Why are some Animals able to be Pets?

Summary

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Who Smarted? Podcast Summary

Episode: Why Are Some Animals Able to be Pets?
Date: November 28, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this lively and humorous episode, the "Who Smarted?" team explores the fascinating question: Why are some animals able to be pets, while others are not? Guided by the Narrator, Timmy, Timmy's Mom (a pet expert and veterinarian), and Trusty, the episode delves into concepts like domestication, breeding, and the surprising history of pets. Listeners are encouraged to think about their own pets and consider what makes an animal suitable for domestic life.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The World’s Most Popular Pets

• The episode kicks off with a trivia question: What’s the most popular pet in the world—dogs, cats, or fish?
• Answer: Nearly one third of pet owners have dogs, making them the most popular, followed by cats (one quarter) and fish (about 12%).
  • [01:36] Narrator: “But nearly one third of all pet owners own a dog... and sorry, fish owners. Only about 12% of pet owners have a fish...”

Unusual Pets and the Big Question

• Timmy reveals that his pet, Lassie, is actually a cow, surprising the Narrator.
• This sparks the main question: Why are some animals considered pets, and others aren’t?
• Listeners are prompted to think about their own pets or favorite animals, bringing interactivity to the episode.

What Does “Domesticated” Mean?

• [05:16] Narrator: “Do you know what that word means, domesticated?... it’s kind of important when it comes to pets.”
• Timmy's mom explains:
  • Domesticated animals are wild animals that have adapted over “years and years” to live with humans peacefully.
  • Some were trained for work (e.g., horses), others for food (e.g., turkeys, pigs, cows).
  • Pets are usually kept for companionship or friendship, rather than work or food.

Traits of Animals That Can Become Pets

• Only certain animals are suitable for domestication.
  • They mature quickly (easier to train and farm).
  • They have lots of babies per year (which helps them adapt to humans).
  • They typically live well with others, can follow commands, and adapt to daily changes.
  • [06:38] Timmy’s Mom: “First, they have to grow and mature quickly... Also, they need to have lots of babies in a year...”
• Animal breeding is introduced:
  • Humans often breed animals for desired traits (e.g., soft fur in dogs).
  • Domesticated animals often end up so reliant on humans that they can no longer survive in the wild.

How Did We Get Cats and Dogs as Pets?

• Dogs: First animals domesticated, more than 11,000 years ago.
  • [09:21] Narrator: “Can you guess when people first started having dogs?... The answer is A, more than 11,000 years ago.”
• Cats: Domesticated about 8,000 years ago, but less changed from their wild relatives.
  • [10:00] Timmy’s Mom: “Some say cats may have just decided to hang out with people about 8,000 years ago and we’ve been friends ever since. Who knows, maybe they think they have domesticated us.”
  • Memorable moment: Cats may think they've domesticated humans!

Why Can’t Elephants or Tigers Be Pets?

• Large, exotic animals may be “tamed,” but they are not truly domesticated.
  • They don’t reproduce quickly enough to adapt to humans over generations.
  • They remain wild and potentially dangerous.
  • [10:41] Timmy’s Mom: “They may have tamed these animals... but they're still wild and could be dangerous... Elephants, tigers, and other wild animals don't have babies often enough to become domesticated.”

Unusual (but Real) Pets

• The group discusses some surprising pet choices:
  • Skunks can be kept as pets; they’re sensitive and playful if domesticated but only spray in defense.
    • [13:14] Timmy’s Mom: “Skunks are very sensitive, intelligent and playful. They only spray to protect themselves.”
  • Reptiles—snakes and bearded dragons are popular and can be domesticated.
    • [13:38] Timmy’s Mom: “There are plenty of domesticated reptiles. Many people own snakes, which means they’re not unusual pets...”
  • Insects—Madagascar hissing cockroach, crickets (popular in China), stag beetle (in Japan), stick bugs.
    • [14:37] Timmy’s Mom: “People in China adopt crickets, while the stag beetle is popular in Japan.”
  • Pet Rocks—funny highlight that rocks don’t need feeding or care, and even became a fad.
    • [15:03] Narrator: “Years ago, someone came up with the idea of selling ordinary rocks as pets. And they made a fortune doing it.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [02:20] Timmy: “Yep. And a good one, too, ain’t you, girl?” (referring to Lassie, his pet cow)
• [06:00] Timmy: “Whoa. We’re not turning Lassie into a hamburger.”
• [10:00] Timmy’s Mom: “Who knows, maybe [cats] think they have domesticated us.”
• [13:14] Timmy’s Mom: “Actually, skunks are very sensitive, intelligent and playful. They only spray to protect themselves...”
• [14:12] Timmy: “Yep. A cockroach that makes a great pet is one from Madagascar called the Madagascar hissing cockroach. They hiss when they breathe.”
• [15:03] Narrator: “Years ago, someone came up with the idea of selling ordinary rocks as pets. And they made a fortune doing it. Huh? It was all in good fun.”

