I... my, that was sad. (I actually needed to cure the sadness with a heavy dose of Dane Cook skits.)
I really and honestly appreciate that anecdote. I regret heavily having tried to raise an anole when I was young. My brother, a fellow pet lover (along with his wife), had told me that anoles like to eat things like honey and apricot baby food as a treat. With this newly founded “information” (it was more of an opinion, or a tip), I kept the baby anole that happened to crawl out of an egg I found. Later, when he came to visit and see my “progress”, he found what atrocity waited. Decomposing leaves made up the bedding, a popcorn tree twig thinner than a pencil for climbing, and old baby food surrounded a poor, sunless, baby anole. The tank reeked. I had no idea… I was so young, and ignorant. By some stroke of fate, the lizard was freed in time, but most likely too scarred to make much difference. I cried. The rest of my family thought I had released after the hatching. Boy, were they wrong. Boy was I wrong for what I did.
As I have grown from that experience, I now raise two healthy young guinea pigs, and I now want to pursue Veterinary Medicine. This topic, children needing to wait to keep animals, is one that I hope to bring to the public eye. Maybe, as you do, we can all try to eradicate the word “throwaway pet”.
Pets aren’t just at risk of death in the care of youth, but they are also at risk of cruelty, torture, and an utter living hell. When releasing the anole, it looked as if it had no will to live (okay, maybe it was just asleep, it was a late on a hot, summer night.)
It wasn’t your fault. Kids, they just don’t know that the consequences to their actions come at the expense of their companions. I also believe Ralphie forgave you. My guinea pigs will go out of their way to lay their front paws and chin down on me rather than the towel they’re on. They lick my nose and fingers as they would groom each other, so I highly doubt they lick me because I taste like a French fry. I’d bet anything Ralphie loved you unconditionally, and forgave you.