Many say that dogs are a man’s(or woman’s) best friend, but some Kaneland Students prove that this isn’t always the case…

Hailee Harris:

Smudge the hedgehog is owned by sophomore Hailee Harris. Smudge has been Harris’ pet for four years now.

Harris was first drawn to hedgehogs because of their adorable looks.

“I thought he was very cute and a unique animal to have,” said Harris.

Hedgehogs often like to curl up in a ball and when they do, they can accidentally harm people in the process.

“Smudge doesn’t intentionally harm people, but sometimes when he rolls into a ball, his spikes poke people,” Harris said.

She had also mentioned that taking care of a hedgehog requires less maintenance than an ordinary dog or cat.

“I have him in a cage, give him cat food and water, and take him out at least once a week,” Harris said.

After owning Smudge for a couple of years now, Harris has discovered that he is not as social as a dog or cat.

“They are very cute and loving pets, but they only attach themselves to one person,” Harris said.

Faith Cowsert:

Sophomore Faith Cowsert owns a pig named Olivia, who has been with her for about month now.

Cowsert had originally gotten the pig for her mom’s birthday.

“My mom’s friend had one so she [my mom] saw how cute it was and wanted to get one too,” Cowsert said.

Because Olivia is only a month old, “She can jump and run fast, but she just sleeps most of the time,”  Cowsert said.

Despite Olivia’s sleep schedule, Cowsert has also said that Olivia is quite funny because of the outfits she wears.

“My pig ran around the house in a dress,” Cowsert said.

Faith and Olivia are very close friends, however Olivia is not allowed to live with Cowsert and lives at a farm instead.

“Olivia doesn’t live with us because the association won’t let us keep her at our house, but I wished that she could live with us”  Cowsert said.

Ellen James:

Mr. Kito and Kataru are both parakeets owned by senior Ellen James. She has had them for about a year now.

James wasn’t expecting to have parakeets for pets.

“My dad brought them out of the blue,” James said.

Although the parakeets were initially brought home out of nowhere, James can’t imagine her life without them now.

“These birds bring life to the house, even though they are noisy,” James said.

Parakeets also tend to be very interactive because of their ability to fly.

A funny interaction of the birds was when “Mr. Kito started flying around and it landed on my dad’s head and it bit my sister’s finger,” James said.

James is responsible for the well being of the parakeets.

“I give them food everyday, change the water, and let them roam around the house,” James said.

Carson Wallace:

A salamander named Sal has been living with sophomore Carson Wallace for six years.

Wallace originally got Sal because, “I thought salamanders were cool, so I bought one at an exotic pet store that specializes in reptiles and amphibians,”Wallace said.

Buying a pet also requires you to take care of it.

“I put water in his tank and feed him a live cricket everyday,” Wallace said.

Besides just eating, “He [Sal] digs holes in his lichen, he’s a pretty boring pet. He doesn’t do much other than eat and sleep. He likes to swim in a sink filled with water,” Wallace said.

However, Sal has harmed people by biting people, especially Wallace, before.

“He has bitten me many times. He had half of my finger in his mouth once,” Wallace said.