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:43–03:00: Timmy introduces Lassie; discussion of popular pets worldwide.
• 05:16–06:33: Explanation of “domesticated” and why some animals become pets.
• 06:38–08:43: Traits required for domestication; animal breeding.
• 09:21–10:32: History of dog and cat domestication.
• 10:32–11:19: Wild animals vs. pets—why tigers, elephants aren’t suitable.
• 13:10–15:03: Unique pets: skunks, reptiles, insects, and the pet rock phenomenon.

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Tone and Engagement

The episode is playful, humorous, and interactive, encouraging kids ("smarty pants") to shout out their own pets or favorite animals. It makes scientific and historical concepts accessible and fun, often through silly examples (a cow catching a Frisbee!) and creative questions.

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Conclusion

This episode of "Who Smarted?" uses curiosity, humor, and relatable examples to introduce young listeners to the science and history of pets and domestication. With memorable moments, unusual pet facts, and interactive questions, it cleverly explains why only certain animals end up as pets—and why Timmy’s pet cow is truly one of a kind!

Transcript

[Trusty]

Hey, smartypants. Happy Thanksgiving weekend. Trusty here with a quick heads up. Our 50% off birthday sale ends December 1st. That's it. One week and no more extensions. Get a full year of WhoSmarted plus for just $19.98. That's $1.66 a month for ad free smarting bonus episodes and smartyqs every week. And that's 50% less than the usual price. Go to whosmarted.com click Birthday. Subscribe before December 1st. After that, this deal is gone. You can only get this [e-mail] by clicking Birthday. Subscribe for 50% off our annual subscription. Thanks for smarting with us, Lassie.

[Timmy]

Oh, Lassie.

[Narrator]

Hey, Timmy. What's up?

[Timmy]

Oh, hey, trusty narrator. I was just playing frisbee with my pet Lassie here in the park, but it's almost dinner time, so I'm calling her to come back. Lassie.

[Narrator]

Hey, smarty pants. Do you own a pet? If so, you're not alone. Did you know that more than half of all the people on the planet own one?

[Timmy]

Wow, I did not know that.

[Narrator]

Lassie and smarty pants, can you guess which pet is the most popular? I bet Timmy here knows I do. Let's find out. What do you think, smarty pants? Is it A, dogs, B, cats, or C, fish? What do you say, Timmy?

[Timmy]

I'm not sure why you think I'd know this. Um, cats, Lassie?

[Narrator]

No, not cats. Although a lot of people do own cats. Nearly one quarter of all pet owners worldwide have a cat, and many have more than one. But nearly one third of all pet owners own a dog, and one third is more than one quarter. And sorry, fish owners. Only about 12% of pet owners have a fish, which means Timmy and his dog are in very good company.

[Timmy]

Dog? I don't own a dog.

[Narrator]

You don't?

[Timmy]

Nope. Ah, there she is. Come on, Lassie. Let's go home.

[Narrator]

Wait, wait, wait. Your pet Lassie is a cow?

[Timmy]

Yep. And a good one, too, ain't you, girl?

[Narrator]

Aw.

[Timmy]

She loves when I scratch behind the ears.

[Narrator]

Uh, no offense, Timmy, but I don't think cows are supposed to be pets.

[Timmy]

Why not?

[Narrator]

Well, they're, um. Hmm. Hmm. Actually, that's a good question. Why do some animals make good pets while other animals don't? How did we end up with pets in the first place? And what are some of the most unusual pets out there? It's time for another whiff of history and science on who smarted, who's smarted?

[Who Smarted Intro Voice]

Who's smart? Is it You. Is it me? Is it science or history? Listen up, everyone. We make smarting lots of fun, but who's smarted?

[Narrator]

Hey, smartypants. I know I asked before if you had a pet. Now, for those that do, what kind of pet do you have? Or if you don't have a pet, just tell me your favorite animal. Go on, shout them out. Yep, I'm hearing lots of cats and dogs. I got some hamsters, some rabbits, goldfish.

[Trusty]

Birds.

