Comments on: Quadrupeds on the quad: cats, dogs go to college

By: Compcat

Compcat — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 01:51:22 +0000

I still have that previously feral kitten, though she is elderly now. (I just realized how that sounded.)

By: Compcat

Compcat — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 01:49:43 +0000

I used to smuggle my dog, who lived off campus with my brothers, into the dorm on weekends in a large rolling suitcase. She almost got us busted one week when, in the suitcase, she wagged her tail at a familiar voice right beside the RA. My roommate had a sudden stomping fit.

Eight years after college, I was sorting through some storage and found the suitcase. Crazy dog jumped right in ready to go visiting, grinning like a loon. I also had unauthorized hamsters, and I sheltered a feral kitten for a month before the end of the semester (and my move off campus). If I had known that there were campuses that might have let me bring my dog, I would have attended that college.

By: Christopher

Christopher — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 12:18:48 +0000

I had major home sickness for my dogs. I could call my parents, but there’s no way to appease a long distance desire to see your pets.

I spent hours surfing through breeder websites and online galleries of dog sports and such just to get a fix. And I forbade my parents from putting down my dogs (they were geriatric at that point) while I was away. I’d fly back for it, if it came to that.

Luckily I was home when it was time.

But I think I missed my dogs more than my parents, my house, my friends…

By: Anne T

Anne T — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 02:51:54 +0000

I relocated from one segment (dorm-main campus) to another part of the system after my freshman year. I rented off campus, and therefore got a dog when my dog died. Ostensibly she was mine ( I bought her with my money, trained her, fed her, let her sleep with me and all that), but my mother refused to part with her. When she went to the Bridge, I couldn’t stand it! Being dogless, whether I had full custody of my dog or not, was more than I could bear. I succumbed to a pup in a pet store (bred locally, probably by what we would consider a byb now, but this was in 1973). They were both Shelties by the way, Gina. Anyway, she and I shared 14 wonderful years together. I miss her still.

By: Barbara Saunders

Barbara Saunders — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 01:25:33 +0000

I lived in a fantastic co-op at Stanford. Though pets were not allowed, our chickens (not eaten!) and rabbits were. Naturally this animal-friendly environment segued into pet friendliness. A non-official resident, the boyfriend of an official resident, brought a husky and our Resident Assistant (that would be the person charged with enforcing policies) adopted one of the campus’ feral kittens. A friend of mine lived in her VW bus for her junior and senior years so that she could keep her GSD.

Nathan Winograd found his calling there at Stanford during the dark times when the university decided to kill all the cats, and some faculty, staff, and students fought back.

I’ve linked Stanford Cat Network from my name.

By: Chris

Chris — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:11:09 +0000

Same here, any type of pet was a big no-no while I was dorming upstate NY.

By: Dogs

Dogs — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 23:57:36 +0000

my room mate in second year had a lizard, which he was surprisingly allowed to keep as long as word of its presence did not get out.

By: mikken

mikken — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 23:22:49 +0000

Mice. Fish were allowed (and I had those too), but mice were needed for snuggle time. My RA knew about them and just requested that they be covered with a sheet before inspections so she wouldn’t get in trouble.

I was a “no trouble” resident and helped the RA with her fish (no research on what species shouldn’t be put together *shakes head*), so cutting me some slack on the mice was easy for her.

By: Susan Fox

Susan Fox — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:49:08 +0000

We had a boys dorm and a girls dorm in separate buildings at the Community College I went to. Room inspections were on different days and the Residents came into your room whether you were there or not.

There were mice (guilty as charged), rats, a kitten, a hamster and, as I recall, at least one bird. One dorm’s pets went “visiting” to the other dorm like clockwork every week before people had to go off to morning class.