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Original poster

Could I have a hamster?

56 replies

HunieBunie · 11/07/2006 10:07

Hi,

I have had a look back at previous threads here, and like Patttsy's family we lead a busy life, but do you think I could possibly take on the commitment of having a hamster?

I am home every evening (not always at the same time tho'). My children are in junior/secondary school. I am pretty sure I could find someone of our school chums to take care of it when we are away for a couple of days?

Well, what do you think? Can I have a hamster? Pleasssssseeeeee!

OP posts:
LittleCarlos · 11/07/2006 10:08

Err yes..

Shove some food and water in the cage everyday and thats about it isnt it?? Not much commitment really...

Original poster
HunieBunie · 11/07/2006 10:15

I'm off to the pet shop!

OP posts:
SparklyGothKat · 11/07/2006 10:19

if you want a hamster you can handle get a drawf hamster, the big ones are a bit bitey

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:19

You have to clean the cage out once a week (minimum) and they do love to be handled and exercised (every day). So long as you have the time to do both of these things then great. Also remember that hamsters are nocturnal, so they will be v active at night. Lovely pets though.

tortoiseshell · 11/07/2006 10:20

I would say the opposite about bitey hamsters - the dwarf ones are VICIOUS in my experience - we had some we could only handle in thick gloves. Whereas the Syrian hamsters are very friendly!

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:20

I had a big chocolate Syrian, Seymour, and he was fantastic. Not a biter, they shouldn't be if you handle them lots from the start. I don't like the Russian dwarf ones, they are too tiny and fragile.

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:21

Me too Torty

SparklyGothKat · 11/07/2006 10:22

I had a Syrian hamster and he was nasty right from when we got him. I have these one now and they don't bite, but a bugger to catch!! lol

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:26

Seymour used to chew at the door when he wanted to come out and then just amble onto my palm. Never had to catch him.

Had a pet rat (Noel) after the hamster and he was FABULOUS. Like a tiny person in a rat suit, huge character, intelligent and friendly.

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:28

I'd love another rat, but DH won't have any of it. He's terrified of them . DD has been talking about a guinea pig recently, we may well look into getting one or two in the near future.

zephyrcat · 11/07/2006 10:38

Hamsters are too bitey. We got dd 2 rats in the end - I must admit I was a bit nervous of the idea at first but they are the most amazing friendly, super-clean, super-intelligent animals ever and I'd never ever go back to hamsters!

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 10:40

Rats make fantastic pets

2labs · 11/07/2006 11:23

Wish I'd had rats instead of hamsters when I was little. Did bugger-all during the day and kept me awake all night (cage was in my bedroom) - had to move them into another room in the end.

Bugsy2 · 11/07/2006 11:29

Get two Guinea Pigs. There are lovely - really cuddly & chatty. They don't do that nocturnal thing either. Minimal maintenance required. Ours have an indoor house in the playroom & so get constantly petted & loved by the children. They make fab pets - IMO, of course!

Kelly1978 · 11/07/2006 11:33

agree with the comments on rats, they make lvoely pets, especially for children and they are far more docile and less fragile to handle. Syrians are friendlier than russians, which are nippy and difficult to catch. Hamsters are also nocturnal and so boring during the day. My rat was so friendly and would run aroudn the flat then come and cuddle up on my lap and go sleep, was very sweet natured and never once bit. You can also bath a rat so they keep nice and clean, the tail tends to get a bit yucky.

Original poster
HunieBunie · 11/07/2006 12:47

Don't if I can convince Dh re:rats, tho' from comments here rats sound like good pets.

OP posts:
NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 12:53

They are the best small rodent to have as a pet. By a mile.

expatinscotland · 11/07/2006 12:56

DH had a rat before I met him.

EEwww. I cant get my head round that wormy tail.

And they're huge as well.

And the building where I work has a rat problem.

They remind me of . . . a dank close off High Street in Auld Reekie.

And plague. They make me think of plague.

expatinscotland · 11/07/2006 12:57

But hamster SO cute. DD1 wants one. She goes round saying, 'I want a 'amster spinning round and round on a wheel.'

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 12:58

Domestic rats are completely different to sewer rats.

expatinscotland · 11/07/2006 12:59

He keeps telling me that. But they're still the same species w/that wormy tail.

Ugggh.

Hamster so cute and furry. Same w/guinea pigs who make that little squeak.

Rat just yucko, plague, disease carriers.

Chloe55 · 11/07/2006 13:14

Rats do make good pets, I have 2 of my own. I don't think hamsters are the best pets for kids as they are nocturnal so the only time you hear them/see them is when they are on their wheel in the middle of the night annoying the hell out of you. It also means that when your kids want to handle them through the day they will probably be grumpy, hence the reason so many hamsters bite - wouldn't you if someone woke you up? Guinea-pigs also make good pets and they are a bit easier to handle than a rat because they are bigger - you might be able to persuade dh because they don't have tails.

fennel · 11/07/2006 13:17

rats are more smelly and need a bigger cage. I've had rats and gerbils and now we have a hamster for dd1, age 6. it's a good pet for her. easy to handle and the hamster (imaginatively named Hammy) is ok with children holding her. and she can't run away fast like a gerbil or rat can.

expatinscotland · 11/07/2006 13:29

I had a gerbil when I was 11 and he was a vile creature - biting and drawing blood, breaking out of his cage, a bitch to catch.

He was Satan's spawn and he lived for ages, too - 5 years!

NomDePlume · 11/07/2006 13:32

Gerbils IME are horrid - smelly and violent

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