Whether cooked into a pie or shellacked and stuffed into a decorative basket, few things say fall quite as well as squash. But there’s more to love about squash than just autumn delight—they’re uniquely colored and textured, and all a little wacky when you think about it (we certainly have!). That makes them the perfect inspiration for a pet reptile, and especially one gecko named Squash McGourdy.
Squash didn’t come to his name out of nowhere, though. In fact, it was something of a wacky family tradition. Pet mom and Nationwide pet insurance member Hanna C. says, “His older brother's name is Squish, so it was only fair that the little baby was to be named Squash.” Like any gourd, Squash McGourdy loves to be out of his enclosure and on display. “Mr. Squash prefers to have tummy time with his mom,” Hanna reports.
Squashes and gourds have thick skin, but that doesn’t mean they don’t benefit from some protection, as Hanna knew when she chose Nationwide for Squash’s pet insurer. “[Nationwide is] the first and only insurance for the scale babies, and also the best.”
Hanna C. Nationwide member since 2025
