Interspecies Relationships

Bearded dragons and dogs get along… but it depends on the dragon, and it depends on the dog. They both have personalities that can either clash, be neutral one with the other, or they can be pals. This, of course, applies to relationships between all beings and species. However, I wouldn’t go as far as to see if a pet rat and snake will chum up. That would end sadly.

Our Lil’ Murph has a new sister…

meet Jazzy!!

I am not a “dog person.” Nor am I “cat person.” I appreciate silent, peace-filled, clean, no vaccine or grooming needed, calm, exotic  animals. Lizards happen to be perfect for me. If you ever hold one across your chest, you will find that even the spiky ones are surprisingly cuddly.

But, don’t misunderstand, I adore dogs and cats. I have a painfully deep compassion for each animal and insect. I just prefer other people give dogs and cats wonderful lives. In fact, if I allowed emotion to rule, our house would be filled with different animals who need a home, and then I’d be overwhelmed. I even struggle with transporting a spider outside when it’s cold. I try to find a safe,  sunny spot and wish it well. I admit that because I don’t care if people think it odd, it’s just in my nature & I need not excuse myself for being kind to innocent beings. I haven’t the time or finances to give many animals fair & happy days or keep pet insects, and I don’t have a maid.

If you’re wondering how a person may not be a dog or cat person, let me explain:

• The couch cushions of our sectional (not a fan of the color, but grateful for its comfort) are now covered by 3 gray sheets to keep the cushions clean. But, now I have to keep those  clean and tuck them tighly around the cushions each morning for appearances sake. I also vacuum or lint roll them. This is more time spent when I’m already busy.

• Fur magically teleports itself onto my bedsheets. Jazzy is not allowed on my bed, and I don’t put my house socks or slippers on the bed and I don’t wear the same clothing to bed that I wore throughout the day. I know I track some amount of fur into the room, but the amount on the bed is a mystery. I even close my door or use a piece of plywood as a gate to keep her out. Do these furs multiply? Are they, in fact, alive and wiggle their ways up there, do they levetate? I now keep a lint roller in two rooms and use a fur-cleaning thingy that partially works to save money on lint rollers.

• I don’t like cleaning up poo multiple times every day or walking when it’s freezing outside (that’s okay, I guess. We’ll save money on heating bills as I leave on all my layers of clothing in preparation for the next outing).

• I do not want buttholes sitting on my furniture. I’d like to take a moment to thank the makers and distibuters of rubbing alcohol and for hard surfaces, the bleach people.

•I don’t enjoy a creature at my feet and always one  step ahead of right where I need to walk, forcing me to play hopscotch behind & around them so neither of us are injured.

• I don’t like being stared at when I eat or hearing the tippety-tap of claws (which sounds cute in moderation) coming my way every single time I enter the kitchen, if doggy isn’t in there already.

• I dislike the sound of dogs bathing themselves. It’s more annoying than listening to myself chew.

• When I otherwise would not need to sweep or vacuum, I need to do both.

But, it’s okay. Jazzy (named either by her human mother who abandoned her at the local shelter or by the shelter staff) is awesome! She is so well-behaved nearly all of the time. She has cute quirks of personality and is comical to watch. She does this adorable thing of sitting upright and crossing her wrists around forearms as someone pets her chest. I’ve not been able to capture a photo of this as she looks up with puppy-dog eyes, but I have this one, after she moved, of course:

I don’t know where on this world she finds tissue to tear into tiny bits, but there on the living room floor they be. If she hasn’t access to trash or the bathroom, I can’t explain it. But that’s okay too. The little booger butt is worth all the work.

Murph does not mind her a bit. I introduced them cautiously over the span of a few days. The first few times through a screen. I am still cautious as Jazzy, or Jazz, as I usually call her, is only 1 ½ years old & quite playful. Occasionally, she seems protective of Murph. She checks on him after his baths or soaks or if she hears him move. If he’s accessible to her, she looks him over and smells for his safety or something. I have to stop her when she smells his eyeballs. Why does she smell his eyeballs?

I’m not sure why Murph doesn’t like our neighbor’s tiny dog. Possibly, he thinks a dog more his size would be interested in harming him, but I really don’t know. When near her, his chin turns black (Beardies may do this as a display, when stressed, occasionally showing dominance, in pain, angry, and if they are sadly dying – which could be stress or pain) and he shuts down with an attitude. He makes fists, and he has hissed at the tiny dog 3 times. Yes, if Beardies are very angry, they can hiss! So, I’m glad he has not shown any dislike toward Jazz.

But, as for dogs, he liked his brother, Bandit, and obviously doesn’t have a problem with his sister, Jazz.

We originally got Jazz under fostering conditions to make sure she was a good fit and didn’t stress Murph. But, she now has a permanent home here. Chances are, the dogs you see in a shelter are not who they truly are. They are much more wonderful when the stress of dogs barking, imprisonment, and strangers everywhere are gone, and their light can shine.

