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Small pets

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Original poster

Best small furry for dd6

76 replies

Sometimeswinning · 11/09/2022 00:05

My dd has fallen in love with having a pet. Dh and I have decided between a hamster, mouse or gerbil. I will obviously take over the care! I have always had hamsters but after visiting a few places have fallen for mice! I have also been told gerbils are lovely pets aswell. I also like the fact that mice are sold in pairs. Can anyone help me choose with my dd?

OP posts:
Fabvegetablegrower · 11/09/2022 00:14

Guinea pigs are best for small children but they live a long time.

Isausernameavailable · 11/09/2022 00:16

I second guinea pigs, they are lovely

Original poster
Sometimeswinning · 11/09/2022 00:18

I'm avoiding guinea pigs. I would prefer an inside pet as ds plays football in the garden and it would completely stress me out!

OP posts:
stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 00:19

Have you considered rats ? They are gorgeous pets - little pocket dogs ! They are extremely affectionate, very engaging, can be taught tricks, aren't nocturnal, but need to be kept in 2 or 3 as they are very sociable and get lonely otherwise. I was truly surprised at how much I loved mine . I'm getting some more but from a rattery and there's a 7 month wait list . They are the best small pets I ever owned - and I have had rabbits, Guinea pigs , hamsters. They have such personality! Love them .

PestoPasghetti · 11/09/2022 00:26

Please don't get 'a gerbil', they need to live in pairs same as mice or rats. Personally I would go for gerbils. Hamsters are a bit pointless as pets as they sleep all day and disturb the children at night. They also seem to get very frustrated cooped up - supposedly they travel around 5 miles each night in the wild, so that's not surprising! I always used to have gerbils and in my experience they've happy enough as long as they have a 3 foot gerbilarium, a decent wheel, and hour or 2 of free running around the room every evening and lots of cardboard every day. Please AVOID Pets at home though. Try and source a responsible breeder. Gerbils should live for 3 or 4 years too whereas mice more like half that.

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 00:28

Mice are also incontinent. Cute but terribly smelly .

Rats are not incontinent and are very clean .

Stichintime · 11/09/2022 00:29

Definitely a rat. So trainable and loving. Really easy to handle.

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 00:31

No not one rat - they need to be in 2s or more . They are highly sociable and suffer alone .

God I loved mine ! Really want more now as I live alone and no one to whinge at me for having them !

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 00:35

2 of my ratties ! Proper cuddly ! I had 6 girls and 3 boys .

The boys are lazier and more affectionate

The girls are more active and mischievous!

calmlakes · 11/09/2022 00:38

Rats are best.
Mice are cute but stinky.
Gerbils aren't keen on hanging out with people.

We've kept all three.

goldfinchonthelawn · 11/09/2022 01:04

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 00:35

2 of my ratties ! Proper cuddly ! I had 6 girls and 3 boys .

The boys are lazier and more affectionate

The girls are more active and mischievous!

They are so cute. Beautiful inquisitive little faces. I love rats.

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 01:14

All of mine except 2 were rescues .

That white agouti boy was found in a garden and I adopted him. At first the pet shop wouldn't let me take him because they deemed him aggressive.

He turned out to be the sweetest, cuddliest boy ever and I like to think I gave him a good life while I had him . I got him a couple of boy pals and he became a rat again , not a scared lonely boy .

Op if you get a couple from a breeder they'll already be well handled and socialised, don't t go to a pet shop . Find a local breeder. They have the most awesome temperament. And the boys have the most Devine smell ! They smell like biscuits! I used to have both the boys and girls out daily for a run and a play , and I often carried them around in my top as the picture of my boy demonstrates ! They are super cuddly . They lick you just like dogs do ! They are so clean and easily the best small pets .

Btw - guinea pigs can also easily be kept inside . In fact I wouldn't house piggies outside .

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 01:17

Oh and a breeder will advise on cages , food etc . They are really easy to keep . (Don't t feed rat nuggets ! ) they are so playful. They even laugh when ticked but it's at too high a frequency for human ears !

