MSTPets: Part 5
by Rachel Brown (G1)
An ode to our furry friends who have helped us study for anatomy practicals, kept us company while we wrote our papers and thesis dissertations, and welcomed us home after a long shift on surgery.
MSTPet: Spike (more commonly known as “Booboo”)
Age: 1 year old
MSTParents: Rachel Brown (G1) and Matt Stier (M3)
Research Question: How fat does Buffy (the guinea pig) have to get before we eat her?
Fun Fact 1: We adopted Spike when Rachel was on her surgery clerkship, so he still thinks that 3 am is breakfast time.
Fun Fact 2: Spike’s favorite game is chase. He initiates the game by arching his back, putting his ears back, and playfully hopping sideways toward one of us. Then, he’ll chase us around our apartment.
Fun Fact 3: When we got a pet camera, we discovered that Spike spends most of his day on the kitchen counter, the one place where he is not allowed.
MSTPets: Rocco (African gray, top left), Mimi (Umbrella Cockatoo, top right), Gino (Green-Winged Macaw, bottom center)
Ages: 18 years old, 18 years old, and 13 years old, respectively
MSTParents: Dr. Ambra Pozzi (MSTP Associate Director) and Dr. Roy Zent
Areas of Research: “Speech therapy” and “cuddle-ology.” Rocco, the speech therapist, will spend hours and hours talking in Italian and English and laughing and whistling. Mimi and Gino, the cuddle-ology experts, will do everything they can to attract attention in order to be petted and loved.
Fun Fact 1: Rocco can sing “Let’s go Preds” in English with an Italian accent.
Fun Fact 2: Mimi will attract your attention with “I love you baby” in order to be cuddled.
Fun Fact 3: Gino is verbally challenged, but he can say ten different variations of “Hello.”
MSTPets: Eevee (left) and Kasey (right)
Ages: 3 years old and 2 years old, respectively
MSTParent: Natalie Bennett (M1)
Field of Study: Ornithology – both love watching (and chasing) birds.
Fun Facts: Eevee thinks she is sneaky while stealing food off of our plates, and Kasey was born with a cute, crooked tail!
MSTPets: Nox (upper left) and Lumos (upper right)
Ages: About 6 months old
MSTParent: Eric Donahue (M2)
Nox’s Field of Study: Midnight nibbles and their effects on the sleep-wake cycle of Homo sapiens
Lumos’s Dissertation: “Ice cubes in my water dish – Friends or Foes?”
Fun Facts: Although their starkly different coat patterns may suggest otherwise, Lumos and Nox are actually litter mates! They love to cuddle with each other and any guests, and they enjoy eating my neuroscience notes.
If you are interested in having your pet featured in MSTPets, please contact Rachel Brown!