[Narrator]

Bearded dragon.

[Trusty]

Nice.

[Narrator]

Even a few snakes. Okay, a little scary. What's that? A spider. Like a tarantula. You're braver than I am. You know what? I'm not hearing from the pet people. Elephants, hippos, warthogs or cows. So why is that? Why are some animals pets? And some animals are just animals?

[Timmy]

My cow, Lassie, is special.

[Narrator]

I'll say. I've never seen a cow catch a Frisbee before.

[Timmy's Mom]

Hey, Timmy, supper's almost ready. Go wash up and make sure Lassie doesn't track mud all over the floor again.

[Timmy]

Okay, Mom.

[Timmy's Mom]

Oh, hi, narrator. Are you joining us for dinner?

[Narrator]

Sure, Timmy's mom. I'd love to. Wow, you have a lot of animals in here.

[Timmy's Mom]

Eh, it's not always like this. Friends go on vacation and they ask us to wash their pets. Especially since I'm a pet expert and veterinarian. I love doing it. But, yeah, there's a ton of animals.

[Narrator]

Here, and some of these are not your typical pets. Was that an ostrich that just ran by?

[Timmy's Mom]

Yep, that's Oscar. What can I say? Not everyone is into cats and dogs. There are lots of animals that can become pets. They just need to be domesticated.

[Narrator]

Ooh, smarty pants. Do you know what that word means, domesticated? Not only is it a big word, it's kind of important when it comes to pets. Timmy's mom, would you like to explain?

[Timmy's Mom]

Certainly. Domesticated animals are wild animals that have changed over the years to become comfortable living with humans. Many of these animals were trained to work like horses that can move things or carry people. Others were farmed for food, like turkeys, pigs, chickens, even cows. These animals are very useful, but aren't usually pets.

[Timmy]

Whoa. We're not turning Lassie into a hamburger.

[Narrator]

No.

[Timmy's Mom]

Lassie is special, and she's not being used as food. Although we do enjoy her milk sometimes. Nope. We've adopted Lassie, like most people adopt other domesticated animals, such as dogs and cats, for companionship or friendship. And we like having her around, which is the reason most people keep pets.

[Narrator]

But like we said earlier, Some animals don't make good pets. So why is that?

[Timmy's Mom]

It's because only certain types of animals can be domesticated. First, they have to grow and mature quickly, which makes them easier to farm or train. As you know, piglets and puppies don't stay small for very long. Also, they need to have lots of babies in a year, providing many opportunities for that type of animal to adapt to humans. I'm sure you've seen all the kittens running around this place.

[Narrator]

I certainly have.

[Timmy]

They sure like to scratch the furniture.

[Narrator]

Smartypants, have you noticed that kittens and puppies are usually born in groups? Do you know what they're called? Is it A herds, B packs or C litters? Did you say C litters? That's right.

[Timmy's Mom]

And when these baby animals grow up and have babies of their own, and then those babies grow and have babies, the animal species evolves or changes to become better suited to live with humans. People often help make specific changes too, by getting dogs with traits they like, like softer fur, to have babies together, making lots of dogs with soft, fluffy fur.

[Narrator]

Smarty pants. Do you know what that's called? I think I heard somebody say it. It's called breeding.

[Timmy]

Luna, stop drinking from the toilet.

[Timmy's Mom]

With breeding, many of these domesticated animals to change so much and rely so much on humans, they can no longer live in the wild. That means it's best not to set a pet free if you can't live with it anymore. Instead, you should find another owner. Besides breeding abilities, there are some other traits that make certain animals good for domestication. They tend to live well with other animals, are used to following commands, and.

[Timmy]

Can learn how to do things like catching Frisbees.

[Timmy's Mom]

They can also learn to deal with day to day changes, as people sometimes make mistakes when taking care of them.

[Timmy]

Sometimes I forget to feed Lassie, especially when we're out having fun. Sorry, Lassie.

[Timmy's Mom]

Now, a cow might be an unusual pet, but it still has all those traits that allow it to be domesticated. Just like a dog. Dogs in the wild are wolves, and these were the first animals to be domesticated. Do you know when this happened, smarty pants?

[Narrator]

Can you guess when people first started having dogs? Was it A, more than 11,000 years ago, B, more than 6,000 years ago, or C, about 2,000 years ago? The answer is A, more than 11,000 Years ago.

[Timmy's Mom]

Some say the first domesticated dogs may have appeared earlier than that. It actually happened before people started writing down history. So we don't know exactly when or how it happened, but it's Nice that it did, don't you think?

