Time for some cuddlies! (It’s OK for me to say that because I know judo.)
Domestication has done wonderful things with animals. Because cats and dogs and other critters are so intelligent, they can adapt to unusual circumstances–like living with people in a house–and learn whole repertoires of behavior that you’d never see in the wild.
I’m afraid you can’t say this for your pet newts; but they have other virtues.
A bunch of cuties.