I opened the door and was welcomed as usual by Shredder. He ran towards me, jumped up and put a paw on my shoulder. “Okay, boy,” I said, rubbing his ears the way he liked. He moved his tail happily. I usually played with him all day. But with so many things on my schedule these days—meetings, dinners, many houses to clean—I didn’t have time. I told Shredder to lie down.” I have to get to work now,” I said. I headed downstairs to clean the bedroom. All of a sudden, pain shot through my head. It was unlike anything I’d ever felt—10 times worse. Things dropped out of my hands, and I fell to the ground. I knew someone who had died from a brain aneurysm (脑部动脉瘤).

I had to get help before it was too late. I should call 911, but the nearest phone was in the kitchen. I tried to stand up, but couldn’t. I knew I had to get upstairs. It felt like my head was going to explode. I managed to move to the kitchen. But later I couldn’t move anymore. I was helpless. Through the sharp pain, I looked up. Shredder stared back at me from the top step. Did he think I was playing?” Come here,” I whispered, trying to make my voice sound playful. He stared with doubt.” Come on. boy,” I said. Shredder ran down the steps and stood next to me. His tail stopped moving. “Help me, Shredder,” I said, holding his collar (颈圈) with my left hand. He climbed a step and then stopped. “Up!” I said. He looked back at me as if to say, “Is this right?” “Go,” I whispered. He started to drag me. My left arm went frozen. I had to look at Shredder’s collar to make sure I kept my hold.

Nutria were brought there from Argentina by fur farmers and let go into the wild. “The ecosystem down there can’t handle this non-native species (物种). It’s destroying the environment. It’s them or us." says Michael Massimi, an expert in this field.

The fur trade kept nutria check for decades，but when the market for nutria collapsed in the late 1980s, the cat-sized animals multiplied like crazy.

After rescuing the lonely animal, Sam and Vera found it extremely emotional to have to release her back out into the wild to fend for herself — even though they knew it was the right thing to do. But after having such a strong bond with an animal, it was really difficult to see her go. They had put so much time, effort and energy into raising her but to see her walking in a herd of blesboks made it all worthwhile.

......