Jerald Reiter of Cascade, Iowa, was arrested Sunday night for drunk driving with a blood-alcohol level of .148. Police had stopped him to check on the welfare of the passengers in his truck: a zebra and a macaw.

Reiter, 55, told The Des Moines Register that the zebra and parrot are like friends to him and they often spend time indoors and ride in his vehicles. The animals visit neighbors, and the parrot has been on trips to the local feed store, Reiter said.

On Sunday, after doing chores and eating dinner, Reiter said he decided to take the animals to the Dog House, where he thought they’d be allowed.

“I said, ‘Let’s go for a ride. I ain’t been away from the farm for almost two months because I’ve been planting corn and everything else,’” he said. “So I opened the door, the zebra jumps in, the macaw loves to go for a ride, so we went for a ride.”

Reiter says at no time did he leave the animals in the truck alone. He said when police arrived, he was leaving the bar after being told the animals couldn't come in. Link  -via Arbroath