Cat rooming with capybaras becomes top draw at Malaysia’s Zoo Negara

Capybaras have become a top draw at Malaysia’s Zoo Negara because of their unusual roommate: a domestic cat.

It is an odd pairing, considering capybaras are rodents, a group of mammals that includes mice and rats, and are closely related to guinea pigs.

But the unusual living arrangement is drawing plenty of attention at the zoo, and the cat – a ginger short-haired feline named Oyen – and his rodent buddies seem very satisfied.

Oyen has been living with the capybaras for at least two years, zoo officials told Malaysia’s Bernama news agency.

They said they began seeing him inside the capybara enclosure when the Kuala Lumpur zoo had to shut down because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“When we first discovered him, we saw he was very friendly with the capybaras. He would eat with them,” Mr Mohd Taufik Yazidbustami, senior zookeeper at Zoo Negara, told Bernama.

“At that time, we were also feeding the capybaras bread, which the cat ate,” he said.

Zoo employees think Oyen was probably abandoned near Zoo Negara, which saw more cats dumped near its premises during the pandemic as pet owners struggled with their finances.

They decided to let the cat stay with the capybaras as he seemed to be getting along just fine with them.

But they are keeping a close eye for signs of stress or disease, Zoo Negara deputy president Rosly Rahmat Ahmat Lana told Bernama.

When the zoo reopened in September 2021, people began noticing the odd cat with the capybaras. They snapped photos and took videos of him.

Pretty soon, Oyen became somewhat of an Internet celebrity in Malaysia. People began going to the zoo to catch a glimpse of him.

“Oyen has become so popular,” said Mr Rosly.

One video on TikTok that has more than 40,000 likes shows Oyen affectionately rubbing his cheek on the forehead of a capybara that was munching quietly on its veggies.

In other social media posts, the cat can be seen cuddling or sleeping with the capybaras.

Mr Rosly said Oyen has made the capybara enclosure one of the most visited ones at Zoo Negara.

The cat has become so popular that the zoo is thinking of adding his name to the capybara sign in front of the enclosure, he said.

“The majority of visitors are aware of this. They come... just to take photos of Oyen with the capybaras. But they’re not always successful. If they’re lucky and come during makan (feeding) time, they’ll get their photo,” he told Bernama.

For those who are not aware, the cat is a welcome surprise.

“We did not know about it, but it’s pretty adorable. We’re here to see the capybaras, and the cat is just a bonus,” Mr Seth Deister, who was visiting Malaysia from Seattle, told Bernama.

It is not surprising that the capybaras, which can grow to around 1.2m in length and weigh up to 65kg, have learnt to accept Oyen as one of their own.

Capybaras, native to Central and South America, are known to be social, peaceful and docile animals that get along with other creatures, including dogs and cats when they are rescued and taken in as pets.

The Mail Online said of the capybara: “If the animal kingdom were a school, this chap would be the most popular student in every class.”