Class pets bring joy to students

By Jackie Rodriguez and Isabel Santoyo

Dragon Echo Staff

Biology teacher Mrs.Franks as well as Forensic teacher Ms.Dinbali has a love for animals. Currently Ms.Dinbali has a total of 18 animals in her classroom which includes 4 box turtles, 3 guinea pigs, 2 red ear slider turtles, 1 rabbit, 1 chinchilla, 7 newborn turtles and 2 guinea pigs at home. She has stated that all these animals have been given to her by students and other times PetSmart will call her and ask her to take in an animal. “I can’t say no to these animals, they need a home,” she said. To take care of these animals she spends more than a thousand dollars a month which covers all their necessities like fresh vegetables, fruit, cages, and beddings. At times she struggles with fresh food so she asks other teachers if they would like to help. Ms.Dinbali also stresses out at times maintaining the cages clean and the room smelling nice, she doesn’t ask for help from her students or anyone else because she feels that they are her responsibility. Although she brings them just for us “ I bring them for the students because the students need the interaction” said Ms.Dinbali.

Mrs.Franks has stated that when she was younger she was always around animals and her dad got her into it all when they saved an alligator running around in the neighborhood. She has a bearded dragon and two guinea pigs as well as other creatures in the classroom. Her bearded dragon is names Squiggles and she got her through a Pet Organization for teachers. They compensate yearly $50 in return for taking care of the animal and then later you can apply to adopt the animal and keep it permanently. Squiggles sadly broke her arm a year ago and now has arthritis. She takes medication daily to get better. Mrs.Franks also has two guinea pigs named Frodo and BillBo. They are dressed for the season one as a borracho and the other as a unicorn. She loves the animals and frequently takes them to the clinic for checkups. Also cleaning the cages weekly and making sure they have food throughout the week. She allows students to help her feed them in the mornings. Her and Ms.Dinbali are amazing teachers doing this for the students and making the classroom feel more like a home.