The first time I saw a picture of a capybara, I felt like I’d just found out unicorns are real.
It seemed too good to be true: This improbable, shaggy-haired beast, which basically looked like a giant hamster, was hugging — yes, hugging — an elated brown-and-white-spotted tabby cat.
“INTERSPECIES LOVE!” I captioned the picture, which I promptly shared on Facebook. “Does anyone know what the big hairy fella is?” I added.
I learned that the hairy fella was a capybara. These critters have a history of kindness to other animals, including Cheesecake, who adopted a litter of Dachshunds. You can see a video of that love-fest here.