 |
||
| Flo-pet | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sentient? | No | |
| Habitat | Xis (natural) 地球聯合帝國 (domesticated) City sewers (released) |
|
| Status | Prosperous | |
| Discovered In | 2900, 2921 (between) | |
| Discovered By | Smugglers | |
| Diet | Microscopic life | |
The FLO in Flo-Pet is short for Friendly Little Organism. In the early 30th century, some smugglers managed to collect a few of these friendly creatures and get them off the Fair Chance Act protected planet Xis, Kellog System. Easy to breed, short lifespan and protein dense looked to make them a good food source, but they contain toxic amino acids and are therefore inedible. However it turned out that they are highly domesticatable, making excellent pets that are easy to take care of and friendly.
The species became popular all over the UEE amongst the wealthy. The UEE tried to crack down on these illegal pets. Fines were issued and arrests made. There was subsequently a mass release of Flo-Pets onto the streets. The creatures proved to be highly adaptable and well suited to cities. Large stray populations pop up on many UEE planets, namely in sewers. Today there are more Flo-Pets outside of Xis than on it. The ownership ban was lifted as a result.[1]
"Flo-Pets adapted swiftly to sewers around the Empire. Much like their home world of Xis, the underbellies of 人類 cities are wet, humid and teeming with microscopic life that Flo-Pets find delicious"
Garret Bedi, Anthology of Unexpected Adaptation, 2921[2]
It has been common for people to sell Flo-Pets lifted from Kallis over in Oso.[3]
A Flo-Pet outbreak some years back lead to a "shoot first, don't bother asking questions ever" policy among 希安 customs patrols. These days the Xi'an do NOT take kindly to attempting to import species from other worlds without their permission.[4]
References
