TYVEN9
I am native of Louisiana and when I was a child, I had one of these little guys as a pet. My daddy went crawfishing in the swamp and found an orphaned baby nutria a litte bigger than a fully grown hamster - some couillon shot the mama, so he brought the baby home for me to raise. As a baby, he had this neat white ring around his flat little nose, but the ring of white fur expanded as he grew. I showed up at rabies vaccination day with my little Nootie in tow and the vet asked what I had there and I said a nutria - he needs a rabies shot. So, the vet gave him the shot and his rabies tags (I didn't put a collar on him because he was too little). He had this cute little sound he'd make if you startled him but man could this rodent-child eat! He was vegetarian and carrots were his favourite. He liked being held and was quite playful. He only bit me once and that was when I quickly learned that when you go to pick them up that you do NOT approach him from the front. We also had a poodle and Nootie would often in the night get out of my bed and in the morning he would be curled up with the dog in her bed. He had a nice habitat that my daddy made for him, but at night I brought him inside to sleep. Having had the privilege of having a nutria for a pet, I really get distressed when people talk about killing them for their fur and eating them. To me, that's the same as eating a dog or a cat. Unfortunately, they don't have a terribly long life span (rodents do not), but I had him for about 5 years - I was heartbroken when he passed away, but grateful for the joy this unusual little pet brought to my childhood years.
