Our northern Kanto reporters team up and head to Gunma for a look at this part of Japan that gets overlooked by tourists.
Tanuki
Wild animal’s surprise appearance makes people wonder if this was a shapeshifting salaryman on his way home from work.
Japanese raccoon dogs are known for their large…ahem, appendages. But which one is the largest of them all?
Because nothing says “delicious cooking” like huge, saggy pig balls, right?
The people have made it clear that they want the shrine to stay, but will that be enough to save it?
They may look similar at first glance, but the two separate species of forest critters have a handful of key differences.
See this tanuki? Aren’t his balls cute? Welcome to Japan, where raccoon-dog genitals are universally admired.
During these crisp, cool days of autumn, the leaves are changing color to vibrant reds and yellows. Along with that change in the scenery comes a shift in fashion, as people step out in sweaters, coats, and other cold-weather attire.
But while you or I can put on a heavy jacket to help ward off the chill, that’s not an option for Japan’s woodland animals. Don’t worry, though because while these tanuki can’t put on additional layers of clothing to keep warm, they can add additional layers of tanuki by sleeping in an adorable bunch.
Japanese raccoon dogs, or tanuki as they’re known over here, are animals with great significance in Japanese folk-lore. Among their many supernatural attributes such as giant scrota and swift speeds, the tanuki are also known for their purported shapeshifting abilities.
And though the above picture clearly dispels the size of their manhood, there appears to be some truth to their art of disguise. As the Twitter user who posted the photo explains, this little guy is actually pretending to be a stray cat so he can get some of the food laid out for him.
Tanuki, also known as Japanese raccoon dogs, hold a special place in Japanese culture. Often the center of folktales for their large testicles, magical abilities, and easygoing attitude, you can see them depicted in works of art all over the country.
However, now the tanuki is threatened. Not the actual animal, but a cake created in its image known as the tanuki cake. For many middle-aged Japanese people the mention of such a treat would awaken fond childhood memories. Despite this, the tanuki cake population in Japan has plummeted in recent years to the point of being critically endangered.
That’s why the website Tanuki Cake No Aru Toko Meguri has established the National Tanuki Cake Habitat Map, so that we may monitor and perhaps conserve these noble animal-shaped cakes.
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