Although traditional pet stores are somewhere you buy an animal to be your friend at home, there's a new kind of pet store where you spend some quality time with the animals and just walk away, without taking anything. What really matters is the experience.
I visited one of these stores in the Sanlitun area in Beijing. I was targeting call ducks, which are famous for their cute looks and, of course, their sky-high prices, each of them can easily cost a few thousand yuan. Since I was not planning to spend so much on a duck, visiting them in one of these—what I'd call "mini-zoos"—seemed to be the perfect option.
There were a total of five call ducks at the store—among other animals—and we spent a good three hours with them. We got to learn much about them.
Call ducks are not asobedientas cats, so playing with them would include a lot of running from our side and quacking(呱呱叫) from theirs. Also, don't expect them to be house-trained, one of the ducks actually pooped(排便) while sitting on my leg. But none of these little incidents reduced the pleasure of holding them in my hands and touching their full chests. It was like the whole world's joy was in my hands, for those call ducks are fun and comforting—something I would hardly ever expect from work.
That's the magic of animals: You don't have to own them—simply spending time with them is enough.
