Yielding Pet Page

*Entries in red indicate animals that are currently living.

DOGS AND CATS

Spook

  • Acquired: September 4, 1988
  • Age at acquisition: About 6 months
  • Died: May 16, 2004
  • Appearance: All white with green eyes. About 20 inches long (nose to rump) and about 12 inches high at the shoulder. Weight: About 7 lbs.
  • Notes: Our longest-kept pet at nearly 16 years. Also our first official pet of our second pet era. Our only cat of this second pet era, Spook had seen every other one of its pets. She always kept a pretty docile personality, only becoming a little more cranky as she entered her elderly years. She died of respiratory failure, in all likelihood of old age.

    Pepper

  • Acquired: December 19, 1988
  • Age at acquisition: About 2 months
  • Died: December 26, 1998
  • Appearance: Chihuahua/Rat Terrier mix; white with 2 black spots on her back--1 large and 1 small. She had a black area on her back just before her tail, and she had a large black splotch on either side of her head. She was about 23 inches long (nose to rump) and stood about 13 inches high at the shoulder. Weight: About 12 lbs.
  • Nicknames: Peepers, Evy, Elvy, Creeper(s), Wildebeest, Duma, the list goes on...
  • Notes: Pepper was one of the more colorful personalities of our second pet era. She was quite evil when it came to guarding shoes and chew-toys, but otherwise she at least humored us by allowing us to handle her. She was a living doorbell, never missing movement outside. She also is among our longest-kept pets and, like Spook, saw a lot of change. In her later years, she was best known for her "dead man's breath," which made her yawns the equivalent of tear gas. And she eventually learned to yawn repeatedly as a deterrant to anyone who would handle her. She died of a stroke, very sudden and unexpected.

    Susie

  • Acquired: March 4, 1989
  • Age at acquisition: About a year
  • Died: 1996?
  • Appearance: Collie/Cattle Dog mix; White with brownish head and black speckles. About 40 inches long (nose to rump), and about 27 inches high at the shoulder. Weight: About 35 lbs.
  • Notes: Very bad chewing habits; very destructive to small objects left in the yard (i.e. toys, cups, etc.). It was when she began roaming into other yards and taking things from there and chewing on them that we decided she was not exactly suited to city life. After about a year or so we gave her to a family living out in the country, where she lived out the rest of her life fairly happily.

    Max

  • Acquired: January 10, 1991
  • Age at acquisition: About 5 months
  • Lost: July 4, 1996
  • Appearance: Brown, dachshund-like, but larger and more muscular. His tail blended from brown at the base to black at the very tip, and he had an elongated white patch under his neck. He was about 35 inches long (nose to rump), and stood about 18 inches tall at the shoulder. Weight: about 30 lbs.
  • Nicknames: Bush, Tracker, Footworm, Tremors
  • Notes: Arguably our best and most loyal dog, Max accompanied us on more outings than any other pet. He feared nothing except for loud pops like firecrackers or cap guns, a fear that we probably exploited a little too much. It was from his trembling reaction to such noises that he got the nickname "Tremors." His attitude toward cats was by far the worst of any of our dogs and he successfully ended Pepper's friendship with Spook. He did a great job of scaring away tomcats, though. His disappearance remains a mystery to this day. He just vanished in a matter of a couple of hours. Our best guess is that he was stolen, but it's likely that no one will ever know for sure.

    Baldi

  • Acquired: August 19, 1992
  • Age at acquisition: About 16 years
  • Died: June 8, 1995
  • Appearance: Friggin' ugly! Full blood Chihuahua, all black with a white nose. She was obese and often had hair missing (hence "Baldi"). Almost all of her teeth were missing as well. About 12 inches long (nose to rump) and about 7 inches high at the shoulder. Weight: About 6 lbs.
  • Nicknames: Skittle (Skithal); Little bitty, teeny weeny, little bitty ol' dawg; Ittle (Ithal); Schizo
  • Notes: By far the nastiest-tempered mammal ever owned by this family, Baldi was not only hateful, but a little full of herself as well; she would go after Pepper, who was capable of ripping her head off (we often had to pull Pepper off her to prevent just that). Very seldom did she bother Max, who was surprisingly tolerant, but very often did she soil the carpet. She loved to attack people, teeth or no, and did so on a regular basis. She was best known for bucking and galloping when excited. She died, most likely, of old age. But technically she suffered respiratory failure much like Spook.

