Not Your Average Pet

It was a beautiful fall day. The leaves were bright orange and red, and starting to fall of the trees. Becky was sitting in her living room drinking a cup of hot tea while watching the leaves begin to cover her yard, when her friend, Jane, knocks on her door.

Becky opens the door, “Jane! I wasn’t expecting you today! Wait, what’s wrong? You look like you have been crying?” Becky also notices Jane is shaking rapidly. “Come in and have a sit. Let me fix you a cup of tea.”

Jane answers her between her sobs, “Becky, thank you. I would like some tea. I need a huge favor. My father had a heart attack and I need to fly home immediately. Can you please watch Snuggles for me while I am gone? It will be at least a week. They are doing open heart surgery in the morning to repair his heart, a triple bypass.”

“Jane, I am so sorry to hear about your father,” Becky replies as they walk towards the kitchen.

“Thank you. I appreciate that. And I know Snuggles can be a lot to think about, especially since he is not your normal household pet. But because he is an exotic animal, I can’t just take him on a plane or board him somewhere,” Jane said as she started to cry even harder.

“Are you sure you don’t have anyone else that can watch her? You know I am actually scared of her,” Becky replied. Snuggles, which she can’t imagine why Jane name this exotic cat that, was a serval.

“I know that they are not always an ideal pet for everyone, but he is gorgeous. They aren't typically aggressive, but are still considered "wild." They are very affectionate, especially Snuggles. He is different than owing a domestic cat. He is still an exotic cat from Africa. He eats regular cat food and vegetables when I cook, but he also eats anything that goes into his outdoor enclosure,” Jane said.

“Does he even like strangers?” Becky asked with scared tone in her voice.

“You won’t even have to go in the encounter if you don’t want too. He will run up to the fence, because he is used to me coming in and playing with him for hours every day. Some days, he comes in the house and hangs out with me. But, you can use the hose and fill his water container through the fence and you can fit the scooper though the fence as well,” Jane replied. “However, I really hope you will at least try to play with him. He loves to be petted on the top of his head. Until your comfortable, you can pet him through the fence.”

“I pray that I am not going to regret this, but I want to do anything I can to help you right now. When does your flight leave,” Becky asked.

“I really appreciate you doing this for me. My flight leaves tonight at 8. You only need to go feed him once a day at noon. Thank you Becky. I have to get home and pack. I will keep you posted on my dad’s condition,” Jane said.

“You’re welcome and please do keep me posted,” Becky replied as she walked Jane to the front door. She gave her a hug and told her that she would be thinking about her and her family.

At 11:30 am the next day, Becky headed over to Jane’s house to feed Snuggles. She was terrified to say the least. When she went towards the fence, she saw the hose on the side of the little building that held the food exactly where Jane said she kept it. She turned on the hose first and gave him so water. Snuggles just watched her from about five feet away. Maybe he was as scared of her as she was of him. Then she went and grabbed the food. Snuggles stayed away until she had walked back towards the little shed, then came up and started eating. This was their routine for the first three days.

On the fourth day, Snuggles met her the fence when she filled his water. He stood by the fence when she did the food as well. He leaned his head down at the fence and she assumed he wanted her to pet his head. So, very slowly did. This happened the next day as well. Then on the sixth day, she decided to try and walk into the encounter with the food. Snuggles came up and bent his head near her for her to pet it.

By the end of the two weeks, they were good friends and she knew that even after Jane came back, she would have to come play with Snuggles. Lesson learned, to not always judge a book by its cover, even when it comes to animals.