Cuban couple keeps rodents called huitias as pets
Cuban couple keeps rodents called huitias as pets
By ANDREA RODRIGUEZ, Associated Press : November 19, 2014 : Updated: November 19, 2014 2:06pm
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Photo By Ramon Espinosa/AP
In this Nov. 17, 2014 photo, Congui, a domesticated huitia, rides on the front door of an American classic
car driven by its owner Rafael Lopez, in Bainoa, Cuba. Five years ago Lopez and his wife Ana Pedraza
adopted Congui, their first pet huitia, a large rodent that lives in Cuba, Jamaica, Bahamas and some of the
smaller Caribbean islands. More than a half-dozen more of the furry animals have been born at their home
after occasionally bringing in a male huitia in to mate with Congui.
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Photo By Ramon Espinosa/AP
In this Nov. 17, 2014 photo, Rafael Lopez strokes his pet huitia Pancho, in Bainoa, Cuba. While some
huitias can be aggressive, the 50-year-old musician and his wife have found the huitias to be pleasant
companions. Lopez, calls the huitia ìa precious, curious and very intelligent little animal.
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Photo By Ramon Espinosa/AP
In this Nov. 17, 2014 photo, one of Ana Pedraza's pet huitia, listens to her sing at their home in Bainoa,
Cuba. Pedraza lives with her husband in a large home with a patio in this community about 25 miles
(40 kilometers) east of the capital of Havana. They built a special cage for their pets after discovering
that letting them loose only resulted in the destruction of telephone cables and furniture.
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Photo By Ramon Espinosa/AP
In this Nov. 17, 2014 photo, Ana Pedraza gives her pet huitia, Congui, a drink of coffee, in Bainoa,
Cuba. Five years ago Pedraza and her husband Rafael Lopez, right center, adopted Congui, their
first pet huitia, a large rodent that lives in Cuba, Jamaica, Bahamas and some of the smaller
Caribbean islands. More than a half-dozen more of the furry animals have been born at their home
after occasionally bringing in a male huitia in to mate with Congui.
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Photo By Ramon Espinosa/AP
In this Nov. 17, 2014 photo, Ana Pedraza gives her pet huitia, Congui, a drink of coffee, in Bainoa, Cuba.
Conqui and her brood like to drink coffee and munch on crackers, greens and root vegetables. Her son
Pancho every once in a while likes a little nip of rum.
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BAINOA, Cuba (AP) — Some people keep guinea pigs or hamsters as pets.
But in Cuba, where a larger, more exotic rodent runs wild, Ana Pedraza and her husband prefer the huitia.
With a rope-like tail and long front teeth, the huitia looks like a giant rat, only cuter, some would say. They live in Cuba and other Caribbean islands where they are sometimes hunted for food.
But Pedraza and her husband Rafael Lopez say they only want to want to protect and take care of the animals, which measure nearly a foot long (about 30 centimeters), with the largest ones weighing in bigger than a small dog.
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