Terrapins as pets?

[whethergirl]

I bought a couple of fish for my ds last year and have regretted it ever since. They keep dying and i've had to replace them so many times, despite getting all sorts of advice.

So, I'm now thinking about getting a terrapin. Does anyone have any experience with them and please tell me they don't die as easily as fish.

They stink, seriously they honk. I remember a craze for them when I was young (30+ years ago). Then the mutant ninja turtels came on the telly and England went bonkers for them again. Once the novelty wore off they were dumped in ponds and streams and grew and grew. Rolf Harris got a couple out of a pond where they were eating the baby ducks.

I'm afraid you might have the opposite problem - my brother still has his pet terrapin from childhood, she is now 30 years old and the size of a side plate. She is kept outside for the warmer months of the year. They don't stay small for long, and require and lot more space and food as they get bigger, and a lot of work to limit the smell. A lot of people dispose of them once this becomes apparent and they then eat the local wildlife.

Ohhh nooo! I had no idea they were smelly! And I was planning to keep them in the kitchen....ok, say I keep them in the living room, and regularly clean them - surely they can't stink that much??

Tyrian - how warm does it have to be to keep them outside, do you know?

Well it's either terrapin or gerbil/hamster/guinea pig, possilby rabbit. I would so love a cat as I use to keep cats but just can't at the moment.

I would honestly beseech you not to get terrapins. In addition to needing a large, heated environment and STINKING, they also carry salmonella. I had two of them for 6 years and while I loved them and gave them the best life I could, everyone else in the family hated their guts.

I should think that a gerbil would be a good pet but have no experience there

Whatever you do, do NOT get a terrapin. They have massive needs...huge heated tank, and i mean huge. Anything smaller than 6 foot is inhumane.

A cat is the easiest of all the pets you mention. A lot easier than say a rabbit.