Curious gopher steals GoPro, carries it into her den

A very large mother gopher and her five adorable babies were seen grazing and enjoying some fresh air on a warm spring day. Who could resist putting a camera near their den to try to catch these furry creatures on camera? But moments after the camera is left unattended to record them, the mother becomes curious. She struts over and looks right at the camera and has a good sniff. She nibbles at it and rolls it over in the grass a few times. She then picks it up and turns it over and over in her paws, closely examining it.

After a few moments of looking the strange object over, she picks it up in her teeth and carries it to her hole. Fortunately, she decides to grab the housing in such a way that the camera provides a view of the journey across the grass to the opening of her den. The camera drops into the hole and sits for a few moments facing the opening. She returns and drags it further in, at which point it is too dark to see.

This gopher has found a grassy field at the side of an industrial area in Peterborough, Ontario. She is raising a little family of five baby gophers. Looking closely at her underside in later footage, she is clearly a nursing female. The people who work beside and pass by this field have been feeding her fruit and vegetables and an occasional cookie every day. She has become comfortable enough with people that she will often venture from her hole, looking expectantly at people to see if they are willing to toss her some treats.

The babies are extremely adorable. They also eat grass, fruit, and vegetables, but they are still young enough that they can be seen nursing on their mother occasionally. This devoted momma is raising a beautiful little family.