Invisible To A Blind Eye

After months of my own Gelert pestering me, I've written an article about the almost-forgotten species with the perfect ears for pulling your pet back into line... No, Nipper, that was just a joke...

First, I'll describe their body. Gelerts are lean and thin, enabling them to run very fast if the occasion calls, say, if your crazy next-door neighbor's Werelupe gets loose and decides to go Gelert hunting, assuming both of your own Lupes are occupied with digging up your Sillie Daisies or out flying or something. They are tireless, graceful... um... *whispers to Nipper* What does this say? *points at notes*

Nippertail: Punctual.

Boof: Oh, yeah. Punctual and very, very, very speedy. I wish I had my camera when it happened... The look on your face... *snorts*

Nippertail: *shoves Boof slightly* Boof!

Boof: Wha...? Oh, yeah. *continues reading notes* In their small frame is an even smaller stomach, holding small amounts of food for a long time. If food-consuming pets are an issue, the Gelert is for you. Better still, they have stomachs of steel, enabling them to eat almost anything put in front of them.

There is another plus with their small figure. If you aren't able to afford a large Neohome, that's okay because Gelerts need little space to live. They just curl up in a corner or under the table and they're fine. However, they do need plenty of exercise, but if that is completely inaccessible they can just run around the house a few times.

Nippertail: But we do like going to parks a lot.

Boof: What, so you can get scared of the other pets?

Nippertail: *shoves Boof roughly* Shut up. *pouts*

Boof: *snickers* Anyway. This, combined with their daily food intake makes the Gelert a much better financial choice over their famous friend, the Lupe. (They eat me out of house and home!)

Nippertail: They're not just friends, I've got two Lupen brothers!

Ezanoka: *from next room* NIPPER! I was playing in your room and I accidentally smashed this big glass thing... Oh, wait, it was the window...

Boof: *makes strangled noise* Gelerts are also less clumsy than young Lupes, and they also don't smash the same window three times in one week. *puts head in paws* He's costing me a fortune, Nipper!

Nippertail: *comfortingly* Just continue with the article, we'll deal with it later...

*SMASH!*

Ezanoka: *from next room* OOPS! There goes the other window!

Boof: Moving onto the persona of the Gelert... *slams door shut to block out noise of smashing glass*... Gelerts are very well tempered and don't anger easily. And when they do, they usually cool off after a few minutes.

Nippertail: We're also humble, kind, generous, accepting and very modest.

Boof: *laughs* Yes, what the White Gelert in the back said...

Nippertail: What? *blankly stares at Boof*. What did I say?

Boof: *ruffles Nippertail's fur affectionately* Gelerts are also very humorous, especially when they're chatterboxes who know no dictionary. Gelerts also have a great memory which comes in handy when they helped your Zafara hide the spare keys before she went out flying, leaving you and your Gelert locked out of the house. *looks at Nippertail* But sometimes their memory fails a bit. *to Nippertail* I was halfway through the window when you remembered where that key was... And I ripped my jeans... ;_;

Nippertail: *snickers evilly*

Boof: Aside that, they have a very accurate sense of smell and are able to sniff out a Spyder's odor at fifty paces. They can also smell dinner cooking from across the street, especially if it's their favorite meal.

Nippertail: Steamed noodles... yum..

Boof: You just like eating them. Anyway. *ruffles notes* Their keen sense of smell makes up for their poor sight. They can only see 100 meters in front of them, and are colour blind, but not completely colour blind. They see most colours, but it is difficult for them to distinguish between them. Tests on a friend's Gelert proved these facts correct; however, when Nipper here *nudges Nippertail* was tested, she was proved to have sight equal to that of a Lupe's, which is slightly less accurate than that of an average Gelert's. Reason for this may be because she constantly bangs her head on that tree in our back yard. Also, she had the misfortune of meeting a vampire who had had the misfortune of meeting Count Von Roo a few years before she was born.

Nippertail: *opens mouth, displaying large gleaming white dentals*

Boof: As you can see, they are very sharp. *quietly to Nippertail* Stop showing off.

Nippertail: *whines but closes mouth obediently*

Boof: As you can see, Gelerts are also incredibly obedient and will run rounds for you if promised a chocolate chip cookie afterwards.

Nippertail: *to Boof* You still owe me one for plotting Neopia's downfall for you while you were in the bath.

Boof: *twitches ears slightly* There's a jar of chocolate chip cookies you can have if you never tell anyone else what you just said...

Nippertail: *cheerfully* Okay!

Boof: One drawback to the Gelert's intellect is that they are not very tactful when it comes to words.

Nippertail: *smirks* Tactful enough to score an entire jar of chocolate chip cookies...

Certhaz: *entering the room* Oh, snap.

Boof: Certhaz, me darling, whaddya want?

Certhaz: Ezanoka smashed the window in my room. I thought you'd like to know.

Boof: *nervously laughing* Zafaras are also oblivious to people's brink of insanity due to your shadow Lupe smashing all the windows in the house. But they are generally good pets.

Nippertail: I thought this was about Gelerts.

Boof: Oh, yeah. *reads notes* The Gelert's fur is very short and yet soft, making grooming very easy. One drawback is that they molt in summer and the fur is very difficult to get out of clothes and off of fuzzy furniture and carpets. They're very huggable and cute, so I doubt you'll actually hit them with the vacuum cleaner after they've gotten fur all over the leather couch which sticks due to static electricity.

Nippertail: That was fun. *smirks*

Boof: *looks at Nippertail* You're evil. *looks at watch* Anyway, we're nearly out of time, so I'll summarize the article.

1. Gelerts are good if space and food is limited.

2. Gelerts have good memories, so you'll never get locked out again if your Gelert is with you at the time.

3. Gelerts have very keen senses, so they'll always be home in time for dinner. But if they don't see the pothole in the road and fall in, I'm not to blame for convincing you to adopt one.

4. Gelerts are very loyal, and if you befriend one, they'll follow you to the ends of the earth and back if you ask.

5. Gelerts are very cute and huggable and grooming isn't hard.

6. Gelerts are very kind and helpful, making them perfectly suited for a newbie.

And so I say, Gelerts are great pets, although they are lesser known than the Uni or Kougra, their companionship and loyalty is no less rewarding.

Nippertail: Adopt one TODAY!