The reason female coatis are so brainy is because they're very social. This is because they're extremely smart, and when it comes to wild animals, smarts is not necessarily what you want in a housemate. When it comes to the family Procyonidae, a female coati would probably be the worst choice for a household pet. They're active during the day, spending their time hunting for food and maintaining their territories. Their tails are long and stick straight up in the air, so even if you can't see the coati's low-slung body moving through the grass, you might get a peek at the tip of its tail poking up. The females are about the size of a housecat, though the males can be almost twice as big, and they have thick, luxurious fur and long, upturned snouts. Why? There are a lot of reasons, but the main reason is that they're real busybodies, and not stupid at all.Ĭoatis are extremely social mammals native to Central and South America, and belong to the same family as raccoons and kinkajous. The coatimundi, also called the coati, is one of these animals - so adorable! Definitely not pet material, though. There are lots of cute animals out there that you probably want to hug, or even keep as a pet. Fuller, Jr./VW PICS/Universal Images Group/Getty Images The South American coati, aka the ring-tailed coati ( Nasua nasua), is widespread in tropical and subtropical South America, with most of its distribution occurring in the lowlands east of the Andes Mountains.

Pet smarts