    Bobbie

  • Acquired: September 1, 1997
  • Age at acquisition: About 18 months
  • Died: N/A
  • Appearance: Border Collie; Black with white markings on underside and around neck. About 36 inches long (nose to rump) and about 24 inches tall at the shoulder. Weight: About 40 lbs.
  • Nicknames: Sugar Bob, RoBear, Robert
  • Notes: Picked up as a stray on our final '97 camping trip, Bobbie has repaid us by being the most docile of all our dogs thus far. She has been on quite a few family outings because of that and will likely be on quite a few more. Her worst habit is her incessant licking of hands, mouths, feet, etc., which wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for where her tongue has previously been.

    Roscoe

  • Acquired: February 3, 1999
  • Age at acquisition: About 9 months
  • Died: May 25, 2000
  • Appearance: Mixed breed; all black with the exception of a white patch below the neck. Long and slender. About 28 inches long (nose to rump) and about 17 inches high at the shoulder. Weight: About 15 lbs.
  • Nicknames: Scoe, Hot Rod, Rosquette, Rotten, Roscoe the Fierce
  • Notes: Hyper, fast, excitable, a little skittish, but amusing just the same. Another stray, Roscoe was not tamed as readily as Bobbie, but came a long way. Often credited with being our most intelligent dog, despite his short life. Scared of his own shadow, but wished everyone to believe he feared nothing. He never really had the chance to learn going on family outings although with Bobbie's help, he would have learned quickly. Roscoe will be best known for his antics involving chew toys and unfamiliar objects. Roscoe, too, had to be watched for licking, as his tongue found even worse places than RoBear's. Roscoe was killed by a car when he escaped our fence.

    Scooter

  • Acquired: February, 2000
  • Age at acquisition: about 14 months
  • Died: N/A
  • Appearance: Small chihuahua; mostly black with a white patch on the back of his neck. About 5 pounds and one of our smallest dogs. His head and face are going grey, giving his face a skull-like appearance from the front. Resembles a younger version of Baldi in many ways.
  • Nicknames: none
  • Notes: Rescued from puppy mill. Very skittish, only trusting of a few select people. Noted for crawling on his belly when he thinks he is in trouble. Not bad-tempered considering his breed and history. Fills Pepper's role in many ways.

    Rascal

  • Acquired: January 24, 2004
  • Age at acquisition: About 2 years
  • Died: N/A
  • Appearance: Tan-yellow, medium hair; chihuahua-like mixed breed. His tail color grows darker toward the tip. At 4 pounds he is our smallest dog to date.
  • Nicknames: Raggle, Rotten, formerly named "Bruiser"
  • Notes: Very similar to Roscoe in personality and history. Was rescued as a stray/feral dog and thus had to be tamed and conditioned much like Roscoe did. Possesses many of the same quirks involving toys, unfamiliar objects, etc. but is not as vocal or intelligent as Roscoe was. Best known for his habit of stealing food from plates and trash cans, and also for his determinationand perseverence about getting things he wants.

    THE RODENTS

    RATS

    Charlie

  • Acquired: September 3, 1988
  • Died: March 24, 1990
  • Aged: 18 months, 21 days (3rd all time)
  • Appearance: Hooded rat; white with dark brown head and dark brown stripe along back. Dark eyes. Sleek coat.
  • Notes: Our first rat and one of the most popular. Also among the largest. Died of kidney failure.

    Lancaster

  • Acquired: March 25, 1990
  • Died: August 6, 1992
  • Aged: 28 months, 12 days (2nd all time)
  • Appearance: Cream-colored (solid), dark eyes. Fuzzy coat.
  • Notes: Our longest-lived rat for 15 years, until surpassed by Rex as of August 29, 2007. Not one of the most exciting to see. Very docile, though; never bit once. Died of leukemia slowly over the course of about 3 months, during which he was plagued by large pus-filled tumors under the skin.

    Francis

  • Acquired: August 8, 1992
  • Died: September 4, 1992
  • Aged: 27 days
  • Appearance: Shiny dark gray, dark eyes, sleek coat.
  • Notes: Among the best as far as personality goes. Died from being dropped; a fatal error and not one I enjoy looking back upon.

