April 22, 2025 – Andy is in OurLittleCorner today
The Moss Piglet – Our Next Pet?
When it comes to my preferred (non-human) animals to blog about it’s clear that I’m biased in favor of those with spines. I’ve posted blogs about our adorable pets (and one not-so-adorable cat), the birds in our back yard, assorted wildlife critters captured on my trail camera, a baby opossum that needed relocating, and rats that drive little rodent cars. All were card-carrying vertebrates. But after learning about tardigrades, winner of the 2025 Invertebrate of the Year contest sponsored by The Guardian Newspaper, I’m beginning to question my spine-centric view of the animal kingdom .
Thousands of The Guardian newspaper readers from around the world voted for the Tardigrade, informally known as a “moss piglet” or a “water bear.” That’s quite an honor for what has been described as a “microscopic multisegmented animal that resembles a piglet wrapped in an enormous duvet.”
It’s no fluke that this minuscule animal is so highly regarded. Its superpowers have allowed this species to thrive on this earth for 600 million years. They can survive in temperatures from just above absolute zero to far over the boiling point of water. If dried out or frozen, moss piglets can suspend their metabolism (and the process of aging) for many years and then immediately come back to life when they thaw or rehydrate. Astronauts found that these little guys can survive in the vacuum of space (I presume without the benefit of tiny spacesuits). They were even featured in a South Park episode back in 2017.
Learning about these amazing (and somewhat cute) creatures led me to wonder if they would make good pets. For those of us getting up there in years, taking care of dogs (and/or cats) can be quite a handful. As an alternative, why not consider this highly regarded invertebrate for a human companion? To help make up my mind whether or not this would be a plausible plan I made a list of pros and cons.
Pros of Moss Piglets as Pets
- They’ll eat very little (their diet consists of plant cells, algae, and small invertebrates).
- They won’t bark or meow in the middle of the night.
- They won’t pee (or poop) on your rug.
- They won’t need to go for walks or to dog parks.
- They won’t shed.
- They won’t cough up hairballs on your bed.
- You won’t trip over them in the middle of the night on your way to the bathroom.
- They won’t require an expensive pet sitter when you travel (or better yet, they can easily be taken on a plane – as long as they’re in a 3.4 oz. or less sized bottle)
- They would be a great conversational topic at cocktail parties.
Cons of Moss Piglets as Pets
- Finding food for them could be a problem (pet stores typically do not carry plant cells, algae, or yummy small invertebrates).
- With no tail to wag you won’t know when they’re happy.
- They would be hard to train to fetch or roll over.
- A microscope will be needed to see if indeed they fetch or roll over.
- If they outlive you (which is a possibility when in their dormant state), friends or family members would have difficulty re-homing them.
- They would be impossible to put on leash (but so are cats)
- Who would want to admit at a cocktail party having a moss piglet for a pet ?
After considering the pros and cons, I think I’ll stick with my vertebrate preference in pets. While moss piglets may be cute and have super powers up the wazoo, I can’t imagine having a close relationship with a microscopic bundle of energy that can’t fetch a ball or wag a tail.
But this doesn’t mean that I haven’t learned to appreciate the world of invertebrate creatures. Patrick Barkham of the The Guardian writes that most of life on earth has taken a “spineless path” (vertebrates make up only about 5% the earth’s species) and that many of these spineless neighbors are essential to keeping our planet habitable – think pollinators, decomposers, soil makers, water cleaners.
So, the next time you are out walking your dog (or just out walking) take a moment to appreciate the fact that you are amongst countless little spineless critters (including moss piglets) busily doing their life’s work, mostly unnoticed by us arrogant spine-bearing creatures . And even if they aren’t wagging tails or fetching balls, these humble animals deserve our respect and appreciation. As Barkham fittingly concludes:
Noticing invertebrates is one small step in recognising that we are not alone, and we share our planet with a wondrous multitude of life and must do better to live gently alongside them.
Postscript: After completing this blog I came across this 2024 Saturday Evening Post article “Our Better Nature: Let’s Make Tardigrades the Hot New Mini-Pet.” You might want to check it out if you’re thinking about getting a moss piglet for a pet.
😄
Happy faces make me happy. Thanks.
Proof, I think, that evolution doesn’t mean constant change. A completely adapted (and adaptable) critter need not change further. Genetic excursion in a tardigrade won’t yield a better moss piglet. Other less perfect critters have to adapt. If their life cycles are too long and their environment changes too quickly, they are doomed to extinction.