While rats are known to have a history of being unsanitary and peculiar creatures, they can be loving and surprisingly, comforting pets. Sophomore Allyson Fox is proof that having two pet rats, Dylan and Paris, can be fun because of how curious, funny, and entertaining animals they are.

“I wasn’t aware that they could get out of their cage and so I left their cage open, without even realizing it, and I went to sit down and watch T.V.,” Fox said. “So I’m sitting there and I just see my cat speed walking into the room and then I just saw a little rat following him. Zeus was just running from a rat, and my cats are cowards so it was pretty funny.”

Fox was also used to others being grossed out when she told them she had two pets, which was actually very strange to her. In fact, she talked about her neighbor’s ridiculous reaction when she told them she not only had one, but two pet rats.

“People mostly are grossed out whenever I tell them I have rats and at one point, my neighbors wouldn’t even come inside unless the rats were out of the house. It was crazy,” Fox said.

Fox was very appreciative to have Dylan and Paris but when school, sports, and other activities began to overwhelm her, she had to give up something.

“I ended up giving them to a little girl but I think the last moment of seeing them and playing with them and everything just meant a lot to me,” Fox said. “So if I could give them to someone who would love them better and to someone who didn’t have any pets that really wanted one, they would both be happy. I didn’t want to give them away but this little girl, Libby, wanted pet rats so bad that she even made a presentation to her parents and I just thought she would be great. She would have a lot of commitment to these rats.”

Having an animal is a lot of responsibility to take on but having two animals is a real challenge and while she loved Dylan and Paris, she had to give them up to someone who would love them just as much as she did.

Dogs, cats, fishes, hamsters, the list goes on, are all common pets to have in a household but what about a hedgehog? Sophomore Kylie Hale tells all about what it’s like having a hedgehog, funny moments they have had together, and heartfelt moments that she will never forget.

Hale has had Thistle, her hedgehog, for about two and a half years and while it’s difficult to care for him sometimes, she enjoys looking back at the funny moments she’s had with him.

“He once tried to climb up one of the chairs in the kitchen,” Hale said. “I was letting him run around, and all the sudden, I couldn’t find him so I started running around frantically trying to find where he was. Then, I just see him stretched up against the chair with his paws dug into the chair, with tiny claw marks. He got mad at me for taking him away from the chair because, apparently, there was chicken on the chair and he really wanted it.”

Along with that, she’s also remembered the heartfelt moments with him because he was the one who she could always depend on. After a hard day, Hale would rant to him about the frustrations from the day. She loved how she could just curl up with him, and he would listen. There weren’t any interruptions or distractions from school or family, just her and Thistle spending time together which is all she needed. It was something they shared that was always memorable to her and a precious memory that will never be forgotten.

When families consider getting a pet, they typically think of a puppy, a fish, or sometimes, a turtle but the type of animal that really sparked Brianna Dierks’ interest was a cockatiel bird. Sophomore Brianna Dierks has had Oliver for almost a year now and she went on to say how Oliver got out of his cage, at one point, and almost created chaos around her room.

“Once when I was trying to get him back in his cage, he flew around the room and almost landed in my hair. Luckily, I caught him and he got in his cage. It was actually very funny looking back,” Dierks said.

It’s an amazing feeling when you first get a new pet and you get them to trust you and the new environment they’re in because then, everything acts as a well-oiled machine. In the same way, an exciting moment happened for Dierks when she was able to get Oliver to trust her enough.

“The first time I got him to trust me enough, to step on my finger, was very awesome,” Dierks said. “He’s so fun to be around.”

Dierks loves the fact that she gets to take care of Oliver and be around him because now, there’s this bond between them and that’s all something an owner can ask for in their pet. The joys of having a pet makes for not only heartfelt moments but moments that are cherished now and forever.