Meet this UoL student. The owner of TWELVE exotic pets!

Most students would describe falling asleep surrounded by an assortment of snakes, lizards and spiders as their worst nightmare but not this Liverpool student.

This third year veterinary undergraduate is the proud owner of twelve exotic animals ranging in size, shape and venomousness… and they all live in his room.

This student (who does not wish to be named for landlord reasons) kindly let The Tab come round to look at these unusual critters and told us what it’s like to maintain them on a daily basis.

Here are ten exotic animals you certainly wouldn’t expect in a student home.

Blue Tongued Skink

“I got it for my birthday when I was sixteen. These are from the Australian outback so it’s normally used to a desert environment. It normally eats fruit, vegetables, locusts, worms, snails and mice. Anything that’s natural really. Despite his appearance, he’s actually really friendly. He’s never bitten me or anything.”

Hermann’s Tortoise

“This a small species of tortoise which is quite good because it can stay in this cage for its whole life. These tortoises can live to about 70 but this one is only two. We called it Sheldon and is one the more popular animals among my housemates. We always tend to get him out at pre-drinks”

Brazilian Rainbow Boa

“He’s not dangerous unless you’re a mouse. I normally feed him one a week which I keep in my freezer. Although it’s small right now, it will eventually grow to be about 5ft long.”

Royal Python

“This snake is originally from Africa. He’s three years old and will get to be 5ft long as well. I feed this one rats as it’s a little bigger than the boer. I had this for about a year without telling anyone as one of my housemates is afraid of snakes.”

Leopard Gecko

“This is a most common pet lizard you can get. It’s normally from the Middle East and eats worms and crickets and stuff. It’s used to a desert environment so doesn’t tend to drink much and gets most of its water from its food. Its tail’s like a camel’s hump and stores loads of fat. I suppose it’s what you call a survivor.”

Hedgehog

“This is a Madagascan Tenrec which is like a tropical less intelligent hedgehog. They’re not very bright. They tend to survive on worms and fruit and stuff and tend to climb for their food.”

Salmon Pink Bird Eating Tarantula

“This is a baby and I only got it recently but can grow to have a leg span of 20cm. They aren’t dangerous so long as you aren’t allergic to the venom. You can usually tell if one of them will bite you because they stand on their back four legs and display their fangs if they feel threatened. Thankfully this hasn’t happened yet!”

Mexican Flame Knee Tarantula

“It’s called flame knee because when it’s an adult the tops of its knee goes bright red in a sort of flame pattern. None of these have ever hurt me although I don’t tend to hold them.”

Two more baby tarantulas…

Shiny Burrowing Scorpion

“I don’t hold this one. Although it tends to rely on its claws in the wild, if I pissed it off it would definitely sting me. It tends to eat worms and crickets or just anything that fits in its mouth.”

Argentine Horned Frog

“It normally just sits here and waits for food to come along. Although it looks small it should grow to the size of a small plate. These frogs are poisonous not venomous so unless you eat one of them you should be fine.”

And if you thought that was enough you would be wrong. Back home in Buckinghamshire this keen veterinary student owns a further two turtles, two salamanders, five frogs, a whole load of fish.

“I’ve always had animals. I got two goldfish for my third birthday, my first exotic animal when I was seven and have been growing my collection ever since.

“I guess I collect them because I love animals and they’re really interesting. They don’t take much maintainence and are happy to stay in their cages so having them doesn’t take up too much of my time.

“I’m thinking of getting a dog next year, but I don’t think I’ll be getting any more for now as I won’t be able to fit them all in my car when I go home.”

We’re not not experts here at The Tab but twelve might be enough for now. Thanks for having us!

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