Hi everyone, I recently learned that the Pet Lover’s Choice Awards only allows cats & dogs so I entered my gecko; Dreamer. I did so to make a statement and that statement is simple: small animals deserve a place too. All animals deserve a place. I’m not in it for the money, the trophy, or possible fame amongst award shows; I’m in it for the statement it makes. Dreamer is the only reptile contestant. That already makes a statement alone but can you help me make the larger one? Bring that misconception to light that small animals do have feelings and can feel pain which will bring that truth along with it. All you have to do is vote for Dreamer. One of the prizes, I believe, for the Best in Nation winner is a feature in USA Today Pets and I care about that because that’s right where I want Cocoa’s Law of Love to be. I need your help to get there. Voting for Dreamer is voting for small animals. Not just for him. Best in state runs in 3 rounds. Dreamer made it through round 1, the only reptile, that’s so powerful. Round 2 is ongoing right now, ends in 3 days and he needs to be in top 10 to get to round 3. In round 3 for Best in State, he has to be in 1st, 2nd or 3rd place to advance to the Best in Nation competition. Imagine a reptile being the winner, that is also another statement in itself. I entered Dreamer to break the rules. Breaking the rules is typically viewed as a bad thing but sometimes it's not. I entered Dreamer because small animals deserve a place. Tell me, how often do you see awards shows, tv shows, movies, social media content etc. about small animals without going to look for it? And how often do you see those same things about cats and dogs? I entered Dreamer because all animals deserve a place and they don't have one. Reptiles are largely ignored along with a large majority of small animals. Cats and dogs, statistics show are the most popular but most popular does not mean they are the only animals that can love, a large misconception that has led to the untimely deaths of many small animals such as reptiles, rabbits, rats, mice, hamsters, birds, and more and will continue to if something isn't done. And where better than into one of the most popular animal involved events, pet lover’s choice awards? Vote for Dreamer, you're not just voting for Dreamer, you're voting for every small animal ever that's under that misconception. I would have entered Cocoa but she is not here to win but this is still a part of that. Getting rid of that misconception, that small animals can't feel emotions and can't love. The term “cold-blooded" is typically associated with a lack of feelings and being "cold" but cold-blooded just means their blood is cold and their body temperature is controlled by their environment. "Cold-blooded means that the animal is unable to automatically control their body temperature. Instead, the body temperature is dependent on the temperature of the animal's environment. Another term for cold-blood is "ectothermic." Invertebrates, fish, amphibians, and reptiles are ectotherms. Despite misconception, cold-blooded does not mean unable to love." - Me Although not all small animals are cold-blooded the lack of knowledge, misconception, and stereotype, has led them all to be viewed as emotionless with no capacity to love and this leads to neglect because if they can't feel emotions then they can't feel pain either right? Wrong. It causes animals to suffer and die because of a misconception. So vote for Dreamer. He's a leopard gecko, not a dog. Voting is a way to use your voice. Sharing is a way to use your voice. Share with your friends, family, anyone you can think of and give them the link to vote for dreamer/vote for small animals. We can do this, we have to try. We HAVE to do this. Small animals deserve a place. Vote. You get 2 free vote per day but can purchase more if you want them. Thank you! For reptiles. For small animals. Link to vote for dreamer/small animals: https://petloverschoiceawards.com/faqs/