."

Janice first spotted this raccoon in Toronto last weekend with a large peanut butter jar stuck on her head! She called TWC for assistance, and TWC’s rescue team was asked to help. Amazingly, they caught the poor raccoon and removed the jar with no trouble. “It was beautiful.” pic.twitter.com/dwmJ2ForCV

— Toronto Wildlife Ctr (@TWC_Wildlife) August 2, 2018

"We have received a few calls about animals with jars or plastic lids on their heads – especially skunks and raccoons," wrote the wildlife centre in the caption of its Facebook post.

"The best way to prevent this is to wash your recycling before putting it in the bin and/or ensure that the bin is completely closed and secure from animals."

Indeed, had this raccoon not been spotted by a member of the public, she very well could have died from dehydration or starvation.

TWC — a world leader in the field of wildlife rehabilitation — noted on Facebook that the animal was thin when they found her. She also had a small wound on her neck, so she was brought to the centre, treated, fed, and then released back into the wild.

This raccoon's lesson for us is two-fold: Don't stick your head in jars and please, for the sake of animals everywhere, clean and seal containers before you toss them in the trash or blue bin.