When Xavier, the narrator, was a child, his family had a beaver for a pet. During the day he slept but during the night he worked hard at cutting willow sticks until there was a pile blocking the door. He worked hard to close the door completely like he would on the river and in the morning he would be asleep.

Xavier, the narrator, used to have an otter as a pet. He slept at night and was up early in the morning but returned to bed in the afternoon. In winter, his family would cut two holes in the ice and tie a string around the otter's paw. The otter would dive into one hole and come out the other, effectively placing the string for the net under the ice.

Xavier, the narrator, used to have hawks in his family's care from the time when they didn't even have feathers yet. They ate a lot of fish, once a day, and when they grew bigger they didn't want to leave. Also, the hawk was useful in keeping mice away.