I once touched a 900-pound Bengal tiger...

I was at the St. Augustine Wild Reserve in St. Augustine, Florida.

It was amazing to see live tigers. I had a stomach full of conflicting feelings swirling simultaneously. I hated the people that once caged the animal, but I was grateful for the people that were helping.

My biggest memory from watching tigers was the fact that the enormous cats acted exactly like tiny (in comparison) domestic cats. I was watching an orange and black tiger within a large cage with a white and black tiger. The orange tiger was trying to rest. The white tiger wanted to play. The white tiger was nipping at the orange tiger’s ears and paws, and jumping over the lounging tiger. The white tiger finally leaped into the air as if she had springs for paws. The massive tiger landed in the large, round water tub. Water splashed out of the tub and onto the orange tiger, but the tiger didn’t budge.

The woman working traced her fingers along the fence cage. The white tiger raced after her hand along the fence. The white tiger looked exactly like a house cat playing.

Bengal tigers sound exactly like Chewbacca from the Star Wars movies when they are communicating with each other.

I went home after visiting the St. Augustine Wild Reserve, looked at my cat and thought – wow, what a difference...

Copyright © 2016 by John Mallozzi