When my daughter was four, she was heading to the outdoor slide by the goat pen. We passed a llama in an outdoor compound, and of course she wanted a better look. The llama obviously wanted a closer look at her. As if in slow motion they approached one another at the fence, and the llama reached over and snatched a plug of her blonde hair as if it were hay. Then it walked away chomping.
Grandson was eight years old. We were at Grant's
Farm, the Busch (Anheuser-Busch) beer baron's estate in town, where they have a
mini zoo, free to the public. Generations of St. Louisans have ridden a tram
around their acreage where large wild animals roam freely. Ever seen a zonkey,
cross between a zebra and donkey? A camel up close and personal?
My grandson
walked up to the fence with his cup of Mountain Dew. He took one sip and the
camel ran to him, leaned its head over the fence, snatched his cup, flipped it
up and drained it, then dropped it at our feet. We were dumb-struck for a
moment and then we laughed all the way home.
I'm thinking it's about time for another trip to the zoo.
12 comments:
Chuckled over your post, Linda.
At the llama lecture I went to, the owner said llamas smell the tops of humans' heads as a way of getting to know them!
Yeah, I think you need another trip to the zoo with your grands. Susan
Perhaps if you took Bill, the llama would snatch a patch of HIS hair...
Oh, sorry. He probably doesn't have extra hair to spare.
Zoo visits are fun and yours was no exception. Another trip could be even more interesting.
I enjoy going to the zoo too, but yes, you need to be alert. Surprising things can happen there! Haha! :-)
Those stories give new meaning to "please don't feed the animals." Thanks for the morning laugh!
Funny stuff! Maybe next time you go, you can bring Tammy's DELL along and offer THAT up to the animals - HA!
When we lived in St. Louis, we went to zoo often. When kids came along, we returned to St. Louis to take them to the zoo. I LOVE a zoo and St. Louis is the best. You make me want to come again!
I used to love going to the zoo when I was a kid. We saw all the shows that we could. My favorite venue was the reptile house, despite the smell.
When I took my own kid, he had a fit on the train and kicked off a shoe. I saw he was missing one as soon as I tried to stuff him back in his stroller. I told Hick to go look for it, but he declined. "The train is getting ready to leave again. They're not going to let me go through there." Then some lady stood up and hollered to ask if we lost a shoe. She handed it to Hick over the barrier. Because in St. Louis, that's what people do.
You just never know what animals and children are going to do next.
Merle.........
How can ONE person have SO many stories??? :-)
Some days I think I am at the zoo ....
One thing about critters, they are certainly unpredictable. It's been ages since I went to the zoo. I may have to plan a return trip.
Pat
Critter Alley
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