Meet Pumpkin, the baby capybara who loves to cuddle and play tag with her cat sister.

Marina Somma, 29, adopted Pumpkin, a five-month-old capybara, in November last year.

Animal-lover Marina runs Darkwings Wildlife, a wildlife refuge which care for seven animals, but Pumpkin has a special bond with Marina and lives in her house.

"We for sure have a pet and owner relationship, she lives in the house, and we spend so much time together," said Marina, from Palm Coast, Florida, USA."

Pumpkin loves to cuddles on the couch and keep Marina company when she works from home.

She also loves plays with tag with her cat sister Chloe.

Capybaras are the world's biggest rodent and Pumpkin lives up to the name.



Marina says it's a constant battle to stop the animal chewing through her things.

"It's matter of capy-proofing everything. She'll chew through any exposed wires and anything plastic. She has one specific sheet that she loves eating," Marina said."

Caring for capybaras isn't easy, and lots of special accommodations had to be made for the animal.

Capybaras live near water and refuse to go to the bathroom anywhere else, so Marina needs to haul a large tub of water in and out of the house for Pumpkin to go in.

They are also vegetarian, with very specific dietary needs, meaning Marina spends almost $200-a-month on fresh hay, grass, and vegetables for the rodent.

Marina, a social media manager, added: "I don't want to do the math of how much her upkeep has been in total, that scares me."

She plans on keeping Pumpkin in the house for the foreseeable future.

Pumpkin weighs about 10 kilos, the same as a yorkie, but will end up weighing about 50 kilos, or the same as a bloodhound.

Despite the difficulties, Marina loves having the capybara around, she loves cuddles, being pet, and is generally lovely to have around.

Marina said: "She gets along with everybody, she loves playing tag with the cat, she's great with the dog."

"Her personality is chill, but quietly mischievous, capybaras can be very comfortable around people, so she's great to have around."

"She can only go to the bathroom in the water and chews everything, so she can be heavy, time intensive and smelly."