My First Pet

by Mira P.

My first pet was a dwarf hamster named Rosetta. Rosetta was gray with a white stripe down her back, and was feisty. She would always turn down every single chewing toy I gave her, but she chewed on her cage bars at night (hamsters are nocturnal).

She bit me quite a few times, but I wasn't mad at her - most likely, I smelled like food! 

I remember one time, she escaped from her cage. Hamsters are generally pretty small, so I was worried I wouldn't ever find her. We found a pile of her food in the bathroom next to the toilet, so at least at that point we knew she was okay!

We put a bowl of water out for her, so she would have food and water, and waited a while to see if she returned on her own. We did think of a few "traps" we could set, but thankfully those weren't necessary!   Rosetta came home (back to her cage) fairly soon. My dad walked in and saw her next to the table her cage sat on, so he put her back in.

Rosetta was an amazing pet, but I think I'm more a rat-person than a hamster-person. Rosetta will always have a place in my heart (figuratively, of course) as the best hamster and first pet I've ever had. :)

Does anyone have a first pet experience they'd like to share? Or any pet story? I'd love to hear them!