Waschbär

Actually, it's erroneous that the raccoon is called a "Waschbär" (literally a "wash bear") in German, but the name has stuck. First of all, the only comparison to a real bear is that both animals are furry and four-legged. (If bears could read German, they might be a little bit offended, don't you think?) Raccoons are sensory animals -- not visual -- and they touch their food all over to get a good idea of what it is before eating it. Since the furry creatures often do this in the water, it was mistakenly assumed that they were "washing" it, when in reality they were just giving it a feel. Besides, if they washed everything they pulled out of your garbage can last night at 3 a.m., they would have been there all night.