The cat and the reptile

About a year ago, we acquired a white line gecko. It was sort of for Trevor, something to live in his room. I've always had a bit of an attachment to it. It stays in its cage ALL the time; I am grateful that it bit someone the very first day, because no one's ever wanted to hold it. Trevor, for whatever reason, chose the name Tom for the gecko.


Several months ago, Tom began laying eggs. Yes, geckos will lay unfertilized eggs, right on the side of the cage, which deteriorate within a few days. Since this was not any type of miracle, Tom was immediately renamed Jen.

Once I found Jen was a girl, I began liking her even more. I feel a little sorry for this thing that will forever lay eggs for no reason. Jen happily lives on crickets and has a heat lamp to keep warm.

When the weather's really warm, Jen will run around the sides of her glass cage. It began bothering Trevor at night when he was trying to go to sleep. THUMP! as Jen would jump on the side. thumpthumpthumpthump! as she'd run around the glass. She ended up being banished to the basement. I didn't like this at all. It's cold down there, and it's not like I would frequently check in on her. (She wasn't forgotten; Robert checked on her daily to make sure she had water.)

I was very happy last month when Jen was moved into my bedroom, right beneath our fish tank. Unfortunately, it's not been a good move for our cat, Vader. Vader used to be a normal cat. He and his sister Pumpkin are almost two years old. For fun, Vader used to hang out with Pumpkin.


He used to come to us when he wanted attention.


If he was up early in the morning, he would play before we got up.

When Jen lived in Trevor's room, Vader totally ignored her, although Pumpkin was very interested. I don't know what's changed, but Vader spends his days sitting or laying in front of Jen's tank, always on the alert. I'm not totally sure if he wants Jen or the crickets that roam her cage. He sits there all day long. He stays on the watch at night, even when Jen's light and our bedroom light is off. At first it seemed like a joke, but I'm starting to worry that he'll never be like a normal cat again. He's totally obsessed.


If I think about it too much, it's rather like me on the computer. Poor cat.