Need advice re: small animals/hamsters

[Tenor CS]

Hi guys,

I have a hankering for a fluffy pet. Right now, all I have is a Siamese fighting fish in a bowl. My wife and I have nixed dogs or cats. She's allergic to cats, and we don't have the time or schedule to give a dog a proper home, especially when it comes to the poor thing being walked enough.

I have gotten her kind of sweet on the idea of getting a hamster. We've both owned them before, so we know we both like them. We are always home at dusk/night, so we can play with and exercise the hamster when it would normally be awake. And they are not as expensive as dogs and cats to take care of.

Any small animal experts on here? I'm looking especially for advice re: cages and accessories. Also, there seem to be a lot more varieties of hamsters more widely available in the pet trade than there were when I was a pre-teen and had my hamsters. Any recommendations of specific breeds to look for/avoid? I know that there is one breed that is very small and quick, and is not really recommended as a pet.

I am heavily leaning towards buying all the pieces of the setup separately, as the "all in one" kits seem to be too small and of poor quality.

Disclaimer: I love animals. I almost pursued a career in veterinary medicine, but went with music instead. This is not a whim. This is something that I have been thinking about for months. I think people who see an animal in a movie and rush out and buy one are irresponsible. I would never do that to an animal. So if I seem worked up and passionate, that is why.

get a ferret mate that are the best lol

[bobarian]

Sorry, Ignore me, I thought you were looking for recipes!

[Whee]

My 12yo has had three hamsters in her life. Two of them lived about 2 years, which is pretty good we're told for hamsters.

I discovered that the metal cages are easier to maintain and less "escape-proof" than the plastic models, although the plastic ones have lots of accessories.

Problem with the plastic ones with all the tunnels and tubes, is they can be hard to clean.

Definitely need a wheel and an exercise ball. My daughter's current hamster loves to chase the cats with hers. Nothing like watching a 6 pound cat run from a 6oz hamster.

Wood chip bedding like pine or cedar tends to control the odor better than the shredded cellulose stuff.

That's all I can think of. I know certain breeds are better than others, ie more friendly, but can't remember which ones. Will have to call the expert when I get home.

[Mugen910]

Originally Posted by adampc22

get a ferret mate that are the best lol

[quote=Mugen910;285006][/QUO

[WildBlueSooner]

I thought you had an infestation!

[hotreds]

Grilled with Teryiaki sauce-- oh-- never mind.....

[shilala]

My daughter has kept hamsters, dwarf hamsters, mice, guinea pigs, gerbils, and rabbits.
She said the mice are the best by far.
Hamsters and gerbils bite, guinea pigs stink, and rabbits and guinea pigs are hard to maintain.
We've had house rabbits before. You can litter train them and pen them when you aren't there. They're really stupid and have zero personality. They eat your lamp cords.
We had a dwarf hamster before that was as cool as a mouse. It was hand raised from birth and very tame. They're usually mean as hell.
Guinea pigs are very smart and lots of fun, but you have to do a lot of cleaning, they're noisy and demanding. They're the hardest to care for of all the rodents.

Mice are awesome. They're fun, don't bite, love to be handled, enjoy your company, and they're just plain cute. All you need is a fish tank, a wire lid, some bedding, a wheel for them to run on, and a water bottle. Wood chew toys and all sorts or treats are available at Walmart and most anywhere else.
You can make baby mice very easily if you so desire and sell them back to the pet store for feeders. (Snakes gotta eat, too.)

Hamsters like to climb through tunnels and stuff and you can spend a fortune on Habitrails and balls for them to run in and fancy toys. That's all the fun, cause they really fall short personality-wise. They don't like people, they just tolerate them.
If you've had hamsters before and truly played with them a lot, and found you enjoyed them, go for it. The toys are the best.
If you want a rodent that doesn't require a lot of attention to stay tame, and one that'll be glad to see you, a mouse fits the bill.

I've heard that rats are the smartest and coolest of all the rodents. Problem is that you'll really fall in love with their special personalities and they die. They only last two or three years. A three year old rat is not unheard of, but very rare.
I've had a lot of friends who have really enjoyed keeping rats as pets, I can't stand them. I spent too many years killing them to imagine bonding with one.

My brother kept ferrets. They stink. Bad.

Originally Posted by shilala

My brother kept ferrets. They stink. Bad.

I had a female. Smell really wasn't that bad, males are supposed to be worse.