    Chris

  • Acquired: September 4, 1992
  • Died: December 20, 1993
  • Aged: 15 months, 16 days (5th all time)
  • Appearance: Albino; Shiny white, dark at tip of nose, dark at base of tail. Red eyes, sleek coat.
  • Notes: Very likely our best rat all-around, also one of our smallest. Notorious for escaping his cage, and known for being carried in a toboggan-hat and for "bounding" instead of running. Went more places with us than any other rat. Cause of death unknown.

    Benji

  • Acquired: December 24, 1993
  • Died: January 8, 1994
  • Aged: 14 days
  • Appearance: Brown head and back, white sides and belly. Dark eyes. Fuzzy coat.
  • Notes: Shortest-lived rat; died of respiratory problems; probably should never have been selected in the first place.

    Stuart

  • Acquired: January 8, 1994
  • Died: February 23, 1994
  • Aged: 1 month, 15 days (10th all time)
  • Appearance: Black with white belly, dark eyes, fuzzy coat.
  • Notes: Another rat whose stay was hardly long enough to be worth mentioning. Very active. Cause of death unknown. Also, I named him Stuart well before the movie ever existed, so don't go there.

    Carl

  • Acquired: February 23, 1994
  • Died: January 25, 1995
  • Aged: 11 months, 2 days (7th all time)
  • Appearance: Hooded; Brown head, white from shoulders back; no stripe down back; Red eyes; sleek coat
  • Notes: Nicknamed "Stick in the Mud"; not a very colorful personality, but accepted just the same. Died of respiratory problems.

    Jay

  • Acquired: January 27, 1995
  • Died: November 21, 1995
  • Aged: 9 months, 25 days (8th all time)
  • Appearance: Hooded like Carl only with a gray head instead of brown; dark blue eyes; fuzzy coat
  • Notes: Carbon copy of Carl as far as personality goes--nicknamed "Stick in the Mud II." To cap the whole thing off, Jay too died of repiratory failure; it just didn't take as long.

    Jasper

  • Acquired: September 25, 1995
  • Died: December 2, 1996
  • Aged: 15 months, 7 days (6th all time)
  • Appearance: Dark gray on top, white underside; dark eyes; sleek coat
  • Notes: Our smallest rat; kind of hyper and a little skittish. Died of respiratory problems--4th rat to do so.

    Kat

  • Acquired: December 6, 1996
  • Lost: August 12, 1997
  • Aged: 8 months, 6 days (9th all time)
  • Appearance: Albino; all white, pink eyes; sleek coat.
  • Notes: Female rat; developed a malignant tumor that had reached 2 inches in diameter by August '97 and was simply set free--we weren't interested in seeing her engulfed by it.

    Jack

  • Acquired: June 14, 1998
  • Died: December 25, 1999
  • Aged: 18 months, 11 days (4th all time)
  • Appearance: Hooded; similar in color to Carl, but more similar to Charlie in pattern; tan head with tan stripe down back; sides and belly white; tail stained green by a chlorophyll-based bedding we used early on. Dark eyes; sleek coat.
  • Notes: One of our best rats, rivaled only by Chris and Charlie for that honor. Was bad to chew through screen; cage had to be redone with wire mesh. Known for peculiar sleeping positions and for his green tail. Currently our fourth longest-lived rat (to Charlie-3rd, Rex-2nd, and Lancaster-1st).

    Rex

  • Acquired: April 15, 2005
  • Died: N/A
  • Aged: N/A
  • Appearance: Similar to Jack, but noted for his tendency to occasionally lose his tan hood and appear mostly white. Reddish brown eyes.
  • Notes: Breeder rat and one of the healthiest ever. Rex is our longest-lived rat; he surpassed Charlie for 2nd all-time as of November 6, 2006 as well as Lancaster's longevity on August 29, 2007. The female rats associated with Rex have been unnamed and relatively short-lived. Thus they were mostly not kept up with, with the exception of one (to be added later).

    SNAKES (PYTHON ERA)

    I kept many snakes before I began keeping pythons. However, the common, wild caught snakes were fairly short-lived and were not well kept track of. Thus, only the python era (which may ultimately include non-python species) is recorded here.

    Regis

  • Species: Ball python
  • Acquired: December 21, 2002/length: 21 inches
  • Died: July 10, 2005/length: 38 inches
  • Length of keep: 30 months, 19 days
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: My first python, his name comes from a play on the Ball Python's species name, Python regius. Very mild-tempered; never offered to bite. When he was smaller I would carry him in my pockets, in which he would coil up and remain hidden until I took him out. He died of a respiratory infection.

