A Couple Adopted a Baby Puma, And They Live in an Apartment Together

Are you a dog or a cat person? Well, the Dmitrievs, from the city of Penza in central Russia, are definitely puma people! Two years ago they adopted an 8-month old puma, Messi, from a petting zoo. You think their choice of a pet is a bit strange? But Messi is special because he’s more like an ordinary cat than his wild counterparts.
Messi and his brothers were born on October 30, 2015, in Saransk city zoo. The three cubs were named after famous soccer players - Messi, Suarez, and Neymar - to celebrate the future World Cup. After 3 months with his mother and brothers, he was sold to a petting zoo in Penza. Alexander and Maria, his soon-to-be parents, met him there, and it was love at first sight. After 3 days of thinking and doubting, they made up their minds to buy the puma.
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TIMESTAMPS:
Messy in an apartment 0:35
Messy's health 2:11
Training 2:58
Size matters 4:39
No pumas in bed? You wish! 5:30
How much the Dmitrievs spend on Messy 6:50
Is Messy dangerous? 7:30
#puma #pets #wildanimals
Preview photo credit:
Messi at the window: By I_am_puma/instagram,
Messi takes a bath: By I_am_puma/instagram,
Animation is created by Bright Side.
Music by Epidemic Sound
SUMMARY:
- Maria and Alexander had to adjust their one-bedroom apartment for their new family member. They rearranged the hallway, and covered the wall and door jambs with bamboo to make a huge scratcher for Messi’s sharp claws.
- They brought in all sorts of toys and the puma’s favorite treats; the Dmitrievs did their best to make him feel at home.
- Messi’s health turned out to be really poor: chronic cystitis, rickets, and muscle atrophy were the first problems they had to face.
- Maria and Alexander continued the treatment and were happy about every small improvement. But when he started limping again, it turned out he had a problem with his hip joint.
- Alexander says that now they walk twice a day, as it should be. In that sense, having Messi as a pet isn’t much different from having a dog.
- When they first started walking in the street, their neighbors would come out to see the unusual pet. Now they're used to the big, friendly cat who's kind and communicative.
- Messi currently responds to about 10 commands from Alexander and Maria and they’re constantly teaching him more. There’s nothing strange about how quickly Messi learns new commands: he’s really smart!
- Messi’s fond of hiding inside any box he manages to squeeze into. And, like any ordinary cat, he can chase his favorite ball for hours.
- The “no pumas in bed” rule is broken, well…daily. Bed is usually where they find him when they come home from work.
- Alexander says Messi’s size is roughly the same as a big sheep dog, weighing only 99 lbs. Due to the health issues he had as a cub, he’ll always be much smaller than other pumas.
- Messi’ll never be able to live in the wild, not only because of his size, but because he was brought up by humans and doesn’t know anything about chasing prey.
- As for the food and its cost, the Dmitrievs spend about $300-$600 every month on Messi’s food, mainly raw meat.
- The Dmitrievs are planning to move to a house, and have quite a bold dream to add a leopard to their family. This is all for Messi's sake too; they don’t want him to feel lonely when his masters are at work.
- The Dmitrievs know that having such a big wild cat at home might be dangerous, but Messi is special. He’s shown his owners that he’s a member of their family and would never do anything bad except for some minor pranks.
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