They are OK to run around the house, but it will have to be ferret proofed. They can get into really small spaces and will eat anything they find. A swallowed eraser from the top of a pencil equals expensive bowel surgery or a new ferret.

They are more personable than the rodents and pretty easy to care for. Let me know if you have any more questions about ferrets.

I've had hamsters, guinea pigs and mice. My cousin has had rats and said they are fun to raise.

[Footbag]

I've had hamsters, mice and ferrets. Of all of them, the mice were the best.

The hamsters ate their plastic enclosures and ended up escaping. I would've thought they couldn't eat the plastic, but they did. They ended up escaping a few times and eventually were lost. You couldn't really play with them, they were always trying to run away.

I had a ferret, who was very mean. He would scratch and bite, and if he was let out of the cage, he would get into some sort of trouble. Eating cables, hiding in walls, etc... He ate his hammock and died.

I also had two mice. One black and one white. They were awesome. I could put them into my shirt pocket and go out. My friends loved them. You could put them into a bowl and they would use it as a lookout. My friends and I ended up building tunnels out of florescent tube covers and they would run all over the place. If they escaped, they would just hang around. They were my favorites of the three.

Originally Posted by Footbag

I've had hamsters, mice and ferrets. Of all of them, the mice were the best.

The hamsters ate their plastic enclosures and ended up escaping. I would've thought they couldn't eat the plastic, but they did. They ended up escaping a few times and eventually were lost. You couldn't really play with them, they were always trying to run away.

I had a ferret, who was very mean. He would scratch and bite, and if he was let out of the cage, he would get into some sort of trouble. Eating cables, hiding in walls, etc... He ate his hammock and died.

I also had two mice. One black and one white. They were awesome. I could put them into my shirt pocket and go out. My friends loved them. You could put them into a bowl and they would use it as a lookout. My friends and I ended up building tunnels out of florescent tube covers and they would run all over the place. If they escaped, they would just hang around. They were my favorites of the three.

i have kept ferrets my intire life and i have never had a mean one and i used a few for rabbit hunting and thay still stayed soft as hell were i come from (the west ryding of yorkshire) keeping ferrets is a way of life tho like flat caps and a wippet lol funny talking about mice and ferrets tho both my oldest ferret and pet mouse died a week or so back

[BamBam]

20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Try a good rub and some clove garlic and make sure you don't overcook them.

I didn't read the original post but I'm sure that covers it.

[DMK]

My three kids over the years had just about everything in the order of small animals.
The most fun were either the gerbils or the rats.
If you go the gerbil route, try using an aquarium filled about 1/3 full of a 50:50mix of peat moss and potting soil. Slightly dampen the mix, pack it in and bury a few larger rocks or bricks to give them a challange. The kids loved watching them tunnel and the mix absorbs the smells well. Make sure you have a secure lid as the jump very well.
For the rats, I built a large wire frame condo with multi levels that keep them busy, boy rats are docile and don't wander away from kids while being held. The little girls on the other hand love to wander and have to be watched....
Never really had a biting problem, but keep after the kids to have clean hands before going near.

Whatever you choose, enjoy their company.

[Tenor CS]

A mouse? Really? I'm gonna need to do some hardcore convincing of the wife on that one. She likes hamsters because they don't have a mouse/rat-like tail.

[ucla695]

There's a Richard Gere joke somewhere in here.

Originally Posted by hotreds

Grilled with Teryiaki sauce-- oh-- never mind.....

Originally Posted by BamBam

20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Try a good rub and some clove garlic and make sure you don't overcook them.

I didn't read the original post but I'm sure that covers it.

I have a great dipping sauce that goes well with them.

[Bear]

Originally Posted by Tenor CS

A mouse? Really? I'm gonna need to do some hardcore convincing of the wife on that one. She likes hamsters because they don't have a mouse/rat-like tail.

Can their tails be docked (like certain breeds of dogs)?

[Tenor CS]

Thanks guys, but we're not at all interested in ferrets. Too expensive, too big, need too big of a cage, and yes, they smell. One of my best friends in school had a ferret and it always smelled like ass.

[Kreth]

Originally Posted by Tenor CS

Thanks guys, but we're not at all interested in ferrets. Too expensive, too big, need too big of a cage, and yes, they smell. One of my best friends in school had a ferret and it always smelled like ass.

Ferrets have a musk gland. The one your friend had was most likely not descented.

Originally Posted by Kreth

Ferrets have a musk gland. The one your friend had was most likely not descented.

yep chop the balls off and bye bye musk gland lol only females are musk gland free to start off with tho lol