Houseboat Menagerie

Beyonce, age five, ferret
Beyonce lives in Day's classroom and is a little clown. "She makes all the children laugh with her antics of fetching toys and giving kisses," Day tells Paw Nation. "Ferrets have a bad reputation, which I really can't understand. They are so sweet and funny and therapeutic. She is pretty much the favorite animal in the classroom."

Leslie Day

Jesse, age one, chinchilla
Chinchillas are playful, affectionate, lovely animals. Chinchillas are crepuscular rodents, slightly larger than ground squirrels and native to the Andes mountains in South America. The animal (whose name literally means "little Chincha") is named after the Chincha people of the Andes, who wore its soft and dense fur. By the end of the 19th century, chinchillas had become quite rare due to hunting for their fur. Most chinchillas currently used by the fur industry for clothing and other accessories are farm-raised.

Leslie Day

Luna, age 12, royal python
She is a calm, beautiful snake and helps children overcome their fear of snakes and reptiles. Royal pythons (also known as ball pythons in the USA because of their ability to curl up into a ball when threatened), come from grasslands and forest clearings in west and central Africa, where they spend much of their lives in underground burrows. Active mainly by night, these snakes eat gerbils in the wild, and can be fussy eaters in captivity.

Leslie Day

Sadie, age unknown, mixed breed dog
"We adopted Sadie from a rescue group in New Jersey after we had to give up our rescued dog from Katrina, whose owner tracked her down," explains Day. "Sadie had been rescued from a kill shelter in Camden, NJ and we have had her for over 3 years. I bring her to school with me every day. She loves children.

"I think she might be around 10. Sadie is an incredibly calm and loving girl. When I was thinking about adopting a dog, I asked permission of our head of school, Dr, David Lowry, who said 'you have so many animals in the science room, what's one more!' Sadie greets the children as they come into the room, wagging her little, stumpy tail. Then she climbs into the bed I have for her under my desk and relaxes there until the next group of children come in.

"I teach 4 sometimes 5 science classes a day to fifth and eighth graders. During snack and lunch some children come in to play with her, so she has quite a social and happy life here at school. After school we jump into our car and ride back to the boat in Manhattan."

Leslie Day

Einstein, age three, Amazon gray parrot
A family at school gave him to me when he was two, so I've had him for a year. At first he lived in the classroom, but I think he was lonely on the weekends and needed more attention, so I brought him home in December and now he's part of the family. He has an extensive vocabulary, which is growing by the day. When we wake up in the morning he says hello to us. When my husband leaves for work he says "bye bye." He says "uh oh" when he's about to do something destructive like chew the wood on the boat and he says "wow!" at exactly the right moments.

He knows Woody's name after I spent time calling Woody out on the dock when I couldn't find him one night. Now Einstein calls "Woody, Woody" and then whistles exactly the way I whistle. He makes us laugh every day and he has become affectionate with both me and my husband. He adores our son, Jonah, and will hold Jonah's fingers, whenever Jonah comes to visit us on the boat.

Leslie Day

Woody, age 14, domestic cat
we've had him since he's 6 weeks old; our cat Mickey had died and there was "room at the inn" and Woody needed a home. He is the most affectionate animal we've ever had. Always needs a lap; always is there for us to cuddle if we're sick or sad or exhausted. He's our therapy guy.

Leslie Day

Paulie, age nine, female cockatoo
Cockatoo Adopted after her owner passed away, Paulie is also incredibly affectionate. She flies down to our bed in the morning if we forget to close her cage door at night. She gives kisses and grooms us. She will sit on our shoulders for hours. After a near permanent loss from flying out an opened cage door, I brought her to the boat where she's been living for the past 7 years.

Leslie Day

Henrietta Hudson, age unknown, domestic rabbit
"Henrietta Hudson was rescued by our technology teacher when she found this beautiful, cinnamon colored rabbit sitting in her driveway. She knew that it wasn't a wild bunny and called me up. I said, 'bring her in!' What a sweet, affectionate and feisty bunny. We all love her. She's named for the street that the teacher who found her lives on."

Leslie Day