The Daily Populous Tuesday July 21st, 2026 night edition
Authored by kentucky.com and submitted by He-Who-Reaches

Pets & Animals Kentucky nurse uses CPR to revive passed-out raccoon drunk in water inside dumpster

A drunk raccoon was rescued by a nurse who found him passed-out in water at the bottom of a dumpster in Letcher County.

The young raccoon was apparently attracted to the trash bin by the odor of fermented peaches that had been used by a nearby distillery to make peach-flavored moonshine, The Mountain Eagle in Whitesburg reported.

“I would say that he ate the fermented peaches and he fell over drunk into the water,” said Misty Combs, who works as a nurse at the Letcher County Health Department and rescued the little party animal.

Combs said she found the raccoon after someone had reported seeing a mother raccoon running around in the parking lot, and when the woman went outside to investigate, she said that raccoon was over near the dumpster.

Inside, Combs found two young raccoons, one of whom was fine and standing on top of some fermented peaches.

She said she removed that one with a shovel, and it ran over to rejoin its mom, but the other was unconscious in rainwater that had gathered at the bottom of the bin. With the help of a coworker, Combs said she was able to grasp the lifeless raccoon by its tail and pull him out.

Misty Combs removed two young raccoons from a dumpster in Letcher County. They had apparently been attracted by the smell of fermented peaches discarded by a nearby distillery. Photo submitted

Combs said she began doing “compression-only CPR,” and water began coming out of its mouth.

Video shows Combs working to revive the raccoon, saying “Come on, baby, come on!”

“I just knew that I had to get that fluid out of its lungs,” she said.

Misty Combs shared this photo of a raccoon she found passed out in a dumpster in Whitesburg earlier this month. Photo provided

Combs told WYMT she was a little worried about rabies during those moments: “I was sort of afraid it might come back to life and bite me,” she told the television station.

The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife responded and took the raccoon to a local veterinarian, where the animal spent the night sobering up and getting IV fluids.

The next day, Combs said the game warden returned the raccoon, which she was able to release herself.

She said the rescue happened Aug. 14, and she hasn’t seen her little patient since then.

Misty Combs released a raccoon she helped rescue from a dumpster in Letcher County, Ky. Photo submitted

Combs said a coworker shared the story with local media.

“I was trying to keep it a secret,” Combs said. “In my little town, you can’t keep nothing a secret.”

The Mountain Eagle’s Facebook video showing the rescue had been viewed more than 46,000 times, with one commenter saying it’s “giving ‘drunk as a skunk’ a run for its money.”

The post said the raccoon was being affectionately referred to as “Otis Campbell,” the character known for imbibing on “The Andy Griffith Show.”

Kentucky Mist Distillery shared the video of Combs’ life-saving actions on its Facebook page, captioned: “Proof that underage drinking laws should be strictly enforced. Even in the animal community.”

“PLEASE, DRINK RESPONSIBLY!!” the distillery’s post stated.

Kentucky Mist says its 80-proof peach-infused moonshine is like “peach cobbler in a glass.”

This story was originally published August 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM.

TheBeerNinja on July 20th, 2026 at 21:07 UTC »

Nothing like reliving a story from 2025!

PeppernCo on July 20th, 2026 at 20:32 UTC »

So he got drunk and spent a night in the drunk tank. Nice