( CNN ) -- The charge is rather routine -- an Iowa man was arrested over the weekend , accused of operating a vehicle while intoxicated , according to a police report . What makes this case unusual are the passengers that police in Dubuque say were with him : a parrot on his shoulder and a zebra in the back seat . `` They love going for rides , '' John Reiter 's girlfriend , Vicky Teters , said to CNN affiliate KCRG . `` We treat them like our kids . They come in the house , we take them outside and take them for walks . We take them for car rides , '' Teters told KCRG . `` They go and get the mail with me . '' Dubuque Police Lt. Samuel Baxter told CNN that quite a few people called in to alert the police about a `` zebra and parrot trapped in a vehicle parked at a bar . '' Officer Chad Leitzen described in his report what he saw as he arrived : `` I did observe two white male subjects in the front of the vehicle . I also observed a zebra in the back seat of the vehicle and a parrot on the driver 's shoulder . '' Leitzen then conducted a breathalyzer test that he said Reiter subsequently failed with a blood alcohol content of .148 . The legal limit in Iowa is .08 , according to Iowa 's Department of Transportation website . Reiter was arrested Sunday and held overnight , while the zebra and parrot were taken safely to a friend 's house .
Police in Dubuque , Iowa , say they found a zebra and a parrot in vehicle . John Reiter is charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated . His girlfriend , Vicky Teters , says of the animals : `` We treat them like our kids ''