Aside from being a real animal, specifically a type of canine with the colorings of a raccoon, the Tanuki is also a mischievous creature from Japanese folklore. According to the various superstitions and legends regarding the Tanuki, the Tanuki's powers include incredible strength and shape-shifting. Among its favorite tricks are distending its scrotum to enormous dimensions and beating it like a drum to distract travelers on roads, taking the form of a monk to distract travelers in various ways, and transforming into a human and using fake money to buy sake from merchants. In recent times, it has become common to use Tanuki statues as good luck charms. In these good luck charms, the Tanuki are often depicted as a monk, with a sake bottle, with an enormous scrotum, or any combination of the three. It is commonly placed outside of stores to attract customers, but assumably also to just look cute and make a nice decoration.