{"id":52064,"date":"2017-04-11T12:20:45","date_gmt":"2017-04-11T16:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/these-capybaras-escaped-the-zoo-for-a-summer-of-love-now-theyre-back-with-babies\/"},"modified":"2017-04-11T12:20:45","modified_gmt":"2017-04-11T16:20:45","slug":"these-capybaras-escaped-the-zoo-for-a-summer-of-love-now-theyre-back-with-babies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/these-capybaras-escaped-the-zoo-for-a-summer-of-love-now-theyre-back-with-babies\/","title":{"rendered":"These Capybaras Escaped the Zoo for a Summer of Love. Now they\u2019re Back, with Babies."},"content":{"rendered":"

These Capybaras Escaped the Zoo for a Summer of Love. Now they\u2019re Back, with Babies.<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Toronto\u2019s High Park Zoo has some new residents. The zoo\u2019s pair of capybaras had babies. Here\u2019s one of the new family members. Credit: Jessica Blake<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

They look kind of like guinea pigs \u2014 if guinea pigs grew to be a hundred pounds.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

They love water and have webbed feet and short, vestigial tails.<\/p>\n

And on Saturday, I came face-to-face \u2014 or more like microphone-to-snout, with the world\u2019s most famous capybaras.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

I visited Toronto\u2019s High Park Zoo<\/a>, where last summer two capybaras made a break for freedom.<\/p>\n

\u201cBonnie and Clyde, as we named them, escaped the very first day they arrived,\u201d explains zookeeper Sonya Dittkrist. \u201cSo they were on the lam, one was 4 weeks and one was 6 weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

And during that time, there were daily sightings. Torontonians were monitoring the park\u2019s lake area for the rodents of unusual size.<\/p>\n

Bonnie and Clyde were returned safely to the park zoo after spending the summer swimming in the pond and grazing on grass and plants.<\/p>\n

And Dittkrist says even though staff were concerned for the pair and wanted them back, the capybaras didn\u2019t pose a threat to the public.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot unless you could actually get your hands on them. Then they can bite. They have actually really long teeth. They are about the length of your fingers \u2026 they could hurt you, but, yeah, they are just big chickens.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The \u201ccapy-babies\u201d don\u2019t have names yet. The zoo is asking the public to suggest names for them. Credit: Jessica Blake<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The pair\u2019s escape sparked a citywide fascination with the capybaras.<\/p>\n

But the rodents are indigenous to South America \u2014 mostly in Brazil \u2014 so they like a warm climate.<\/p>\n

In recent months, the capys have been laying low and staying inside their barn. But they\u2019ve been keeping busy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got three bouncing babies,\u201d says Dittkrist. \u201cThey were born February 23rd, so they are our new edition and we love them. They are so cute.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Capybaras love to munch on raw corn on the cob. Credit: Jessica Blake<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

And here\u2019s where my zoo visit went from nice \u2014 to a dream come true. Dittkrist tells me it\u2019s lunchtime and that I can feed the babies and Bonnie and Clyde. She fills up a bowl with corn, cantaloupe\u00a0and apples. And we go to the pen where the family has collected around a mud pit.<\/p>\n

But the sound of the gate opening brings the adults over to investigate. With a chunk of raw corn stuck onto the end of a stick, I lure Clyde over for a snack.<\/p>\n

Little kids push their corn sticks into the pen to get the capys to come closer.<\/p>\n

And then one of the baby capybaras gets curious and starts sniffing my feet.<\/p>\n

The little guy<\/a> was using those long pronglike teeth to chew on the end of my shoe.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A capybara baby is gnawing on reporter Andrea Crossan\u2019s boot. Credit: Jessica Blake<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

After a brief taste test, the baby goes back to picking up chunks of corn.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t explain why I love capybaras. Maybe it\u2019s the soulful eyes.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s the cute snouts or the roly-poly bellies.<\/p>\n

After my time in the pen, I have one last question about capybaras for the zookeeper.<\/p>\n

Can I get one as a pet?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t have them in the city,\u201d says Dittkrist.\u00a0\u201cBut if you had a farm. It is possible, I believe, that you could have them as a pet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, I just need to get that farm.<\/p>\n

This article first appeared on PRI The World<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post These Capybaras Escaped the Zoo for a Summer of Love. Now they\u2019re Back, with Babies.<\/a> appeared first on Towleroad<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"
\n<\/p>\n

These Capybaras Escaped the Zoo for a Summer of Love. Now they’re Back, with Babies.<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n