Ace Ventura has nothing on Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin.
One of boxing’s most exciting young guns is just as crazy about animals as he is about throwing bombs in the ring.
The middleweight pugilist, who started fighting at 16 after his brother Craig gave him a pair of gloves (he promptly proceeded to break an older man’s nose in a sparring match), can’t wait to finish his daily training so he can head back home to his very own”Brooklyn Zoo.”
Chilling inside his Fort Greene crib is an African Grey parrot dubbed Frankie Boy; a python named Miami; a long-nosed lizard named Superman; a bearded dragon named Toto; and a newly adopted kitten, Maythefifth.
But he’s not stopping there.
“I want to get a tarantula and a scorpion next,” says Quillin, 24.
“I’ve loved animals since I was a little kid,” reveals the Grand Rapids, Michigan, native. “I love learning about them. I watch a lot of Animal Planet and read tons of books on them.”
Despite all this, Quillin, who received his nickname because he resembles the late Cuban boxing star Eligio “Kid Chocolate” SardiÑas Montalvo, has never visited the Bronx Zoo.
“I can’t believe I haven’t been there yet,” he laughs.
“There’s a huge lizard exhibition coming soon and I’ll be sure to finally get there and catch that.”
A more pressing goal, however, is capturing a championship belt.