The global COVID-19 pandemic came to the United States earlier this year, causing many states nationwide to quarantine their citizens in attempts to keep them safe, and prevent further spread of the virus. These periods of isolation and social distancing can leave society feeling lonely and craving interaction with others.
What better time to adopt a new pet, than a time when society is encouraged to stay at home? That’s what English teacher Maris Tucker and her husband decided to do, however, Tucker said it wasn’t planned that way.
“We didn’t think it was going to happen. We take forever to make decisions—we’re not last minute, gut people,” Tucker said, “This was one of those last minute decisions, and we decided to go pick her up.”
Tucker and her husband made the four hour drive down to a farm in Koshkonong, MO. to pick up an English Creme Golden Retriever, after a friend of her husband told them that she and her fiance were going there to get a dog as well.
Tucker ended up naming her dog Butter, because of the creme color of her coat, and because she wanted the name to “be unique, and not something that was very common.” Tucker said Butter had the darkest coat in her litter, and it reminded her of butter.
“We probably would have waited [to get a dog] because we always talked about getting a dog over the summer, when I’m off, so that way I could take care of the dog and stay home with her—if she was a puppy especially,” Tucker said. She also said they probably would not have a dog had her husband’s coworker hadn’t researched the farm and forwarded the information to them.
Tucker said they had gone over other options, such as adoption,but they weren’t planning on getting a dog so soon. They said based on their location and the requirements of the shelters they looked into, in order to bring a dog home there would have been a lot more they would have to invest in.
Tucker wasn’t the only person who brought home a new pet during quarantine. Sophomore Morgan Read decided to bring home a new ferret. Read said she grew up raising ferrets, and has had a couple in the past.
“I’ve always wanted a pet, but I wanted to get one specifically during quarantine because my dad was always out of the house and going to work, so I was always home alone,” Read said. “Having a pet to occupy my time gave me something to do and gave me a little extra motivation to do things, and wake up to play with Churro, my little ferret.”
