The Pack's Foray into the Reptilian World

May 27, 2009 -

I've been bringing unwanted animals home since I was a little kid. It's just what I've always done.

I'd see cats roaming the neighborhood and I'd feed them just long enough for them to claim called my childhood home's porch as their own. I tried to rehabilitate many a pigeon with a broken wing and begged my parents for a new pound puppy every Christmas. Some of my mini-animal rescues ended happily, others, so many others, ended with me in tears staring down my broken-hearted parents.

I wish I could say I've grown up, learned from it all and have realized I can't save them all. But I'm still a sucker for a pet in need. And when a neighborhood pet, long forgotten by the kids who purchased him and their over-tired, over-burdened parents surfaced, I couldn't turn my back. With a few reluctant yet simple words I've uttered so many times before: "I'll take him, I guess," Dude, the Bearded Dragon became part of The Pack.

I know nothing about reptiles. And Dude was delivered to my front door late on Sunday night with only the bare essentials tank, some water and a few pieces of lettuce. Something in my gut told me he needed much more and I was about to get a crash course in reptile care. I sped off to the PetSmart store in my neighborhood it was nearing closing time, but armed with a Care Guide on Bearded Dragons, I was able to tick each item Dude really needed off the list and get him something real to eat fast. Oh, and I mean real. As in real, live crickets. Holy smokes.

Dude seemed to take to his new, sandy, well-lit, well-heated cricket-filled environment quickly. He immediately livened up. A few minutes of deep breathing and pep talking later and I was even handling Dude and letting him walk around in my living room. The dogs were fascinated. The cats sat far enough away, their faces glazed over with that look that I swear says Are we really doing this? Again? I tried to avert my eyes. Clearly, we were doing this. Again.

Just when the sheer force of how many pets are in my care came crashing down around me (I also took in an abandoned kitten last weekend), a co-worker with some Bearded Dragon experience offered Dude a forever home - and the promise of a much more distinguished name. I jumped at the offer, but let me tell ya, Dude is welcome back with me anytime. There might be a reptilian member of The Pack yet.

--Cat