While the other kids walked their dogs, Demetrios was walking his new pet cheetah. We all liked helping with his cheetah, Davemon, and we always played with it in the backyard. Even though Davemon was smaller than the dogs he played with, he was definitely tough enough to handle them.

We all went to Africa for Demetrios' nineteenth birthday. On the third day of our trip we went on a safari and wandered off from our group. After walking around for a while, we came across a cheetah cub alone under some shrubs. On a dare, Demetrios picked up the cub and brought it back to where we were staying. We were planning on returning the cub the next day, but we had so much fun playing with him that Demetrios insisted on bringing him home with us. Demetrios knew that cheetahs could be domesticated.

After successfully sneaking the cheetah cub, Davemon, onto their cruise home, they returned to Sleepy Hollow, New York. The fun didn't last long for Demetrios and Davemon. First of all, Davemon's diet was made up mostly of other animals such as gazelles, antelopes, reed bucks, and hares. So, what Demetrios had to do was train Davemon to kill the deer and hares that wandered into his backyard. When he was young, Davemon was only able to catch the hares. It was only after he got older that he was able to catch the deer and drag them into this one spot where he would eat them.

Second, it had only been a week before Demetrios' nosy neighbor, Kasey, saw us playing with Davemon in the backyard. After spying for a while she called the authorities, the police and animal control. Demetrios was ready for something like this. Davemon was able to hide before the police could see him because cheetahs are the fastest mammals on Earth, running up to almost 70 miles per hour.

We were all in the backyard for Demetrios' 20^th birthday playing with Davemon, who was now about five feet in length, almost three feet in height, and weighing about 135 pounds, when suddenly the police ran into the yard. We didn't know that Demetrios' nosy neighbor had called and reported us again. Demetrios was arrested and the police told us that they would be taking Davemon to the Bronx Zoo. They also explained that cheetahs are an endangered species and that it is against the law to take them out of their natural habitats. After we bailed Demetrios out of jail, we began planning Davemon's escape from the zoo. Demetrios showed us a map with the plan and told us to memorize it.

The plan worked great! There was one close call though. We realized that the security cameras were on when we reached Davemon's cage, but luckily we were wearing masks. Demetrios already had his bags packed and ready in the car, so we drove straight to the cruise ship leaving for Africa. Demetrios had made up a fake ID that said he worked for the Bronx Zoo. He was hoping that he could bring Davemon onto the cruise without any troubles.

When Demetrios boarded the cruise he was able to explain why he had Davemon and that he was bringing him back to live on the Savannas of Africa. When they arrived in Africa, Demetrios let Davemon run wild. Demetrios knew that Davemon wasn't his to keep, and so he decided to go home and promised to visit Davemon every year.

Demetrios kept his promise, and the next spring, when he went to visit, he was surprised to see that Davemon wasn't alone. He had found a wife and they had five cubs. Cheetahs normally have four to five cubs, and the males may live together for life. Davemon brought the cubs over to Demetrios and they played together for the entire week that he was visiting. Demetrios knew that he would always come back to see Davemon.