Valluri Ashok and his family members were taken by surprise at the sight of an unexpected visitor to their home on Wednesday.
A civet had walked into a cage that was placed to capture the nocturnal mammal, believed to have landed in a residential colony in Vijayawada from Seshachalam forest area.
Also called “toddycat” in English, a civet has broadly cat-like general appearance, though the muzzle is extended and often pointed, rather like that of an otter, mongoose or even possibly a ferret.
The rare sight of the civet invited curious glances of people gathered at Mr. Ashok’s house at Brindavan Colony from the neighbourhood.
Mr. Ashok, who has been donating vegetables for the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam’s Annadanam programme for many years now, feels that the animal would have landed here in one of the lorries that the TTD officials sent for carrying the vegetables to the temple shrine at regular intervals.
“It must have come in one of those empty containers from its home, the Seshachalam forest area,” said Mr. Ashok.
It is said that the musk produced by a civet, which is highly valued as a fragrance and stabilising agent for perfume, is used in the ‘seva’ programme of Lord Venkateswara at the temple on every Thursday. “We feel lucky that the animal which is so close to the ‘swamy’ has today walked into our home,” said Mr. Ashok and his family members.
He said he had informed the Forest Department officials who would hand over the animal to the TTD authorities.