When introducing your animals, take it slowly and cautiously. Maybe they shouldn’t be around each other all day at first. You can introduce them through a gate to see how they react. If you adopt an animal, you may not see their true character for a few weeks as they decompress from any trauma. Be patient, for what you may see and dislike the first week may change dramatically. If animals seem to hate each other, they may be sizing each other up, so to speak. This may never change, but later, who knows why or how, but they could be best friends. You may have different animal species who can never be together, and that’s fine as long as you have the means for absolute safety and each gets fair time with family and exercise.

Jazz would nip at people, but without harmful intent. It was stress induced. The 1st two nights here, she pooped and ate some of it. Oh, I am not having that! Now, I can’t even kiss the top of her nose!! After 3 weeks, the occasional nipping stopped and only happened again when a lady from the shelter where we got her stopped by.  Jazz nipped at her twice. Why? Possibly, the intense smell took her right back to who she used to be there, in a sense, like PTSD.

See what I mean:

Some benefits of fostering are these:

• It adds more peaceful days to an animal’s life (so long as you have relatively calm surroundings).

• It frees up space at shelters so they may help save more lives.

• As it is here, and probably everywhere, fostering costs you nothing unless you want to pamper the dog and pay for healthcare to save the shelter money (because believe me, they need every penny). They supply flea medicine and so forth when you reach out to them. That stated, you would need to pay for grooming; teeth-brushing; boarding, if you travel; or doggy daycare if you choose to have businesses provide these services.

One sad aspect about fostering is:

• You may grow to love who you’re fostering. But, when you do this to help shelters have more space to help more animals, you know that one day or one year, as the fostered animals remain in their database as adoptable, you may say goodbye. You will worry about the stress of change on them and how leaving the family they’ve known may sadden them. You can only hope they will be happy, healthy, and loved. But, maybe the new family will be happy to let you visit with the animal on occasion.

*Animal shelter employees don’t or hardly make enough money for one person to afford rent and bills, and certainly not enough to save. They can work elsewhere for more money. For whatever life circumstances brought them, they remain at these shelters out of love for these creatures. They receive money from their county for their services, but animal supplies are expensive and many are operating at a financial loss – no room for raises or the ability to expand.

HOW TO HELP:

Donated food, clumping litter, blankets, and toys help to lessen their costs to operate. Instead of donanting old towels or blankets to a “Goodwill” store or somewhere similar, that puts a pricetag on these, please consider giving them to a homeless mother cat and her babies to lay on at the local shelter, and those large, thick blankets are appreciated by dogs lying on cold, hard kennel floors.

There are exotic animal shelters as well. If you’ve had an exotic animal and they have sadly passed, you can donate tanks, unopened substrate, bird perches, special lighting and their fixtures, and of couse, your time to help the animals as well as the humans who work there.

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Some dog & cat shelters end up with reptiles, guinea pigs, turtles, goats, and in one instance, I know of, a baby alligator, so they may need things as goat feed, rodent bedding, such as cedar chips, etc. Calling or stopping in to see what is most needed can be helpful.

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Any amount of volunteer help is needed. You can walk dogs, wash dishes, and so much more. Cash and check donations are always needed as well. If you desire, you can put your volunteer work on your resume (résumé or curriculum vitae).

Shelter employees and volunteers have difficult jobs. Many should have counseling (& can’t afford it) due to the suffering they witness. These people are scooping crap, worrying about every animal and if they can continue to operate, hearing the dogs scream when they open the building every morning and so on.

The animal control officers alternate times being “on call.” Men and women (yes, there are tiny women handling pit bulls, cane corsos and more) may have to capture  a dangerous dog, alone, at 3 a.m. during a blizzard and take it to the shelter to feed it and cage it (for very little pay). Sometimes they receive a call to pick up a dead animal who died by some terrible means. Maybe they can use bite-protection gloves, high-visibilty vests, batteries for flashlights, oc spray… you get the idea.

And any day they have to euthanize (mercy killing?) an animal is a sad day for them there. Feel free to stop in, tell them you appreciate them, that the world needs them, and hell, I don’t know, you may go as far as to bring them a fruit bouquet, pastries, or gift cards. Humans and animals alike need these people.

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It is our hope that people will halt the breeding of all animals until a species is on the endangered species list (Should this apply to humans too?). Breeders may think their pets will make beautiful babies or that they can make money from interesting morphs, purebred pups, etc. but, there are better ways to make money. And, if these people could visit and see that every shelter for every kind of animal is at or well above capacity, and how some places have no more room or finances, would they stop causing more animals to potentially be homeless?

If breeders saw all the animals who are dumped like trash and that some people have the job of murdering (euthanizing) innocent, healthy, beautiful animals (sometimes pregnant with unborn darlings) because the problem is too big, would they stop bringing more animals into the world so that animals already here can have a chance at the life they were born into?

What are your thoughts? Should breeding continue, is it adding to the homelessness as a whole? And are there possibly unthought of options that can help the homeless ones that are not already taking place?

“Give me Lizardry or give me Death!”

❤️Murph & Dawn