So, are you a dog or a cat person?
Well, the Dmitrievs, from the city of Penza in central Russia, are definitely puma people!
You know, puma, another name for a cougar or mountain lion? Anyway, 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? Well, Messi is special because he’s more like an ordinary cat than his
wild counterparts. His story inspires thousands of people around the world!
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 in January, 2017, and it was
love at first sight. After 3 days of thinking and doubting, they made up their minds to
buy the puma. They offered a high price to the zoo, which was accepted right away. The
zoo authorities warned the Dmitrievs that the 8 month-old cub was sickly and needed
a lot of medical attention; but it didn’t scare them off.
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 also made a special den for Messi with a tree
and a hiding hole. Like all cats, pumas are fond of climbing and snuggling away for a
nap where no one can see them. Taking the advice of experts, they also made
a mirrored wall; Messi’s fond of his own reflection. Ha, sound familiar? Morning and
evening walks didn’t save them from the puddles on the carpet, but they soon found
a solution: a bath was a nice litter box for a kitten that big. 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. When they started walking him like a dog,
he wasn’t really active. They couldn’t walk for long because of Messi’s health
issues, but nothing’s impossible for loving and caring pet owners. 3 months of vitamin
therapy, and Messi managed to walk for as much as 2 miles and actually tried to jump.
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. They
had to give him dietary supplements again and find some more balanced exercises. But
where can one find a wild animal handler? They called a dozen different trainers, but
none of them had experience with big cats. Finally, they found a handler who’d trained
lynxes before and agreed to try working with Messi.
They had 4 classes per week – first individual ones, then together with some other four-legged
friends. Messi stood out among the dogs, and it took some time for all of them to get used
to each other. But the handler’s wise approach and a friendly atmosphere in the group finally
worked. The dogs embraced Messi, despite his difference.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.
Professional training did well, not only for the puma’s health, but also for his relationship
with his owners. Now they have a stronger bond and a better understanding of each other,
and Messi himself has become a more genteel cat with nice manners. Before, he would get
mad and lose control at the sight of food, but now he can wait patiently and only starts
eating when he’s allowed.
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! He can open and close windows and doors by himself, goes to the
corner when he knows he’s been naughty, and the way he apologizes for the mess he’s
made will melt your heart. But don’t assume that his whole life consists
of commands and training! Cats are always cats, no matter how big they are. And his
owners treat him like an ordinary cat with all the cute habits. 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. He's a true athlete, just like his famous namesake. He probably
lacks some dribbling skills but he can bite the ball instead. Which of the human players
can boast that? He even loves having a watermelon or a pumpkin instead of a ball; when it comes
to toys, size matters. But his favorite, by far, is a plastic bottle. Maybe toys just
don’t last long enough for his huge paws, or maybe plastic bottles just make the right
kind of noise.
Despite all the rules and training, Alexander and Maria don’t always keep the upper hand.
Quite often, Messi keeps the upper paw. For example, the “no pumas in bed” rule is
broken, well…daily. Bed is usually where they find him when they come home from work.
Like all cats, Messi sleeps a lot and it’s his favorite pastime when he stays home alone.
Wild pumas, or cougars, or mountain lions mainly live in North America and are the forth
biggest felines. They have strong bodies that are about 3 – 6 ft long and 2 – 2.5 ft
high and weigh up to 231 lbs. 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. But, great care, medical attention and lots of love made
Messi’s life much happier.
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.
But he can travel with his owners in a big car and discover new territories, forests
and fields, sea coasts and mountains. Now that they have Messi on their hands, the Dmitrievs
only go for vacation by car.
Keeping such an exotic animal at home is pretty rare, and the Dmitrievs show their life with
the puma on social media with great success: people love watching Messi on YouTube, and
his page on Instagram already has about a million followers.
Maria says the star has no idea he's that famous. And it's a blessing, because he’s
not used to any royal treatment. He eats what his family eats; he sleeps where they sleep.
As for the food and its cost, the Dmitrievs spend about $300-$600 every month on Messi’s
food, mainly raw meat. But it's worth every penny when spent on a loved one, isn't it?
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. His behavior has proven his kindness, and
he gets along well with people. 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.
Are you inspired with the story of a true love at first sight? You can follow the cute
puma Messi on his Instagram clicking on the link below the video. Please let me know in
comments which of Messi's pictures you liked best. If you learned something new today,
then give this video a like and share it with a friend.
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Stay on the Bright Side of life!