My Pet Platypus

           Ten-year-old, Lawrence was playing with his radio-controlled car on a quiet residential road near the San Diego Zoo, when the car lost control and drove off the road into a wooded area. Lawrence followed the path of his toy through the long grass and discovered it half-submerged in a creek at the bottom of a hill.

           After wading his way through the thick, muddy bank, Lawrence was able to reach the car and began to pull it out of the water when he heard a splashing noise off to his left. When he turned his head to look, he fell back into the water at the shock of what he saw.

           Swimming in the shallow creek toward him was the oddest-looking creature that he had ever laid his eyes on. It had a bill and webbed feet like a duck, a tail like a beaver, and a body like an otter. It was about sixteen inches in length and did not seem to be startled by the sight of Lawrence. In fact, it was swimming quickly in his direction.

           Lawrence was unsure if the animal was about to attack him or it just wanted to play, so he quickly crawled on all fours out of the water and through the mud, resting on the grassy area above the creek. That was when Lawrence realized that he left his radio-controlled car back by the water. The creature seemed to be curious about the car as well and swam toward it.

           It waddled up to the car and began sniffing it. It poked at the car with its bill, then turned toward Lawrence with a look as if to ask what this strange thing was. After growing bored of the car, the animal stretched out across the muddy bank as if it were trying to get a suntan.

           Lawrence watched in amazement for several minutes, and once he built up enough courage, Lawrence inched his way down toward the water once again. He thought that perhaps he could grab his car back and get away before the creature noticed him.

           Quietly, he snuck up beside the strange animal, and when he was within twelve inches of his car, the creature lifted its head and gazed up at Lawrence once again. This time, it rolled onto its back and wriggled around as if it wanted a belly rub.

           Lawrence crouched down and reached for his car, but at the last moment, he changed direction and slid his hand softly onto the fur of the playful creature and rubbed his belly back-and-forth. The animal wriggled around some more and appeared to enjoy the touch of this stranger.

           After a few minutes, Lawrence removed his hand and retrieved his car. The creature immediately spun back around and began to climb up on the side of Lawrence’s leg. Lawrence tossed the car onto the grass and had to use his hand to gain his balance back. He then carefully reached his hand toward the animal’s head and stroked the fur back on his head. The creature looked as if it were smiling.

           Lawrence had a crazy idea. He decided to take this creature home and keep it as a pet, so cautiously, he tried lifting the animal. There was no resistance from the animal, so Lawrence held it against his chest. The creature snuggled into Lawrence’s body. That settled it, Lawrence was taking him home with him.

           With the creature in one arm and his radio-controlled car in the other, Lawrence made his way back up the hill with some difficulty. When he reached the top, he looked up and down the street to make sure nobody was looking. He crept toward the back door of his house. He knew that his parents would be in the front of the house watching their favorite reality TV show in the living room, so he would hopefully be able to sneak past them and upstairs without being noticed.

           The screen door creaked slightly as the spring stretched and he slowed down the movement so his parents would not hear. Once inside, Lawrence slowly made his way down the hall toward the staircase. Step-by-step, he made his way up to the second floor, hoping that he would not step on a loose floorboard.

           He set the animal in the bathroom and shut the door. A growling noise started coming from behind the door. It sounded like the belching noise that his dad made. Lawrence started to panic. His parents were going to hear his new pet if he did not do something soon.

           Lawrence ran quickly to his room and grabbed a change of clothes then went back into the bathroom. The creature stopped growling almost instantly. Lawrence locked the bathroom door and ran water in the tub.

           Moments later, he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. It was his mother.

           “Lawrence, I didn’t know you were home!” she exclaimed.

           “Yes, mom. I just got home.”

           “What are you doing in there? Do you need some help?”

           “No, mom! I got all muddy when I was out playing, and I am going to have a bath to get cleaned up.”

           “Oh, okay…” his mother hesitated. “That’s good, I guess. Dinner will be ready in about an hour.”

           “Okay, mom. See you later.”

           Lawrence listened for his mother to walk back down the stairs before climbing into the bathtub. His new pet wanted to join him, so Lawrence lifted him and set him in the water. His new friend splashed around playfully in the small space. Lawrence soon realized that there was not enough room in there for the two of them, so he quickly finished washing the mud off his arms and face then got out of the water, leaving his pet to play alone.

           The question of what he was going to do after the bath then entered his mind. If he leaves the animal locked in a room alone again, it will start to growl. He decided to try and sneak back outside and let it hang out around the swimming pool. He got dressed and snuck back downstairs. Carefully, he opened the door to the backyard and made his way to the chain link fence that surrounded the pool. He opened the gate and set his new pet into the water. The animal looked up at him as if to say, “Aren’t you going to join me?”, but instead, Lawrence shut the gate and headed back into the house. His mother was in the dining room setting the table when he walked past.

