Friday Five: Pets or No Pets, that is the question

Jan at the RevGals website says:

My friend Judy told a group of friends last week that her beloved hermit crab Al died. She missed Al--after six years of his company, even though she was not sure how pronounced his personality was or if he had one!

With the chewing exploits of our third dog, puppy Maisie, I am wondering about the pets we presently own and have had in the past.What about you? Tell us about the animals in your lives. If you have no pets, give examples of friends' pets or imaginary ones!

1. Did you grow up with pets?

Yes. Started with dogs that I don't really remember, although I do remember Pogo. There's a picture of him labeled "Anne's First Best Friend" in one of the family albums. Then there were goldfish, a guinea pig names Penny, and two cats, Chuckie and Charlotte. And that just gets me through high school--in college I had more fish and I came home with another guinea pig. Would have loved a ferret, and almost had one, but there were already too many critters in my apartment.

2. Do you have any pets now?

Yes...Paraclete Duke, the WonderMutt (Cletus) and the spooky Boo cat. I'd post a picture of the two of them, but there are none of them together. And I'm not on my "regular" computer and so don't have any to share right now. I believe Boo is my profile picture, though. A search of this blog for WonderMutt would no doubt come up with some.

3. What is the funniest or worst thing any of your pets have ever done?

Well, let's see: Otis (giant cat, now deceased) once offered me a love bit during some cuddle time on a rather sensitive part of my upper body. I promptly pushed him away, which meant off the edge of the bed. He jumped up again, and I pushed him off again. I would have yelled at him, but Ben was still asleep. We repeated this process until the last time I pushed him off, after which I turned my back to him.
He jumped up and bit me on the backside.
I woke Ben up laughing.
The WonderMutt likes to go into the bathroom after Ben's been in there and, if he senses any drips, he'll pee on the toilet so that we're all clear that Cletus is the alpha male. I am the Alpha, period.

4. Who is/was your favorite pet?

Oh, that's tough. Chuckie and Otis, probably. Both male cats, both loving and both also perfectly willing to nip when it seemed appropriate. To them, of course: there were love bites and "stop that" bites, and I was never really sure which was which. Chuckie was an orange and white tabby and Otis was a mackerel tabby.
This is not Otis, but looks a bit like him:

5. How did you train your different pets?

Mostly they have trained me. The WonderMutt has done two rounds of obedience school and is a star pupil, unless he is off leash and outside. Then he loses his hearing and has to run. He's always come back, but it is always nerve-wracking. He's getting older now and has adapted really well to the invisible fence we installed.

BONUS: Pictures of a pet or one you wish you could have.
Hmmm...let's see:
Not a WonderMutt, but looks much like one:

I would love to have a Maine Coon or Norwegian Forest Cat...one that's really big and fluffy. I don't really need one that's playful, though. I asked for the fattest, laziest lap cat they had at the shelter when I got Otis, and he was perfect!
And...I really want a wombat. I don't know why, I just do.