According to the 2017-2018 National Pet Owners Survey conducted by the American Pet Products Association (APPA), 68% of U.S. households, or about 85 million families, own a pet.
Considering that 56% of U.S. households had pets in 1988, which was the first year the survey was conducted, this is a moderate increase.
When we think of pets, we think of standard domesticated animals – dogs, cats, birds, and even reptiles such as snakes.
But for one family, they have a unique pet that doesn’t fall into any of the categories listed above.
Instead, their pet is a domesticated puma. Meet Messi the puma!
You might be thinking, “A puma?! Is that a typo?!”
No, it is not a typo. Yes, a Russian family owns a puma.
How did Messi end up living with his Russian family? Well, Messi had nowhere else to go.
Messi is 30% smaller than a typical adult puma male. As a result, he can’t live in the wild because he would be an easy target for other wild pumas.
And because of his poor health and injuries Messi suffered as a cub, he couldn’t be accepted into a zoo enclosure either.
With his inability to survive in the wild or in a zoo, Messi had only one option left – being put down. Or so he thought.
A generous Russian family decided to take Messi in as their own, and it was a match made in heaven. Messi has completely adapted to his new family and to domesticated life.
Thanks to Messi’s adoring family, he’s not missing out on anything. The two-year-old puma trains with other large dogs close to his size and he eats a proper diet too, thanks to his adoring family who loves and cares for him very well.
Messi gets to enjoy the local Russian wildlife and a comfortable, loving home.
Like any other pet, Messi is a lot of work. However, he loves just as much as any other pet too.
Can you imagine having a puma for a pet? Thanks to Messi’s YouTube channel and Instagram, now you can imagine it.
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