NATCHEZ &045; Whoever said man’s best friend is a dog has never met Leo Marvel.

Every morning at around 8 Marvel, a retired mechanic, and some of his animals walk up the street to open Watkins Street Cemetery.

And every evening at around 6, the group returns to close it up for the evening.

At first glance, it looks like any man walking his dogs. However, the gait of Marvel’s companion, Shay, is a little different than that of most dogs, and rarely do dogs seem to have markings like Shay’s.

This is because Shay is of the family Procyonidae &045; in other words, a raccoon.

About one and a half months ago, a logger friend brought the baby raccoon to Marvel after finding it in a tree the friend had sawed down.

Marvel took the baby raccoon in, gave her the appropriate shots and named her Shay because, &uot;she’s stubborn like my niece, Shay.&uot;

Did Marvel think twice about accepting the animal? Probably not. After all, Marvel has had a pet raccoon and a pet squirrel in the past, not to mention the many dogs, chickens, rabbits and pigeons that currently live on his land.

Marvel says his Watkins Street neighbors are still &uot;amazed&uot; when they see the pair walking up and down the street. But it doesn’t seem to bother Marvel, or Shay for that matter.

One can only wonder if Shay even knows she is a raccoon, because she does not behave like one.

When the dogs play with a ball in the yard, Shay is in the middle of the fray and holding her own. When Marvel calls for her, she comes. When Marvel goes to sleep, so does Shay. (And raccoons are nocturnal.)

And all the animals, including Shay, seem content to stay with Marvel. After all, only a quarter of Marvel’s land is fenced off, yet none of the animals leave. To the contrary, every one comes to Marvel.

They aren’t the only ones that seem to flock to Marvel. So did Lloyd Brown, 5, who was Marvel’s 1 1/2-year-old neighbor when he started visiting Marvel’s house, or the friends who come for help with their cars.

Marvel’s world has room for them all.