While dusting the book shelves, I was thinking about all the pets we have had over the years. Actually, it was seeing this tarantula skin that prompted the thoughts. It is odd to me how a tarantula sheds its skin. It ends up looking just like another spider.
Our pets were as varied as their owners. When I was growing up we had dogs, no cats. When I had my own house my first pets were cats and mice. The mice and cats got along quite well. Maybe because they were raised together. The problem then was that I ended up with so many mice. Thirteen of them! It was not planned that way, they just tend to have lots of babies at one time. Eventually I had to start giving them away because I ran out of room for their enclosures.
After the kids came along we had a dog for a little while and eventually we had cats again. Somewhere along the way we also had the usual fish tanks and hamsters.
My son liked frogs, turtles and iguanas. The iguana had a floor to ceiling enclosure so it could have lots of space to climb. I had a tarantula. We lived in an apartment at the time so all these smaller size pets worked out well.
When we moved to a house we adopted three cats and a miniature rabbit. At the end of one of the school years we ended up with the rat from high school science class. It could not be left alone in the classroom for the summer break (so went the story I was given).
Later I was gifted another tarantula and we were back to small size pets again. Unfortunately, dander allergies hit so our furry friends had to leave. And after the kids left I was pretty much done with taking care of pets.
I have to admit that I tend to prefer it this way. Freedom from the extra responsibility of feeding and caring for all the critters. At this stage I prefer plants to pets. Now I need to go do my yardwork and repot a few plants.
