animals

The Aquarium Has Advice on Hosting Otters at Thanksgiving

The Long Beach institution's tongue-in-cheek Instagram post provided a bit of levity for the holiday.

Hugh Ryono/Aquarium of the Pacific

What to Know

  • A lighthearted post shared some messy-eating facts about everyone's favorite fish-obsessed mammal
  • The Aquarium of the Pacific's outdoor areas are open, while indoor spaces are temporarily closed
  • Visitors should expect temperature checks and other safety protocols; face coverings are a must

Your dog's whereabouts on Thanksgiving Day? She's right against your ankles, each and every time you walk in the kitchen to check the turkey and stuffing.

Your cat's location on the holiday? He's ready for you to retreat to the couch for your well-deserved post-meal nap.

The otter in your dining room?

Wait, you actually invited an otter over for Thanksgiving?

We mean, we obviously see your dog and cat sticking close by, since they share your address and are treasured members of the family.

But having an otter over for the big occasion is probably not a wise idea, at least according to this cheeky post shared by the Aquarium of the Pacific in honor of Thanksgiving 2020.

The just-for-fun video includes real facts about the whiskery mammals and what sort of incredibly messy dinner guests they might make.

"Reasons Why Otters Would Make Terrible Thanksgiving Guests" is the title of the cute, otter-loving post.

One? "They eat 1/4 of their body weight per day, so you'd have to stock up on a lot of sustainable seafood," revealed the social media team.

Two? "They'd hide your stuff in their armpit pockets."

That's real talk for Thanksgiving. If you like your stuff, you can bet an otter is going to tuck it away, armpit-style, and make it his own.

And three? The otter's table manners are "terrible," at least through our human eyes.

We suspect, though, that otters generally find the eating styles of other nearby otters perfectly polite and acceptable.

The lighthearted bit of Thanksgiving cheer hails from a conservation-minded destination known for its raft of amazing otters, those twirly, tumbly, fish-obsessed superstars of the not-so-deep.

The Aquarium of the Pacific's outdoor areas are open, with several safety protocols in place. Please read all, and remember that advance tickets are required.

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