[Narrator]

Absolutely.

[Timmy]

Luna. Off the table.

[Timmy's Mom]

As for cats, they may be domesticated, but house cats aren't much different than wild cats. It doesn't look like humans played as much of a role domesticating them as they did with dogs. Some say cats may have just decided to hang out with people about 8,000 years ago and we've been friends ever since. Who knows, maybe they think they have domesticated us.

[Narrator]

What about bigger cats like tigers or other large animals like elephants? Some people own those. Can they be domesticated too?

[Timmy's Mom]

Actually, no. What you may have heard about somebody who owns a bunch of tigers or an elephant. They may have tamed these animals to live with them, but they're still wild and could be dangerous. Elephants, tigers and other wild animals don't have babies often enough to become domesticated.

[Timmy]

A newborn puppy will love you no matter what, but a baby tiger, not so much.

[Timmy's Mom]

That's right, Timmy. And because of this, wild animals don't make good pets.

[Timmy]

But you don't need a wild animal to have a crazy pet. Wait till you hear what some people have adopted. Pets that stink.

[Trusty]

Ew.

[Timmy]

Chirp. And pets that shh. Don't make a sound.

[Narrator]

We'll meet these unique pets right after this quick break.

[Trusty (Ad Voice)]

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[Narrator]

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[Trusty (Ad Voice)]

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[Narrator]

Now back to who's smarted so smarty Pants. We know cats, dogs, and even cows can be pets because they can be domesticated. But tigers and elephants should be left in the wild.

[Timmy]

What about a pet skunk?

[Narrator]

Skunks pee you. No way.

[Timmy's Mom]

Actually, skunks are very sensitive, intelligent and playful. They only spray to protect themselves. Out in the wild, just don't get close to a skunk unless you know for sure it's domesticated. Or else.

[Trusty]

What about reptiles?

[Narrator]

I hear they make good pets.

[Timmy's Mom]

Uh huh. There are plenty of domesticated reptiles. Many people own snakes, which means they're not unusual pets and domesticated ones are safe. That's also true of some lizards, including the bearded dragon.

[Timmy]

That one has scales on its throat that look like a beard, and they can change color. Bearded dragons don't breathe fire, though.

[Timmy's Mom]

Some people keep pet insects, including cockroaches.

[Narrator]

Cockroaches?

[Timmy]

Yep. A cockroach that makes a great pet is one from Madagascar called the Madagascar hissing cockroach. They hiss when they breathe. Just make sure you keep it in a closed fish because they like to climb and hide.

[Narrator]

Wow. I never thought about a cockroach for a pet.

[Timmy's Mom]

Other insects make good pets too.

[Narrator]

Whoa.

[Timmy's Mom]

People in China adopt crickets, while the stag beetle is popular in Japan.

[Timmy]

Some of my friends have stick bugs, which look like sticks. They're pretty easy to take care of. They just eat lettuce.

[Timmy's Mom]

Of course, if you're looking for the easiest bit pet to take care of, there are pet rocks. They're very quiet and you don't need to feed them at all.

[Narrator]

Yeah, I've heard of those. Years ago, someone came up with the idea of selling ordinary rocks as pets. And they made a fortune doing it. They even created an owner's manual for it, saying the rock could do tricks like play dead. Huh? It was all in good fun. And even today, some. Some kids are still naming and decorating stones and caring for them like pets. Maybe some of you smarty pants have tried that.

[Timmy]

I prefer my cow, Lassie. Who wants to play Frisbee?

[Timmy's Mom]

Not until you finish supper.

[Narrator]

Aw, speaking of supper, I'm starving. Where did mine go?

[Timmy's Mom]

Oops. I think the dogs and cats ate it.

[Trusty (Ad Voice)]

A super special shout out to Rayansh in Bolingbrook, Illinois. We hear that you love who smarted because it makes learning fun. Well, that's our mission, so mission accomplished. Thanks for being part of our smarty family, Rayansh.

[Narrator]

This episode Pets was written by Dave Belcowdry and voiced by Jason Williams, Charlotte Cohn and Jerry Colbert. Technical direction and sound design by Josh Hahn, who Smarted is recorded and mixed and at the Relic Room studios. Our associate producer is Max Kamasky. The theme song is by Brian Suarez with lyrics written and performed by Adam Tex Davis, who Smarted was created and produced by Adam Tex Davis and Jerry Colbert. This is an Atomic Entertainment production. Bearded Dragon.

[Trusty]

Nice.