Spark - What does your pet(s) mean to you?

This is a Spark Post off Petoholics Anonn's post by the same title. I've had a number of memorable pets through a number of hunters. Each hunter ended up developing and maintaining unique pets.

Tzia of Wyrmrest Accord - Ruka, the Frostsaber Pridewatcher, Lysera, the Fjord Hawk Matriarch, Helki, the Ghostpaw Alpha, Armatu, the Rotting Agam'ar boar, Truffles, the Ashmane Boar; and lastly my Spirit Beast.

I wanted a Pridewatcher when I first saw it on Petopia. I was level 9 at the time, and saddened to find out the pet was level 59. That was forever away. But I told my husband I would have one. I did eventually get my baby girl and main pet, Ruka at 59. Ruka was my companion from 59-70 and is my current leveling partner on the trek to 80. She is my "main" pet. I will be leveling others, I know it, but Ruka will be first to 80.

Lysera will probably be the last pet I get to 80. I grabbed a cunning pet because I figured I'd be venturing back into battlegrounds or into PvP eventually. And I took something I didn't mind looking at. She doesn't even have the annoying wing flap sound that drove me bonkers when I tried an owl ages ago. If she doesn't stick around, don't be surprised. I don't have all that big of an attachment to her.

Helki, Armatu, and Truffles. I list all three of these together because they were major pets in their times. Helki I got as a level 28 hunter back before they made the Attack Speed changes to the pets, normalizing them all at a flat 2.0 AS. Helki was my happy white wolf, who braved Scarlet Monastery with me, and ventured into ZF with me for the first time. I eventually released her into the wilds of her homeland in Ashenvale when I switched to a boar, Armatu.

I leveled Armatu as a level 28 pig to 40 in Swamp of Sorrows. I swapped him out with another pet and ran ZF, then brought him along and ran ZF a few times with the boar. He was a great little pet, loyal to the core, but I didn't have as many stable slots as I would have liked and was forced to decide who to get rid of. I dropped the boar for an owl. The owl lasted for a few levels, then about 55 I switched to a red worg (I was missing Helki) the wolf ran Strath both live and dead a number of times on farming expeditions with a pair of 70s who were wanting to get their flying mounts. Once I hit Outlands level, I tested the wolf. She didn't hold too well, and the red fur kinda blended into the wastes of Hellfire. So I got rid of her and went back to Winterspring to stare at my dream pet, who was just a level away from me and my goal.

While on the ride to Swamp of Sorrows, I ran across an Ashmane boar and decided to pick it up on a whim, this boar latter became Truffles the Wonderpig. I stuffed the pig into the stables and nabbed a temporary owl when I landed in Winterspring.

I went up to the rock and stared at the kitties that were just too far away for me to tame... and ran into a level 57 rare. Yes, I ran into Rak'shiri. I tamed Rak, and then high tailed it back to Outlands to test the kitty once his loyalty was up high enough. He worked like a charm. And while I was out working with the cat, I dinged 59, and raced back to Winterspring to get my heart's desire. I released Rak and pounced on the first Pridewatcher I saw, after clearing out stealthed tigers and cubs. When the cubs called for help, the Pridewatcher didn't respond. I was able to kill both cubs, THEN tame her.

Ruka was acting oddly, I know that now. I've gone back there on other hunters, and every time the Pridewatchers have responded to the cubs cries for help. I can't imagine running with anything other than Ruka, unless I need a specific type of pet, or just want to play with something fun (like the Spirit Beast).

Its Tzia and Ruka, and it has been for a long, long time now. I call her my baby, Baby Girl, Kitten. All these are special nicknames that have come about through hours of working in sync together.

I took Truffles because I knew I'd heard that I'd need a boar for farming later, that and my guy was RAVING about boars, so I grabbed one. I'll end up picking up a boar again when they make the Thunderstomp changes. So my stable will go:
1. Ruka
2. Spirit Beast
3. Lysera
4. Armatu (in his original black armored boar form)
5. Helki

I've decided I can have three Ferocity pets in the stable. Cunning will be ONLY for PvP encounters. And Ruka eventually will want to actually take that nap she keeps threatening me about, so I might as well have a pet that won't draw envy from every hunter out there, and still has a place in my heart. I'm going to go and grab Helki from Ashenvale. Can't think of anyone else I'd rather have filling that last slot.