An American dentist granted his son’s wish of having his own octopus. The animal, named Terrance, brought unexpected challenges with his arrival.
What began with a gift ended with 50 baby octopuses, a viral TikTok career and a bill of almost 3,600 euros for the family of a US dentist. As USA Today reports, Cameron Clifford’s son Cal had always dreamed of having a California two-spot octopus as a pet.
Years ago, the nine-year-old’s wish had been dismissed as cute. But in the summer of 2023, Clifford decided to research his son’s dream and found out: An octopus can actually be kept as a pet.
The family spent several weeks preparing and setting up a saltwater tank for their new pet octopus, whom they named Terrance. They estimated the cost to be around $600 to $700, but this assumption was far from reality.
Not only was Terrance larger than expected, which required a more expensive aquarium, but she also laid a whopping 50 eggs, according to USA Today. Although they were apparently not fertilized, babies hatched. The weekly food deliveries for the hatched babies and the water damage in their house caused the expenses to rise to as much as $4,000, the equivalent of 3,600 euros.
“Don’t get a pet octopus unless you’re willing to give up your sleep and your kids’ college savings at the same time,” Clifford joked to USA Today. His efforts to donate the young octopuses to aquariums and research facilities were rejected.
As a way out, he turned to TikTok and shared his family’s story with the world. On the social media platform, Terrance quickly amassed a massive reach and over 450,000 followers. Clifford now has contacts at major aquariums and research facilities across the country who are interested in taking in the octopuses.
Although keeping octopuses as pets is not prohibited by law, experts agree: “An octopus is not a pet.” They emphasize that octopuses are highly intelligent and aware of their own existence as well as that of other individuals. Therefore, keeping them in an aquarium would be torture.
His son’s unconventional wish for a pet resulted in a tragic loss. As the Daily Mail reports, Terrance the octopus died on April 22, 135 days after spawning. Cameron Clifford now hopes that his TikTok followers will one day be able to admire Terrance’s offspring in aquariums across the country.
“I think it would be such a cool experience if you’ve been following the account from the beginning and could go visit one of the babies at your local state aquarium,” he told USA Today.
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