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 01:22

I know a lot of people are out off by the tails but they are a work of art ....they use them as a counterbalance, they should have lots of toys in the cage - ropes and stuff to climb along and they even wag their tails !, they love hammocks , balls, ropes , tunnels , they should never be kept in a tank - only a cage with a solid bottom and never line the cage with sawdust as it gets into their lungs - shredded cardboard is good and I used to buy mine in bulk , Ali g with mixed grain feed . They love fruit and veg , mine absolutely went bonkers for kale !

Floralnomad · 11/09/2022 01:23

Guinea pigs are ideally kept as inside pets however the best caged pet for children are rats as they positively want to interact with their human . They are very bright , love to play and you have to be really unlucky to get a rat that bites.

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 01:29

Having been the go to rescue mad rat lady for pets at home I can give loads of advice if you want op ! I would never buy a rat from a pet shop but my rescues had been taken to their adoption centre so they weren't bred for the pet shop .

When I rescued my boy I went to a breeder for his little pals. ( I say little - they ended up weighing 850 g !).
They are just great for kids . (And adults !)
Chunky , cuddly , friendly, playful, cute, interactive pocket dogs !

stardust40 · 11/09/2022 02:03

We did this....started with Guinea pigs, then a hamster......wish we'd just got a cat from the start! The hassle and cost of the cages, the kids who quickly get bored ...... a kitten os fun, cuddly, is litter trained and os independent too!

stillvicarinatutu · 11/09/2022 02:04

Watch this 😍

Rtmhwales · 11/09/2022 02:53

stardust40 · 11/09/2022 02:03

We did this....started with Guinea pigs, then a hamster......wish we'd just got a cat from the start! The hassle and cost of the cages, the kids who quickly get bored ...... a kitten os fun, cuddly, is litter trained and os independent too!

I'm with you. We got Guinea pigs in July and it's a regret.

scochran · 11/09/2022 06:30

We had 2 rats when the children were little, 1 was lovely and 1 quite bitey but both fun to have running around the place. Even when the cage was left open they liked to stay near it and never disappeared. Children also loved their Syrian hamsters, they were very tame and they loved hearing them busying about during the night.

hattie43 · 11/09/2022 07:01

Floralnomad · 11/09/2022 01:23

Guinea pigs are ideally kept as inside pets however the best caged pet for children are rats as they positively want to interact with their human . They are very bright , love to play and you have to be really unlucky to get a rat that bites.

This was my experience. I bought him from a pet shop and he bit . He was my first rat and it put me off tbh but I can see they are charming characters

findingsomeone · 11/09/2022 08:16

I've had mice, gerbils and hamsters. I would go for a couple of gerbils personally. All four have been sociable, friendly and not biters, they don't smell like mice (who pee pretty much constantly). They have also outlived all the hamsters I've had, I'm not sure they ever made 2! We got four gerbils at once and despite a massive terrarium after a year and a bit they did de-clan, so we had two sets of two but one then died. You're not meant to have a single gerbil but the risk of introducing another and it not going well seemed higher than keeping a lone gerbil. The lone boy is actually doing fine, it's been well over six months now and he gets handled a lot and we have noticed no change in him. But gerbils shouldn't be bought singly when they are tiny.

findingsomeone · 11/09/2022 08:17

Also gerbils are not nocturnal! Great for kids.

Original poster
Sometimeswinning · 11/09/2022 10:44

Thankyou for the information about mice and their toileting! I think Gerbils are the way forward! If it was my choice I would definitely be going for rats based on this thread. I've always liked them but I actually went to bed thinking maybe I should ask for rats for my birthday!!

OP posts:
polmnlj · 11/09/2022 16:48

I had gerbils when I was young and they are tidy animals. They were and poo in one corner furthest away from their nest. Now we have guineapigs and they wee and poo everywhere even in their rest places. Definitely more work than gerbils.