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Kentucky nurse uses CPR to save a drunk dumpster-diving raccoon. Yes, really.

Had she ever performed CPR on an animal? No. But her "motherly instinct" kicked in.

Photo credit: Canva

Talk about right place, right time.

You know what they say: “If you give a raccoon some fermented fruit, it’ll ask for cardiopulmonary resuscitation.”

Okay, nobody says that. But they might consider it after reading this story!

In Letcher County, Kentucky, nurse Misty Combs and some coworkers spotted a panicked raccoon racing through the parking lot of the Kentucky Mist Moonshine, a distillery right next to her workplace.

Then, they heard a commotion from a nearby dumpster. Lo and behold, it held two baby raccoons drunk on makeshift moonshine.

“They had put some fermented peaches in their dumpster, and I guess the baby raccoons had gotten in the dumpster and they were stuck,” Combs told local news outlet Lex18.

Raccoon Drinking Beer Raccoon Meme GIFfrom Raccoon Drinking Beer GIFs

Mamma Raccoon was trying to help her tipsy little trash pandas out, to no avail. That’s when Combs’ “motherly instinct” kicked in.

“She was trying so hard to get her babies back and she didn’t know what to do,” said Combs. So, without skipping a beat, she grabbed a shovel and began scooping them out.

The first ran straight to its mom. The second one, however, seemed to be in a much more dire position. He was lying facedown in the fermented peach water, completely soaked. Combs ended up pulling him out by the tail to find he wasn’t breathing.

“Everybody around was like ‘It's dead,’” but Combs felt there was still hope, and “immediately” began doing CPR on him…certainly not something she had ever done in her 21 years as a nurse. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

“I've had some pretty crazy days on the job, but nothing like this."

Combs’ coworkers filmed her as she began doing compressions on the animal's chest, then flipping it on its side and slapping its back. Miraculously, the little critter began breathing again.

“The entire time, I was afraid it'd come-to and eat me up, and raccoons carry rabies so I was afraid of that,” Combs told Lex18. But luckily it didn’t come to that. Fish and Wildlife came, transported the little fella to a local veterinarian, who administered fluids and got him sobered up. You’re welcome for the instant visual of a baby raccoon drinking coffee and eating fatty foods.

Before getting released back into the wild, Combs and her crew aptly named their new friend Otis Campbell, after the “town drunk” character from The Andy Griffith Show.

Raccoons aren’t exactly the most universally beloved creatures, and even if the world’s biggest raccoon fan ever happened to be in this situation, the odds of them knowing how to revive the poor thing would be slim to none. Truly, this was such a right person/right place/right time circumstance.

V A Sly GIFfrom V A GIFs

“It was amazing to see something that helped bring something back to life,” Combs would later tell WYMT Mountain News Reporter Amelia Lee.

Here’s hoping poor Otis has learned his lesson and doesn’t go straight back to those peaches.

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Teacher learns that her student's parent died, and offers to do her hair everyday

"Then the other girls in the class started asking if I'd do their hair too…It has helped us all become so much closer.❤️"

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"I love being the teacher that I needed growing up."

Teachers play a much larger role than simply being educators. And elementary school teacher Alice Yates (@missaliceinteacherland) understands what it means to go above and beyond for her students, especially those in need.

In a video shared on Instagram in early 2025, Yates shared an emotional video about a student who recently lost a parent. After noticing she was coming to school with her hair unbrushed most days, she decided to step in with kindness and help take care of her by doing her hair everyday.

At the start of the video, Yates shows herself brushing out a little girl's hair as she tells her story in the captions. "A few months ago one of my student's parent died pretty suddenly...she was coming to school with her hair not even brushed most days," she writes. "I just wanted to help where I could. So I bought a cheap comb and hair ties so that I could at least do a basic pony for her to get her hair out of her face."

The small act of love did not go unnoticed. Her other students noticed Yates doing the student's hair, and wanted to get their hair done, too. "Then the other girls in the class started asking if I'd do their hair too. Now during breakfast, we have chitchats while we do hair! I wouldn't trade this time for anything. It has helped us all become so much closer.❤️"

She goes on to explain that she wasn't sure if parents would be okay with it, but was put at ease after getting a thankful message from one.