    Norman

  • Species: Northern Water Snake
  • Acquired: June 23, 2003/length: 17 inches
  • Died: November 16, 2005/length: 30 inches
  • Length of keep: 28 months, 24 days
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: Very mild tempered for a water snake, astonishingly he never bit out of aggression. Was captured and kept because he was in poor health in the wild. Did very well in captivity for over 2 years but died of unknown causes.

    Morgan

  • Species: Green Treee Python (Aru)
  • Acquired: April 7, 2005/length: 13 inches
  • Died: July 19, 2007/length: 50 inches
  • Length of keep: 27 months, 12 days
  • Gender: Female
  • Bought as a very young snake, she changed from her yellow juvenile colors to her adult green with white speckling between 10 and 13 months of age. She was named for the Morgan-Maumelle exit in North Little Rock, which is where I got off I-40 in order to reach the pet store I got her from. Moody in temperament. Usually cage-aggressive, but docile once removed. Died of a respiratory illness, suspect Inclusion Body Disease -- the first of three to die of this illness.

    Java

  • Species: Carpet Python (Irian Jaya)
  • Acquired: July 25, 2005/length: 34 inches
  • Died: August 15, 2007/length: 57 inches
  • Length of keep: 24 months, 21 days (including consignment loan)
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: Named Java for his hyperactivity as a young snake, as though on a continuous caffeine rush. Irritable and nippy as a younger snake, could not be trusted around other people. Was sold on consignment May 23, 2006 because of his temperament. He remained at the pet store for about 5 months, and I decided that I would tolerate his temperament and take him back. I did so to find that his temperament had mellowed out. He was a much nicer, and much larger, snake after being re-acquired October 14, 2006. This change of heart on both his part and mine made him one of my favorite snakes ever kept. He died of the same respiratory illness as Morgan, only 4 weeks later; suspected Inclusion Body Disease.

    Bryon

  • Species: Ball Python
  • Acquired: September 28, 2005/length: 45 inches
  • Died: N/A -- Current length: 48 inches
  • Length of keep: Still living
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: Purchased from an owner who no longer wanted him. Name "Bryon" is an anagram of "Browny," his original name. Somewhat irritable for a ball python, he has bitten me more than once. He is also unusually large for a male. He was once probed female leading me to put him with Kay (who probed male), but the mistake was discovered when Kay, not Bryon, laid the eggs.

    Kay

  • Species: Ball Python
  • Acquired: January 17, 2006/length: 46 inches
  • Died: N/A -- Current length: 46 inches
  • Length of keep: still living
  • Gender: Female
  • Notes: Given to me by an owner who did not want her, the name "Kay" (originally just "K") comes simply from the first letter of her original name "Killer." Presumed to be male until she laid eggs in July, 2006, she was originally referred to as "Agent K." However, once determined female, the "Agent" part was dropped and "K" was simply spelled out. Almost as a counterpart to Bryon, she is unusually small for a female, leading to both snakes being essentally the same size, despite the fact that she should be larger and Bryon should be smaller.

    Neon

  • Species: Green Tree Python (Mainland/Jayapura)
  • Acquired: March 29, 2006/length: 39 inches
  • Died: August 9, 2007/length: 48 inches
  • Length of keep: 16 months, 11 days
  • Gender: Female
  • Notes: Very docile temperament, although would occasionally be in a bad mood. Known for her tendency to calm down when being handled and "perch" on my arm. Died of the same respiratory illness (suspect Inclusion Body Disease) as Morgan and Java. She became ill about the same time as Java and died a few days sooner.

    Short Circuit

  • Species: Diamondback Water Snake
  • Acquired: May 21, 2006/length: 36 inches
  • Died: October 8, 2006/length: 36 inches
  • length of keep: 4 months, 18 days
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: Named for his tendency to be mostly docile, but occasionally freak out and go ballistic. Like Norman, he died mysteriously.

    Baxter

  • Species: Green Tree Python (Mainland/Sorong)
  • Acquired: May 5, 2007/length 48 inches
  • Died: N/A -- current length: about 50 inches
  • Length of keep: Still living
  • Gender: Male
  • Notes: Like Morgan, can be cage/perch aggressive, but is generally docile once removed. Baxter was intended to be a breeder for females Morgan and Neon, however both have since been killed off. Thus Baxter remains as my only surviving Green Tree Python.