According to the American Pet Products Association’s 2021-22 National Pet Owners Survey, 70 percent of American households have at least one pet, but usually, these pets stay at home the whole day while the children and adults of the household go to school or work. Over the years, through donations or through purchases, many animals have been brought into and now live at MHS. These pet additions can give classrooms a unique and more interesting environment to learn, as Science Teacher Joseph Maxwell said, “I think students like to have some kind of variety and something to look at; it’s like a mini-zoo, where students can look at the animals and see something new.”

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Twitter at School: Milo, a parakeet, perches itself on a wooden stick as it peers through the bars of the birdcage in the STEAM Lab C130. The birds were obtained in September 2021 when some students in Maxwell’s class heard that the STEAM Lab used to have birds, so they began to request one, and it eventually worked. “We kept asking our teacher to get the birds and coming up with funny ways to be persuasive, like writing a list of demands but the only demand was to get a bird, or writing sayings, like, ‘No bird, no class’ on the whiteboard to make our teacher laugh,” said Hadyn Nuttall, junior, who frequently helps take care of the birds. “And it worked– he thought we were funny and gave us money to buy the birds and supplies after school on a half day.”

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Self Reflection: Another parakeet, Luna, looks at itself in the mirror in the STEAM Lab C130. Luna was bought and taken to the school along with Milo, and as the months of their stay passed by, students put more toys in their cage to keep them occupied. “We added a mirror, which Milo loved; he would look at himself all day,” Nuttall said. “We also added toys, including nesting toys, that they really liked. We tried to update their toys every once in a while, so they wouldn’t get bored.”

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Paw-Paw New Guinea: Two guinea pigs, which are named Cinnamon (front) and Spice (back), eat hay together in the science lab in room C305. The pigs belong to Science Teacher Jacqueline Hogan but are currently being taken care of by Science Teacher Victoria Siwak. “They like to eat carrots and lettuce and broccoli and cauliflower, so they usually get that [food] every day,” Siwak said. “On top of that, they have pellet food, and they love hay.”

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Frolicking Fish: In a fish tank in the STEM Lab in Room C130, about a dozen of small guppies swim around each other in various directions.

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Slithering Serpent: A Lavender Albino Reticulated Python named Pineapple raises its neck to look above its enclosure; this snake is located in a glass case in the science lab of C107. 

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

A Guest Barks In: At the Main Entrance, English Teacher Jim Drier caresses a therapy dog by its ears. The therapy dog was brought in on Thursday, April 28, for Wellness Week.

Photo by Johnathan Glaskin-Clay

Slow, Steady, but Cozy: Penelope, a Russian tortoise located in an open top enclosure in room C305, rests herself within a brown basket-like structure.