Secret pets have always been a part of on-campus living. Many students have more than a roommate and a fish in a 10 gallon tank living in their dorms or on-campus apartments, and this is how they do it.
Derek*, a freshman living in west campus, has a hamster named Sir Charles, or Hammy for short. Some of his friends bought the hamster in January, but later decided they did not want it so he, along with his roommate, took Hammy in.
“A friend did not want it, so she just gave it to us,” he said. Derek has not had any trouble with Clemson Housing, despite their pet policy. Only around eight of his close friends know about Sir Charles, which makes it easier to keep the secret. Those with banned pets are hard to find, as these pets must remain a secret.
Although students with banned pets keep their furry friends in hiding, students with legal pets are very open to disclosing information about their much less furry friends.
Jessica*, a freshman living in east campus, has a betta fish named Bubbly to keep her company. She bought him a little over a year ago and keeps him in a fish bowl on her desk.
“Honestly, I’m just surprised that he’s still alive. I originally left Bubbly at home for my family to take care of but that didn’t work out. Transporting him around during break is difficult. I definitely take care of him though. He’s a nice addition to my room,” she said. “For a fish, I’d say he’s pretty spoiled.”
Jessica also mentioned that when she first brought her fish to campus, everyone on her floor wanted to meet him.
“Some of my friends saw me walking in with a fish and a fish bowl, and they immediately wanted to help me with him,” she said. “Over spring break some of my friends stayed on campus and even offered to take care of him.”
Dr. Leasa Evinger, director of residential living, said that the number of pet issues varies from year to year. The most common issue is someone visiting and bringing their pet into a community, with the most common animal being a dog.
“It depends on the year. Some years have more. Some years have less. We often have just as many instances of a student temporarily bringing an animal into campus housing than one permanently living there in violation of our policy,” she said.
According to the Clemson University Student Handbook, the only pets allowed are service animals or tropical fish in a 10 gallon tank due to a variety of reasons including allergies.
“The only pets allowed are fish in a 10-gallon tank,” Dr. Evinger said, “Larger tanks are not allowed due to the amount of water. Water can cause a lot of damage, especially if not mitigated properly.”
Recently, “service animal” has been a loose term as pets can be registered as emotional support animals online with ESA Registration of American for $54.95. According to the ESA’s website, after registering a pet with them, the pet is allowed in no pet housing and on planes.
“Our policy allows for Service and Assistance Animals. A student who needs this would first contact Student Accessibility Services. Students provide documentation to SAS, and once approved, Housing would be notified to make accommodations for the student in much the same way we would for any student with another physical or medical accommodation need, etc,” Dr. Evinger said.
While owning a banned pet can be paw-some, un-fur-tunately it is seen as a major faux-paw at Clemson and could lead to a huge purr-oblem for you and your roommate. If a student is found with a pet that is not allowed, the student in question must remove the pet and could be charged for damage, cleaning, or pest extermination, according to the policy outlined in the Housing Handbook.
Disclaimer*: Names have been changed to protect the identity of sources.
