What it is like to have a pet, and why I want a honey badger as my future pet.
Yes, I know this will sound like madness but if I say I want a dog, everyone will say nice and if I say I want a cat, they will still say cute. But if I say I want a honey badger as a pet, they will say David, are you okay at all?
Yes, I am okay about it but I also have my reasons.
Image is AI generated.
I have been watching this animal for years on YouTube and recently from a Nigerian VDM. This small animal will fight lions, honey badger will enter a beehive and eat honey even when bees are stinging it face. Snake will bites this animal but it will sleeps for few hours and wakes up and eats the same snake straight up. Honey badger has no fear and that is exactly why I want him.
If you asked me what is it like to have a pet? I have not had a honey badger before, but I had a small dog called Obasanjo back then when I was in secondary school in Akwa Ibom state. And from Obasanjo I learned what having a pet truly means.
What I love most about having a pet is that pets are not normal animals, when Obasanjo was around, I woke up early without alarm. I had to feed him. I had to wash his plate. I had to take him out. He made me responsible when I was still a careless boy.
Second, a pet loves you without checking your bank account. My little Obasanjo did not care if I am doing well in my exam or if my father shouted at me. He would still wag his tail when he saw me. That kind of love is rare. Human beings will love you based on what you can give. A pet loves you because you exist.
Again, pets teaches you to enjoy small things. My little dog then could chase his own tail for some minutes and be happy. We humans, we need big things like new car, new phone to be happy. A pet reminds you that joy can be simple.
So why honey badger? Why not just get another dog?
Because I want a pet that looks like me inside.
I am not a fearless person, but I want to be. I want to wake up every day and see an animal that does not care about what people think. That will enter the room like he owns it. That will not beg for validation. In a world where everybody is afraid to try, I want a pet that says I will try anyway.
Imagine me walking with a honey badger in Uyo, Enugu or Abakaliki. Everybody will clear road. No thief will near my house again. EFCC/police will not even come close. That is security and confidence in one body.
What do I think is the hardest part of taking care of one?
I have researched, and I will be honest, it will not be easy but I am ready.
At first, this animal is not a pet, it is a problem. It can open cages. It can dig under concrete. If you lock it in a zoo, it will find a way out with sticks and stones. So my house must be honey-badger-proof which is my plans.
Secondly, food problem. This animal eats anything, snakes, bees, rats, even scorpions. Where will I find scorpions in my location every day? My budget will finish.
But I'm not worried about that enough.
And again, honey badger does not care about you. A dog will obey you because he wants to please you. A honey badger will look at you and say oga, I am not your boy. So I have to love an animal that may never say thank you. That is the real definition of Agape love I talked about yesterday in my earlier post.
But that is also the lesson. Some love is not about receiving back. Some love is about choosing to care for something stubborn, fearless, and difficult, just like God cares for us.
So yes, my future pet is a honey badger. Not because it is easy, but because it will teach me to be fearless, responsible, and to love without expecting anything in return.
And when I finally get one, I will name it VDM.