Nobody knew what Gef was. He said he was an Indian mongoose, perhaps a spirit, but he did not act like a real mongoose. He ate human food, was extremely intelligent and sassy, and could read.
Nandor Fodor, “My Diary in the House of the Talking Mongoose,” pg. 44, February 1, 1937, Folder “Gef the Talking Mongoose,” Box A, Eileen J. Garrett Parapsychology Foundation Collection, Collection 331, Special Collections, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Baltimore, MD).