Nature & Animals What exotic pets have you owned?

[Takes Two To Tango]

Nothing really crazy for me, I've only had dogs all my life so far.

I'd like to get a rabbit, but will see.

How about you folks?

 

[I Am Legion]

We always have dogs. When the kids were little we had fish, a turtle, a few birds and a Guinea Pig. Nothing really exotic. I dated a Puerto Rican once though.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

I had a dog from 2010 to 2024, but for more “exotic” pets (and I’m probably using the term very loosely) I had a Chinese firebelly newt named “Newton” from 2009 to 2018





And since 2023 I have had two axolotls, “Axie” and “Glowy”, with Glowy being genetically modified with GFP so he glows under various wavelengths of blue and black light

 

[Flower2dPeople]

Growing up we had various cats and dogs and 2 Hawks growing up. Pops had arrowanas, red bellied piranhas and an arapaima. When he moved to a condo he got himself a croc that he traded for a cockatoo when it got too big for his balcony.

I had 2 fish ponds in highschool and raised oscars and koi.

 

[RichardHarrow]

Used to own of these ( caique) and called him Gizmo. Would outright chase me ( on foot) if I took some of his food. Miss the lil f***er

 

[Tone C]

Used to own of these ( caique) and called him Gizmo.

Lol , that's our Greek rescue dog's name...

Anyway, as a kid , dogs and stick insects, goldfish , Koi and a tortoise that just turned up one day from somewhere.

As an adult, lots of budgies ( small birds) , a Bearded Dragon, a German Shepherd, the Greek mongrel, several cats and another German Shepherd ( after I said I would never have another guess I'm a liar...)

 

[Kowboy On Sherdog]

 

[PG29 red0 Jr]

I had a red belly piranha named killer.

A guy I knew in college bought a dozen piranhas, they were about the size of a fingernail when he bought them. When the grew larger, drunk people would put shit in the tank during parties like peanuts and pretzels, and random crap.

All of the piranhas died except one.

The following year, I started living at a house that had a massive fish tank that must have been 12-15 feet long. My friend gave me killer and he lived in a much bigger thank for a year or two.

It was killer, and a very large Pacu that was probably 12-16" long in the tank for a while. One of my roommates caught a good sized large mouth bass in the Mississippi river and released it in the tank.

I probably released like 36 feeder fish in the tank before I was going out of town for 2 weeks, and I was hoping the feeder fish would hold everyone over. When I came back, the largemouth bass had been cleaned to the bone.

I left the fish in the tank for the next kids that were going to rent the place. IDK what happened to them.

 

[Natural Order]

I keep poison dart frogs currently. Dendrobates Tinctorius and Phillobates Terribilis. Kept all kinds of reptiles (turtles, snakes, lizards) over the years.

Kept aquariums for roughly 25 years as well, all kinds of various freshwater. Setting up a 120 gallon Tropheus tank when we move to new place in a couple months.

Will post up some pics of dart frogs when home tonight.

 

[Thrawn33]

I had a couple tarantulas growing up, one rose-haired and a pink toe.

Both of them molted at least once, so that was cool.

 

[Osculater]

As a kid I had a chicken for a few months and had two parrots which one escaped and the other died.
As an adult I had a rabbit for a few years until the first owner took it back LOL

 

[MichiganMMA1978]

I had a few Degus a long time ago. They were pretty cool. They would hang out in my hood and go places with me. The one liked stealing my friends weed and stashing it in my hoodie. They were basically a squirrel with a gerbil tail. Very friendly!
*not my degu in pic*

 

[AFanNotAFighter]

I had a chameleon when I was a kid. Not that exotic, I guess.

 

[Takes Two To Tango]

I had a red belly piranha named killer.

A guy I knew in college bought a dozen piranhas, they were about the size of a fingernail when he bought them. When the grew larger, drunk people would put shit in the tank during parties like peanuts and pretzels, and random crap.

All of the piranhas died except one.

The following year, I started living at a house that had a massive fish tank that must have been 12-15 feet long. My friend gave me killer and he lived in a much bigger thank for a year or two.

It was killer, and a very large Pacu that was probably 12-16" long in the tank for a while. One of my roommates caught a good sized large mouth bass in the Mississippi river and released it in the tank.

I probably released like 36 feeder fish in the tank before I was going out of town for 2 weeks, and I was hoping the feeder fish would hold everyone over. When I came back, the largemouth bass had been cleaned to the bone.

I left the fish in the tank for the next kids that were going to rent the place. IDK what happened to them.

Wow thanks for sharing that.

 

[Takes Two To Tango]

I had a chameleon when I was a kid. Not that exotic, I guess.

lol that's pretty exotic imo.

 

[Takes Two To Tango]

I had a dog from 2010 to 2024, but for more “exotic” pets (and I’m probably using the term very loosely) I had a Chinese firebelly newt named “Newton” from 2009 to 2018

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And since 2023 I have had two axolotls, “Axie” and “Glowy”, with Glowy being genetically modified with GFP so he glows under various wavelengths of blue and black light

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Very nice, thanks for sharing.

 

[Pliny Pete]

Pitbulls

 

[Goon Dog]

Dogs, cats and my wife's free-loading piece of shit nephew for nearly a year.

 

[Otto!]

I had a red belly piranha named killer.

A guy I knew in college bought a dozen piranhas, they were about the size of a fingernail when he bought them. When the grew larger, drunk people would put shit in the tank during parties like peanuts and pretzels, and random crap.

All of the piranhas died except one.

The following year, I started living at a house that had a massive fish tank that must have been 12-15 feet long. My friend gave me killer and he lived in a much bigger thank for a year or two.

It was killer, and a very large Pacu that was probably 12-16" long in the tank for a while. One of my roommates caught a good sized large mouth bass in the Mississippi river and released it in the tank.

I probably released like 36 feeder fish in the tank before I was going out of town for 2 weeks, and I was hoping the feeder fish would hold everyone over. When I came back, the largemouth bass had been cleaned to the bone.

I left the fish in the tank for the next kids that were going to rent the place. IDK what happened to them.

I kept 2 piranhas for a few years in the late 80s. I named them Jason and Freddy. I eventually gave them away.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

Very nice, thanks for sharing.

Thanks. I don’t know why but I’ve just always loved newts and salamanders and axolotls. Look like lizards, feel like frogs.

I miss my newts to be honest. In addition to Newton I had two more named Einstein and Darwin, but I couldn’t find any photos of them, just Newton. I got them all between 2009 to 2010 and they all passed away from 2016 to 2018. It’s hard to get newts and salamanders these days, there are significant restrictions on their import and export as there’s some fungal infection that’s decimating their populations worldwide. Very sad.

I need to buy a larger aquarium so I can house Axie and Glowie together. Right now they’re each in their own aquarium but they’re too small for them and way, way too small for them to be put together. I want to buy a 40-50 gallon aquarium for them so they can move in together.