"I was a little nervous some parents might take it the wrong way that I'm doing their kids hair, but then I got this message: 'I just FaceTimed with [student's name] and saw her hair. It was adorable. Thank you for being extra sweet to my girl while I'm away. I don't even know what her hair looked like when she came in lol."

Yates offered more details as to why she treasures the personal interactions with her students. "I love being the teacher that I needed growing up...when I was a kid many of my teachers didn’t take the time to get to know us. They didn’t really show us love, tell us about their family, or even ask about ours," she writes. "They showed up, taught from a McGraw Hill Teacher Guide and went home. I think back on school and I hated it most years. I can count on one hand the teachers that I felt safe and happy with."

It was that experience that made her want to be a different teacher. "School filled me with so much anxiety and I think it’s a huge reason why I pour my heart and soul into teaching now," she writes. "I find so much comfort in looking into a parents eyes and telling them that I will take care of their baby, and they look back and me and know I mean it. ❤️"

Yates' emotional video got an incredibly supportive response from viewers. "

And that’s a vocation right there & exactly the teacher our children need 💕," one wrote.

Another shared, "This is beautiful bc when I was in 3rd grade my dad almost died in a motorcycle accident. Needless to say with no family nearby, most days I was barely dressed much less brushed. My teacher would bring barrettes to put up my hair and ill never forget the difference it made in my life ♡."

And another viewer added, "They will never forget you and the time you took for them ❤️."

If you would like to contribute to Miss Alice's classroom, you can shop her Amazon Classroom Wishlist here.

This article originally appeared in March.

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Stray dog in Istanbul saves her dying puppy’s life by bringing it straight to the veterinarian

Motherly instinct and a trust in humans saved her puppy's life.

@beylikduzu_alfa_veteriner

A stray dog brought her lifeless puppy to the doorstep of a local veterinarian clinic, saving its life.

Back in January of 2025, in the Beylikdüzü district in Istanbul, heartbreaking security camera footage showed a stray dog holding a puppy in its mouth and bringing it to the doorstep of a local veterinary clinic. The veterinarian that answered the door found the puppy lifeless, and immediately took it in while the pup’s mother followed.

The puppy was dying from a slow heartbeat due to the cold outside, but the vets rushed to give it emergency treatment. Throughout the procedure, the mother dog stayed by her little one’s side. Thanks to quick action and care, the pup survived, and is being cared for at the clinic alongside its mother.

Turns out—this puppy as actually related to another puppy brought in earlier by some animal lovers who believed it to be the sole survivor of its litter…resulting in an unexpected and touching family reunion.

"We thought all of them had died. It turns out there was one sibling that survived,” said veterinarian and clinic owner, Baturalp Oğhan in an interview. “When our technician noticed the situation, he brought it inside. We realized the puppy's heart was beating. We placed it in intensive care. It is currently continuing treatment with its sibling."

dogs, dog stories, vet, veterinarian, feel good stories, positive news, istanbul, puppies Mama dod staying with her babe as the veterinarian administered treatment. @beylikduzu_alfa_veteriner

While it is unfortunate that the rest of the litter had passed, this mother dog’s actions not only saved one of her pups but had reunited her with another one.

According to World Population Review, there is a pet dog in 30% of all households globally. There are 90 million pet dogs housed in the United States alone. Bear in mind, that's counting the dogs that are housed and cared for by humans. Just imagine how many dogs are still out there like that mother dog, along with the number of dogs that sadly didn’t make it like that lucky puppy.

dogs, dog stories, vet, veterinarian, feel good stories, positive news, istanbul, puppies The recovering siblings sharing a meal together. @beylikduzu_alfa_veteriner

While it is remarkable that this mother dog, out of memory, instinct, desperation, or a combination of those traits took her puppy to the clinic, the onus cannot be on dogs themselves to receive the help and care they need. Fortunately, there are several animal shelters and clinics that can help care for these animals, but they still need to find ways to get there. Not all of them have smart dog mothers that can get them to a helpful human vet.

