Her Best Life



While in the wild, Cinnamon the capybara was "probably living her best life", according to zoo owner Will Dorrell (BBC)

She isn't in the paddock anymore.
A keeper error brought about a chance
to just slip out, run off; why not explore?
For days she leads the staff a rodent's dance
through thickets, trees, adjacent to her home –
live traps are set; she simply sidles past
and into parts no human search can comb,
for quite divinest dining. But, at last,
she’s found within a pond, a paradise
for all her species in the wild and wet,
and doesn’t want to leave. Staff, though, entice
her into cage captivity. She's met
by brother Churro, later Mum and Dad,
and calm contentment, maybe, in the pad.

Felicity Teague

If you have any thoughts about this poem, Felicity Teague would be pleased to hear them