           “Where did you come from?” she asked. “I thought you were upstairs still.”

           Thinking quickly, Lawrence replied, “I was looking for you, mom. I was going to ask if you need help getting dinner ready?”

           “Well, that is a surprise! Thank you, but I think I have it handled. Why don’t you sit and watch TV with your dad until dinner is ready?”

           “Okay, mom.”

           Lawrence wandered into the living room. His father was watching the news.

           “Hey, buddy, I haven’t seen you around much today. I can change the channel if you want. What would you like to watch?”

           Lawrence was about to suggest one of his shows for them to watch when he turned his gaze toward the television and saw a video of his new pet. The news reporter was talking to a zookeeper from the San Diego Zoo and they were saying that one of the platypuses had gone missing. They were asking for anyone with information to call the zoo and offered a reward for its return. The zookeeper said that the platypus was named, Penny and she would not be able to survive on her own in the city.

           Lawrence sat with his mouth still hanging open when his dad spoke up.

           “If you keep your mouth open much longer, you will end up catching some flies.”

           Lawrence was broken from his trance. “Sorry, dad, what did you say?”

           “I wanted to know what you wanted to watch.”

           “Anything is good, dad,” Lawrence replied.

           “Actually, dad, do you know anything about platypuses, like the one on TV?”

           “No, son. Not really. I know that they are from Australia and that they are not like any other animal on this planet, but that is about it. Why do you ask?”

           “No reason. I just thought they were neat animals, and it would be cool to own one someday.”

           “I’m afraid that will never happen, Lawrence. Platypuses have to be taken care of in a protected environment where they will get the food and care that they need to survive, and they can be around other platypuses as well.”

           “Okay, I understand. Thanks, dad.”

           Lawrence’s mother called her two men to the table for dinner. Under normal circumstances, Lawrence would rush to the table to devour his mom’s delicious cooking, but tonight, he felt depressed after what his dad said. He sat quietly through his meal and picked at his food.

           Suddenly, a strange growling noise emanated from the backyard. Lawrence’s parents looked up from their plates, then at each other. Lawrence tried to cover it up by placing his hand over his mouth and saying, “Excuse me.”

           Again, they heard the noise. This time, Lawrence could not cover it up. His parents stood up and walked toward the back door. Lawrence jumped in front of them and shouted, “Wait! You can’t go out there!”

           “What are you up to, young man?” his father inquired.

           “Up to? Me? Um…nothing! What could I possibly be up to?”

           His father stepped around Lawrence and opened the door. There at the gate to the pool was Penny, the missing platypus from the zoo. He looked back at his wife and then to Lawrence.

           “Would you care to explain this, son?”

           “Um…Well, you see…”

           “I want the truth, Lawrence,” his mother demanded.

           Lawrence knew that he could not hide the truth from his parents, so he explained the whole story. When he was through, his father called the zoo. Within ten minutes, a zookeeper was knocking on the front door.

           After telling the zookeeper what had transpired, the man kneeled beside Lawrence and said, “Lawrence, it was a nice thing you did for Penny by keeping her safe, but I hope you know that she would be much safer and happier back at the zoo with her family. I will tell you what though, I am going to make you an honorary Junior Zookeeper and you and your family will have free admission to the zoo for as long as you want. You can visit with Penny and her family every day if you choose. How does that sound?”

           “That sounds awesome, mister!” Lawrence said excitedly.

           The man set Penny in a carrier and loaded her into the back of a van then drove off. Lawrence continued to visit with Penny every possible day and she never forgot him. Whenever she spotted him approaching, she would swim over to him. Eventually, some of the other platypuses began to warm up to Lawrence as well. On occasion, the zookeeper would allow Lawrence inside the Platypus compound to help with the feeding and let him pet Penny and the others. Onlookers would look at Lawrence with envy in their eyes, but Lawrence was only focused on Penny.

           A few months later, while visiting the zoo, Lawrence was approached by the zookeeper who picked Penny up from his house. He let Lawrence know that Penny’s eggs had hatched, and he was given a special viewing of the babies. They were only as big as his thumb. The zookeeper said that they were going to name one of the male platypuses, Lawrence after him. He stood there dumbfounded, staring into space.

           Lawrence rushed home to tell his parents the news. When the baby was old enough to be put on display with the others, Lawrence and his parents went together to visit with his namesake. Penny must have known, because both she, and baby Lawrence swam over to visit when they arrived.

           When Lawrence was old enough, he got himself a job at the zoo and started going around cleaning up after the animals and sometimes feeding them, but he always spent a little extra time with the odd creatures know as platypuses.