dogs, dog stories, vet, veterinarian, feel good stories, positive news, istanbul, puppies Puppy sleeping with mama dog@beylikduzu_alfa_veteriner

If you wish to help out a stray animal, such as a dog or cat, there are some steps you can take to be prepared if the situation presents itself. The Humane Society has a bunch of quality tips, such as keeping your car with supplies like fresh water, bowls, pet food, heavy blankets, etc., to keep the animal comfortable while waiting for animal control to arrive at the scene or if you choose to transport them yourself to a nearby shelter. Before you stock up, you should research to see if there are any state or local laws regarding housing lost or stray animals to make sure you’re following the legal methods.

We share a lot of space with “man’s best friend” and the least we can do is be a best friend back to them, especially when they’re in need.

This article originally appeared in January.

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Middle schoolers in New Hampshire create adorable mini boat that sails all the way to Norway

The project was part of a very unique program designed to "connect students around the world." Mission accomplished.

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The Rye Riptide washed up on the shores of Norway.

This story brings a whole new meaning to the word friendshipship.

In October 2020, the middle schoolers of Rye Junior High, in Rye, New Hampshire, bid a bon voyage to their handmade mini-boat, which set sail off the coast of New Hampshire to who-knows-where.

Measuring only 5.5 feet, the “Rye Riptides” was indeed a small ship. It ran crewless, but carried a bountiful cargo of colorful artwork made by students, along with a GPS tracking device that reported the boat’s location … sometimes.

Cut to 462 days and 8,300 miles later, and what started out as a simple science project became a surprise discovery for some Norwegian sixth graders, and a fun new connection across the Atlantic.

Rye Junior High had partnered with Educational Passages, a nonprofit organization that aims to connect students around the world to the ocean and each other. Once the kit arrived, the kids started building while learning about ocean currents, science and math. However, science teacher Sheila Adams shares that the more artistic, right-brained activities equally found their way into the curriculum. “The students needed to use their writing skills to inform others about their mini-boat project, describe our school and town to people of other languages, just in case, and write requests to get the boat deployed,” she said in a release.

educational passages, norway, message in a bottle, education programs, school, middle school, positive news Behold, the Rye Riptides miniboat. scontent-lga3-3.xx.fbcdn.net

COVID-19 nearly threatened to knock the Rye Riptides off its course. The boat had been constructed, but not yet decorated, when students were moved to taking class online. Then, there was the matter of launching the boat. Which Cassie Stymiest, director of Educational Passages, noted was “challenging with all the restrictions in place.”

Luckily, creativity, resourcefulness and a little technology saved the day. Working remotely, each piece of art was done at home, then scanned, printed and made into a collage. Then, Ms. Stymiest connected with the Sea Education Association (SEA), which set the Rye Riptides on its journey.

Would the boat make it to Europe? Rye student Solstice Reed wasn’t so sure. “Honestly, I thought it would sink,” she admitted to the Portsmouth Herald. Considering the boat was cruising the ocean waters during hurricane season, the skepticism was well-founded. During the more tumultuous periods, the GPS signal only came in intermittently. And for a long while, there was nothing but radio silence.

But then, at long last, on the small Norwegian island of Smøla, the Rye Riptides successfully made it to dry land. Sure, it was a bit dismantled and covered in barnacles, but inside, all the adorable trinkets remained intact. The Smøla students peered with wonder into their bounty of photos, signed facemasks, fall leaves, acorns and state quarters, gifts sent out almost two years ago.

Isn't your inner child just squealing with delight right now?

The voyage of the small boat went viral in a big way, sailing across social media, and making headlines.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Human connection found its way across the sea in the most wholesome and magical way. It’s really cool to see that educational programs like this exist, impacting both the hearts and minds of young students. Mission, successful.

To help support Educational Passages on even more wholesome adventures just like this one, consider donating here.

This article originally appeared three years ago.

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