Good news “Princess Bride” fans – it turns out ROUS’s (Rodents of Unusual Size) really aren’t that scary – they just want to snuggle then take a dip in the jacuzzi. Of course, Caplin Rous of Buda, Texas is not actually a mythical creature – he’s a capybara, the largest species of rodent in the world.
Caplin’s family met up with some of his Venezuelan relatives on a trip several years ago. Melanie Typaldos and her daughter, Coral, fell in love. They found the then eleven month old Caplin at a Texas exotic animal farm and took him home. They’ve been doting on him ever since.
“People hear the word rodent and they think it’s some kind of a dirty word,” Melanie told PEOPLEPets.com. “But many of them are very smart, clean, loving animals.” Caplin loves snuggling in bed, going to the pet store with Melanie and doing tricks like sitting and shaking hands. A semi-aquatic species, Caplin also loves to, and needs to swim either in the Typaldos’ pool or in their big tub.
Caplin is extremely loyal – when he’s not swimming or eating he follows Melanie around faithfully, when he can’t he makes cries, a soft “eep” like sound, until she comes back. He’s also a perfect gentleman in public, often letting the children Melanie takes him to schools to visit swarm him so completely he can’t move.
But don’t run out and buy a capybara to share your apartment. Capybaras can be a bit territorial and sometimes Caplin tries to bite visitors to the Typaldos home who he doesn’t like. He also requires a lot of ground to cover since Capybaras graze for most of their day and he needs a place to swim. Melanie is happy with her little friend though, so much so that she’s turned him into an ambassador for his species – he has a Facebook account, tweets and keeps a blog (www.gianthamster.com).
Image Courtesy of MSNBC, PeoplePets.com and Melanie Typaldos.
