Garold, Gareth, "Gary" Wilson, Jr. (also frequently called "Gare" by SpongeBob) is SpongeBob SquarePants' pet sea snail. He lives with SpongeBob in his pineapple house on 124 Conch Street. Gary is voiced by Tom Kenny and first appears in the pilot episode, "Help Wanted."

He is a domesticated house pet with similar mannerisms to the real-world cat, most notably his "meow" sound, as snails are the underwater equivalent to cats in the show. It has been suggested at various points in the franchise that SpongeBob has had Gary ever since he was a young boy.

Gary was originally intended to be a minor joke character that would appear in the background of SpongeBob's bedroom, just like SpongeBob's pet scallop Shelley. However, as the series progressed, Gary developed a personality of his own beyond just saying "meow." He was eventually added to the show's Main Model Pack on March 22, 2000 and became one of the ten main characters.

Gary is known for his characteristic "meow." However, it has been shown that Gary can say things other than "meow," such as in "The Secret Box" and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, where he says "No" and "Plankton" respectively. In "Your Shoe's Untied," "Frozen Face-Off," "Squid Defense," and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, he is shown to be able to roar. He yowls like a cat in some episodes. From season 4 onwards, Gary has made cat sound effects when he is startled or angry, to further reinforce the connection between snails and cats.

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