What does “pericote” mean in Peru?

In Peru and the Andes, a pericote is a mouse (standard Spanish ratón). But Peruvians also use it tenderly for a small child — a little one still underfoot. So going de pericote to toda una señorita traces the leap from “knee-high little mouse” to “a whole young lady.” Calling a kid pericote here is affectionate, like “little rascal,” never an insult.

As an animal word, pericote shows up across the Southern Cone and Andes (Peru, Chile, Ecuador, the Río de la Plata). The tender “little kid” sense is especially Peruvian. The name is commonly traced to Perico rather than to any single indigenous root, so treat the etymology as uncertain.