Question! If you’re a parent and you plan to delight your child with a pet, what are the two first animals that come to mind?  You’re probably picturing a fluffy puppy or a furry kitten aren’t you? Of course there are other popular creatures, but dogs and cats seem to top the list of pet choices for most families! Well don’t they?

May I remind you that I said most families! Just not ours. No dogs or cats ever allowed in our home as I was growing up! I understood the whole no-dog rule, because Dad had his own reasons for not having one. It wasn’t that he disliked them – on the contrary my father to this day loves all members of the animal kingdom … well most animals. Cats are not among his favorites {even though HE had one as a child} because they kill birds … and he simply loves birds more!

Let me be clear. It wasn’t that Dad was opposed to the “dog” itself. He can’t abide their tongues.  To be more accurate, it’s the slimy wet licks he abhors. While studying microbiology, Dad viewed slide samples of dog’s saliva under a microscope and learned that humans can contract deadly diseases from certain bacteria found in dog saliva.

So convinced is Dad of the potential effects posed by dog saliva that I’ve seen him leap in the air and move his hand out of the way like lightening to avoid an over zealous tongue-licking-saliva-dripping-puppy-dog. I’m not disputing the validity of this claim, nor am I judging my Dad for being alarmed, I’m just saying that’s his justification for steering clear of dogs.  

To be fair, I can’t remember if I even asked for a dog or not. But most kids go nuts over puppies and kittens and all my friends had them so I’m assuming at some point I’d have expressed the desire to have one too. At any rate, I don’t seem to have been permanently scarred from missing out. 

Anyway, I had Timothy! 

Timothy was my pet tortoise. And I loved him dearly.  He was my very first real “pet” and I was responsible to care for him. And I did. He got the best tender pieces of lettuce and other greens that were available. When my folks were growing vegetables, he could actually crawl into the furrows and help himself to some of the tender shoots. It’s okay, tortoises don’t eat much … just little nibbles here and there so nobody complained!!

Timothy was mostly allowed to roam our back garden unrestricted … no cages or chicken wire to fence him in. He was king of the back garden and he loved his safe hiding places.  I knew most of them. Now and then he would disappear as he discovered a new secluded spot to snooze and retreat inside his shell. 

Sadly Timothy didn’t have a long life with us!  Boo hoo! All I know is that when winter came, he was placed in a box with straw and water outside in the shed for his hibernation time. The next thing I knew, he had died in the box and we held a tortoise funeral for him! So sad! That was the end of Timothy! 

Children bounce back with surprising resilience, so before long my friends and I busied ourselves with creatures found in nature. We collected frog’s spawn and delighted at the amazing transformation of  tadpoles into amphibians! We darted nimbly after spotted newts and caught fish {chub} for the garden ponds!  

We rescued baby birds, mimicked mooing cows across the field, marveled at ants carving passages in old mason jars, chased fluttering butterflies and teased poor old Socksie in the field behind us. There was plenty of interaction with “wild” animals, making up for the lack of a pet cat or dog!

And then one day, lo and behold!  A new pet arrived! Oh joy! Joey joined our family!

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”  Anatole France