The Menagerie

after Vahni Capildeo

1. I. What do two oscars, five parakeets, six house cats, three dogs, two bearded dragons, one gerbil, a mischief of rats, a fire newt, two pygmy goats (which were not pygmies after all), three chickens, countless outdoor cats, and whole barns of horses add up to? Life cycles of learning compassion and neglect.

2. II. Lizards compress their lungs as they sprint, squeezing the air alternately with each twist of their bodies. Once, my sister and I let our bearded dragons loose and were dismayed when they tried to run away. We trapped them under the bed of a horse-trailer and spent the next hour circling it, trying to coax the reptiles into one of our waiting hands.

3. III. It's safe to say that one magpie is bad, but two are good luck. And the parrot in my grandfather's pet store was jealous of his wife. Every time she touched his arm, the bird's head would swivel, its white crest fan out, and it would screech, "Telephone! Telephone!" even when the phone didn't ring.

4. IV. Horse hooves are ground for glue. The hair of their tails strings violins. In other countries, it's appropriate to eat a fillet di caballo. Is this the mark of expendability or necessity? Inuits have a purpose for every part of a killed seal, but when an ocelot is hunted, they only take the fur.

5. V. She puffs warm air against my cheek. People worry that jumping horses is a dying sport. I stroke the broad white blaze that defines her brow. She pushes at my pockets, her nose searching for treats. I don't need to tell her that the earth is burning up.