We’ve seen millions of TikTok stars come out of Belfast - but none that quite look like this one.
This little fellow gained 90,000 followers overnight, and has got over 10 million views and seven millions likes to date.
But it’s likely you’ve never spotted one of his kind in Northern Ireland before, or perhaps anywhere else before…
Kristy Ruggiero is a tattoo artist from New Jersey but moved over to Belfast and married her musician-husband Terry Conlon from Armagh.
The couple discovered the unusual animal when visiting a now-closed pet store in Belfast.
“We were thinking of getting a fish,” Kristy told Belfast Live, giggling. But the couple came out of the shop with something they could have never imagined.
Kristy, 32, and Terry, 30, spotted the unusual animal in “a wee cage”.
“I didn’t really know what he was, and the staff didn’t really know anymore about him either," Kristy said.
Kristy’s mum worked as a vet in a zoo back at home, so she is no stranger to exotic animals. But the couple felt bad for the animal and could clearly tell it didn’t belong in Belfast.
Kristy said: “I just couldn’t leave it there. It was just so cute and it was hopping around and all.
“I just thought, ‘Someone else is going to buy him as a novelty, I should give him a better life’.”
The couple brought the animal home in his little box the same day, and they decided on the name Togo - after the Disney film.
It was only after doing their research that they realised their new pet was a Jerboa.
Jerboas are desert rodents found throughout North Africa and Asia.
Often referred to as mini kangaroos, jerboas can jump ten times their hit height and up to six feet. When chased, they can run at up to 24 km/h.
While many see jerboas as simply adorable, they are considered anything but cute in their places of origin. Known as rodents that eat crops, they are often exterminated by people if predators don't get to them first.
It is legal to own a jerboa in Northern Ireland and a licence is not required.
But any person in charge of an animal in NI is legally required to cater for its five needs: a suitable environment, a suitable diet, to be able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns, to be housed with or away from other animals, and to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease.
“Therefore, any person keeping a jerboa is required by law to ensure these five needs are met,” the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs said.
Kristy and Terry did not set out to bring an exotic animal into their home, but they are doing all they can to meet Togo’s needs.
Togo has a “massive” terranium and “full roam of the house”, which he takes advantage of if and when he fancies.
Jerboas can survive in extremely hot and cold conditions in the wild - so his home is kept at a relatively warm temperature and built “like a desert”.
The animals do not drink water. Instead, they extract as much moisture as possible from their food. So, Togo enjoys a simple vegan diet of lettuce, various seeds and a carrot every once in a while.
“He’s literally the king of our household,” according to Kristy, “He’s spoilt rotten.”
Asked whether Togo is affectionate, Kristy said “he has his moments”.
“He’ll come over and put his little paw on your knee or climb up on the couch and sit with you. But he definitely likes to be independent.
“It’s up to him when he wants attention or affection, I don’t like to push it on him.
“He just brings so much happiness to our house. He’s just so funny. I can be in the kitchen cooking and I can literally feel him staring through the back of my head - looking at me with one eye at a time.
“I’m just so in love with him - he’s just hilarious.”
Kristy said she had never used TikTok before, but wanted to make a video of Togo to show her friends.
And after @togothejerboa's first video, it was clear he was going to be a hit.
Kristy said: “Literally the next day, there were millions and millions of views.
“People started messaging me - even scientists who study these animals said, ‘We really don’t know much about them and it’s so awesome to see one up close'.
“I think people are learning a lot about jerboas from the TikToks.”
Though they may seem like a cute pet go get, Kristy urged others not to consider going out of their way to get their own jerboa.
She said: “I wouldn’t purposely search out one to take out of the wild. It was just a situation that I fell into.
“I would not recommend anybody to go and buy a jerboa.”
