I’ve had many, many pets. As a child my parents allowed my brothers and I to have a variety of great pets. We ALWAYS had a dog. We also had turtles, fish and several types of parrots. Many of my most happy childhood memories revolve around them.
Our kids are completely animal-centric. We’ve had a gecko that we found in a hotel room, a gaggle of lovebirds, cockatiels (one of which we found flying “wild” around our neighborhood), fish tanks and the world’s easiest-going dog. We are at our all-time low now, with only three pets at the moment.
Our oddest pet to date is our one-eyed American toad. She is possibly the fattest, and—don’t tell her I said this—the laziest toad in the state. She was blinded in a lawn mower accident as a wee little toad over eight years ago. We brought her in to keep her out of harm’s way. Our children and their friends really get a kick out of her. They all seem to enjoy watching her devour earthworms. With only one good eye, she lacks depth perception. She is a fairly inaccurate hunter but makes up for that with enthusiasm. She occasionally flicks her tongue out trying to catch the kids’ fingers. They giggle wildly and try to get her to do it again. If you ever wondered what a toad’s tongue feels like, the kids tell me that it is sticky, just like Scotch tape.
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