National Pet Day is today, April 11th, and it is the perfect opportunity for loving pet owners to celebrate their smaller friends who make every day a little more special. But what about the pets that are a little less common and a little less furry than your cats and dogs?
In the US, dogs and cats make up the majority of the pets. The US population has 65.1 million dogs and 46.5 million cats, before it drops down to around 6 million for the more uncommon pets like birds and reptiles. Despite other animals being pets less often, these animals still bring just as much love and joy to their owner.
Constandina “Dina” Olivadoti is the proud owner of a Leopard Gecko named Amira. Amira and Dina have warmed up to each other over the years. Their close bond is represented in how Amira is quick to crawl over them.
“I’ve had her for around two years now,” they explained, “My favorite thing about her is how calm she is when being handled as long as you’re calm with her. She happily walks onto your hand and very curiously licks your fingers because she likes to explore.”
Dina is able to find joy in many parts of their relationship with their adorable pet, but they’re not the only one. Allison Lee owns a Red-Eyed Slider Turtle, Avocado, who she affectionately referred to as her “Green Dog” during our first conversation. \
“My favorite memories of Avocado are the small moments– after I come from school and make my way towards her tank, she’d slowly turn around until she faces me, then stretch her neck and legs real long to look at me,” Allison shared.
Avocado has her own special moments with Allison, as there’s nothing more pet-like than being excited to see your owner return home after a long day. Then, there are also more unconventional relationships with pets, but that doesn’t mean all aren’t full of love in their own ways. Yoyo Zhou has a colony of fifty or so Dairy Cow Isopods, who are collectively called “The Beast.”
“The Beast is a relentless, voracious, force of nature who will devour anything I offer and will eventually outgrow their set up. They are gluttony incarnate,” Yoyo described, “My favorite thing about The Beast is how if I put my hand in their tank and stop moving for an extended period of time, they’ll eventually stop freaking out and will come up to me and start nibbling at me. That’s probably because they think I have died and are now trying to eat me.”
Although some might find the idea of your favorite thing about your pet being them feasting on you, for Yoyo, it’s a fascinating and joyful trait of their beloved isopods.
“They are very silly. I love them dearly,” They continued.
Although some relationships with less common pets may be seen as different from dogs or cats, all pets still bring joy to their owners. Whether it’s letting them crawl over your arms to say hello, seeing them look at you fondly after a long day, or watching them gnaw away with an eternal hunger, it’s the little things that bring joy to any pet owner.
“I don’t think that there’s much difference between her and a traditional pet like a dog or a cat. I love her and spend time with her, just in a different way,” Dina said, “I still talk to her and cuddle with her, sometimes she nestles in my pocket because it’s warm, and it’s not too different from spending time with my dog.”