March Question: Pets

Squeezing in this last question on the last day of the month! Phew! Thank you all for your questions. I'd never participated before and wasn't even sure people HAD questions! It was fun!

Without further ado...

ancilla_ksst asked:

What is the weirdest pet you've ever owned, if any? What is the strangest animal you'd like to have if time/money/space was no object?

Pets. I love animals, as Sir is aware of, much to his chagrin at times.

I think what seems weird to most folks around here is that I've NEVER had a dog. And while I like cats, I've only had two in my whole life (though Sir and I want to get another one once we move). I'd say I'm more of a cat person, as far as "normal" pets go. I consider "normal" pets as cat/dog. Because if you have pets other than those, you usually have to find a special vet to care for them, they're not in the norm.

My very first pet ever was a frog. We named him Jeramaia after the song, though we spelled it differently. And he wasn't a bullfrog. He was some little dwarf frog. He was weird, and didn't want to eat. At all. No matter what we gave him. My mom had some kind of fear of killing our very first pet so she would force feed him Tender Vittles cat food pellets. I'm sure that wasn't good for him.

I realize now that we were ignorant city folk. Ectothermic animals don't have to eat everyday. That poor little fellow. We had him for awhile, and when he passed we went to the nearest woods and buried him. Put a rock over his grave and sharpied a big "J" onto it.

Growing up I had a few goldfish. Some other kind of colorful fish (that ate each other). I've mentioned Sunny, our cute little cockatiel. My dad briefly had a cat when I was a kid. My brother had a hamster for awhile.

When I was in high school, my brother and I each got a guinea pig from my cousins. On the ride home, he decided he didn't want his (and we did not live together at the time). So I got two of them. We were told they were both girls. Since that turned out not to be true, I went from one, to two, to FOUR. I learned how to sex them pretty quickly after that.

I was not the best guinea pig owner, and I think four of them was too much for me. My dad also hated animals with "little creepy feet" as he called it. When I went away to a college couple years later, those same cousins got my little piggies.

I know I've mentioned my amazing little kitty that passed away last year. He was a very special cat that I absolutely adored, and his passing left a huge hole in both my and Sir's hearts. I loved that cat more than I loved a lot of people, even. When we were in NJ we even moved just so we could keep him.

Other than those, I do have a bearded dragon. I had two, but my male passed on several years ago. So I just have a cute little female left. She is very chill and has spent most of the winter hibernating. I hope she comes out of it soon. I poke her now and again to make sure she's alright in there.

I mentioned before that I'd like to get another cat. I've thought about getting a couple of chickens in the past, though we'd have to have a house for that. I like snakes, and birds, and fish and turtles. I'm trying to think of an animal I wouldn't theoretically want to have.

But honestly, and this is huge for me to admit... I think just the cat would be fine. Sir and I are so busy that I sometimes feel that I neglect my lizard a bit. Because she is in her tank and pretty chill and doesn't demand attention. I have to be mindful to make time for her. Whereas my little kitty would come up and demand affection, demand to be fed, cuddle up in your lap... it was easier.

I wouldn't want to take on an animal that I feel I would neglect and feel guilty about. It's not fair to the critter after all.

So hopefully a cat it will be, for me and Sir in the near future!