He hopped the fence 7 times to be with his frien
Lindsay McKenna tried everything to help George the capybara feel at home. First, she placed him with the five other capybaras at WildSide Exotic Rescue in an enclosure with a swimming pool and lots of grassy areas for socializing.
George didn’t like it, and the other capybaras weren’t very welcoming.
“They’ve got an aggressive sound that they do,” McKenna, owner of WildSide Exotic Rescue, told The Dodo. “They were just all chasing him.”
McKenna’s staff then paired George with just one other capybara. As social animals, who typically live in groups of up to 50, they hoped this would make him happy.
They were wrong.
“So, we then thought, ‘Right, we’ll invest in a separate swimming pool for him, in a separate area,’” McKenna said. “We started to build that project, and all George kept doing was jumping over huge, probably 5-foot gates … running back to the barn.”
Capybaras aren’t known for scaling 5-foot gates. They’re also not native to England, but someone purchased George as an exotic pet when he was younger.
After authorities demanded the owner build George a swimming pool and the person couldn’t comply, McKenna stepped in and brought the capybara to her sanctuary in 2023.
Though she doesn’t know how old George is, McKenna knows he grew up in a house with dogs, which explains his canine-like behavior.
“He will have a little jump and a run when he’s happy,” McKenna said. “He likes sunbathing on his back [and] likes belly rubs … If the dogs are on the sofa, he will get them off the sofa so that he can get on it.”
After a year, during which George broke out of his enclosure seven times, McKenna’s team realized they couldn’t force him to live somewhere he wasn’t comfortable.
“Our philosophy is about an animal’s choice,” she said. George chose to live with dogs and people in the organization’s warm barn facility. “We’re going to have to live with it.”
It’s been this way since early 2024. In the mornings, George stops by the meerkat enclosure for a massage. If the meerkats aren’t in the mood, he’ll wander over to the raccoons, who are happy to scratch his back.
More often than not, George can be found lounging with his best friend, a rescue dog named Milo.
“You’ll see those two just, together, walking around the farmyard, on the sofa,” McKenna said. “He’s his bestie.”
Throughout the day, George moves around the facility, choosing whatever spot suits him best, whether that’s on the sofa next to — or on top of — Milo, or at a staff member’s feet.
It’s clear that Milo brings George comfort; a familiar canine energy that suits him and fulfills his need for socialization with other animals.
Still, George can be sassy.
“He’s naughty,” McKenna said. “He jumps up with his front paws, up on our food preparers, to try and nick food.”
Don’t worry — George is well-fed. He eats guinea pig food fortified with extra vitamin C, plus lots of peppers, broccoli, sweetcorn and potatoes.
While everyone at WildSide Exotic Rescue loves George’s company and quirky behavior, they wish he could’ve lived life in the wild.
“In my heart, I’d rather him be out with a group of capybaras, grazing,” McKenna said. “I’m sad that he has been so domesticated, probably from a really young age, that he just can’t adapt to being what he should be.”
Even so, McKenna provides the healthiest life possible for George.
He sleeps in a secure enclosure at night, gets the swimming pools to himself for a bit in the afternoon and moseys throughout the facility with Milo all day.
George will live in his current home indefinitely, which suits him just fine.