Here’s an insight into the not-so-secret pets of Selly

What do students do when they can’t live without their furry friends?

4 years ago

Guides

As Brum enters Tier 3 we thought we’d cheer everyone up with a look into all the different pets students are hiding in their Selly houses.

We’ve got the low down on the best and worst pets to hide from your landlord. The lack of viewings and random visits this year certainly helps, at least Covid is good for something.

So, scroll down to see the range of pets from the cutest cats to some other interesting creatures…

Hamsters

First up hamsters, the go-to student pet. Not only are they cute and cuddly but can be easily hidden in the wardrobe when landlords come snooping.

Here we have Jäger-Bomb, the perfect, concealable, edition to Bailey’s student house. Don’t be fooled by his little face, he’s been known to nibble his owner’s finger!

Above is Ginger who’s lived in Selly since her owners second year and the landlord still doesn’t know about her yet! They have to “awkwardly hide her” whenever the estate agent comes round, but have clearly become a master at hiding her if she’s survived Selly this long.

And here’s Peanut, another secret hamster. He has bald arms but that doesn’t stop him from being extremely cute!

Although hamster cuddles can be the perfect way to decrease stress, if you’re thinking of getting one, don’t forget, after a long day of uni do you really want to come home to a messy cage and the dreaded smell of hamster wee filling your room?

Cats

Whether it be that stray you’ve fostered, or you’ve genuinely been allowed to keep one, cats make the purrfect housemate. We’ve managed to find not one but two gorgeous feline friends in the homes of Selly students!

On the left we have Peach, and on the right we have Hubert. Both cats surprisingly have the landlords permission, which the owners did not expect. Hubert was lucky to find a landlord willing to let him stay after his first owner was unable to keep him- who could say no to his adorable face?

Gerbils

Gerbils Lottie and Lola definitely win the award for UoB’s best couple! It took their owner over a year to find out they were actually boys but by then she “wasn’t going to change anything so still refers to them as girls!”

Fish

After some digging The Birmingham Tab finally found these aquatic residents of Selly. Ironically the goldfish is called Black and the black one is called Yellow. Fish seem to be a simple pet to look after, all you have to do is feed them every now and then- could be a step up from that plant on your windowsill.

Insects

With the current hype around I’m A Celeb, we all sit there watching saying “I can do that” during every trial but, what if those creepy crawlies actually lived in your house? Well this student has two lots of them!

Here we have Gilgamesh the scorpion and some stick insects, certainly making for some interesting pets. Imagine if your housemate turned up with one these next year, I know I’d be slightly squeamish, and I’m not sure a landlord would be too impressed either!

Slugs

And finally, there’s one unexpected guest we dread to see in our student houses… the infamous Selly slugs!

One student said that when they first appeared she was “lucky to turn the light on or would’ve stepped on a slug barefoot.” How grim! Another said she’d be “forever scarred from stepping on them every morning!” While slugs may not make the best addition to our Selly homes, as Brumfess #17707 says, can they at least have the decency to knock first?

So, if you’re thinking of keeping a pet in Selly make sure you check with your landlord first- is the fine or loss of deposit really worth it? And secondly make sure you check your housemates are cool with it, because you’ll probably need their help looking after them!

If you have any other secret uni pets you can DM them to us on The Birmingham Tab’s instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetab_birmingham/?hl=en