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The original was posted on /r/tifu by /u/deoxyribonucleiic on 2026-03-24 02:24:45+00:00.
I was visiting my parents in Hawaii, and they left for a few days to go to a UH basketball tournament, and it was just me and their dog, Phoebe.
I was ready to go to bed, so I called her to come cuddle, and she had that look dogs get when they’re hiding something.
So in my sternest voice, I go “Phoebe, what do you have in your mouth?”
She looked at me, avoiding eye contact, as if to say “what do you mean? I don’t have anything.”
Sure.
“Drop it,” I say, not falling for her manipulative little act. I’m expecting maybe a sock. A claw clip. Paper. Something normal that she likes to play with.
I forgot one critical detail: my parents live in Hawaii.
This was foolish haole behavior on my part.
Because instead of a sock, this dog drops a live gecko onto my bedroom floor.
I’m grossed out, the dog is proud of herself and confused as to why I am rejecting her gift. I thought maybe the gecko was dead, so I poked it to check. Nope. It started wriggling around on the floor.
I’m glad my parents weren’t home, but I’m kind of disappointed a horror film casting director wasn’t nearby, because the scream I let out could’ve raised the dead.
So I got Phoebe out of the room as she was still fixated on her new “friend.” I felt like a bouncer dragging a belligerent clubgoer away from a bar fight.
I ran to the kitchen to grab a cup and a piece of cardboard. I hoped the gecko would still be there and visible, not in a corner of the room later to appear in my bed as an unwelcome gift.
It took some negotiating and begging on my part. I think I said verbatim “please, bro, just get under the cup, I’m trying to make sure my stupid dog doesn’t eat you.”
Eventually, I manage to trap it and release it outside. The gecko survives. I survive. Phoebe is confused about why her generous gift was not appreciated.
Anyway, if you’re thinking about moving to Hawaii, just know: this is one of the trade-offs. I now do not trust Phoebe not to have a reptile in her mouth.
TL;DR: My parents’ dog dropped a live gecko onto my bedroom floor; the gecko survived but I am now tense every time I tell her to “drop it.”