We see all kinds of animals at work besides dogs and cats: rabbits, parrots, guinea pigs, sugar gliders, lizards of all kinds, and pigs. We’ve even seen chickens and peacocks. Yesterday we saw something really unusual: an anteater. Heretofore, my only exposure to ant-eating animals was a cartoon from the sixties called The Ant & the Aardvark.
It was really cool to see it up close. It had long fingernails that reminded me of a sloth. Its face was really cute. It was surprisingly strong. It also had a musky odor that reminded me a little of a skunk. Its tail was prehensile. It was so interesting. The doctor let me take a picture with it. At first, it was a simple enough picture, but the anteater had other ideas for a pose.
I have a goofy look on my face, but in my defense, it was a pretty weird situation.
Once it got its hands on my shirt, it started pulling. It was so strong.
Oops! No ants down there!
HA! Thanks for the early morning giggle – what a curious little fellow, eh? Pray tell, who besides the zoo is even allowed to have an anteater in the city, and who would need or want one? But that’s besides the point, I suppose.
I wager you’ve met many assorted furry critters you never thought you would in this new line of work – bet there’s a children’s book living in all those experiences….just planting a seed….
Carol asked my question – who owns an anteater? I guess if you had a really big ant problem and liked to be super organic/earth friendly….
By the way, in the anteater world, that’s called ‘the Reverse Aliens‘. Good thing you escaped with your torso intact.
Awwwww!!!!!!!!!!!! What a CUTIE!!!!!!! His or her face is soooo adorable!! I do so wish I could pet him. And it looks like besides having dog bisquits at your work, you’ll have to start having a jar of ants as well, huh.
What did this little guy come in for? Problems with a stuffed nose? A nail trim? A non-functioning prehensile tail?
What an awesome experience!! I’m quite envious! Awesome pictures by the way!
Are anteaters related to koalas? What category of animal are they anyway?
I didn’t speak with the owner about having the anteater as a pet, so I’m not sure why she had it, and I didn’t see what it came in for.
Kristi, it’s funny that you ask what animal group the anteater is part of. We had trouble entering it into the computer because we didn’t know how to categorize it. We finally just put it under “mammal”.
That is cool. “Today I went to work and held an anteater”. Who gets to say that? You do! What a great work place.