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RumbleFish posted:Hmm. Do you know how old he is? The younger he is, the better he'll take to a new friend, though I've heard that older males are pretty good with pups too. I don't know his age at all and he was bought from a pet store. We might just hold off on a roommate until I can put a better home together for them. I didn't realize aquarium setups were so inexpensive when you take out all the water circulation bits. This is probably a viable option.
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Dec 18, 2009 23:24
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robotsinmyhead posted:I didn't realize aquarium setups were so inexpensive when you take out all the water circulation bits. This is probably a viable option. You'll just need to figure how to set up the food and water in there. Easiest way is probably trying to find some sturdy wooden house from pet store for example, high enough that it keeps food cup from being flooded with bedding but low enough that they can't chew the wire mesh. Then hang the water bottle there somehow, just high enough that they need to stretch themselves to get to the plastic parts. That way they can't be arsed to break the bottle and get water all over.
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Dec 19, 2009 13:06
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Candida albicans posted:You'll just need to figure how to set up the food and water in there. Easiest way is probably trying to find some sturdy wooden house from pet store for example, high enough that it keeps food cup from being flooded with bedding but low enough that they can't chew the wire mesh. Then hang the water bottle there somehow, just high enough that they need to stretch themselves to get to the plastic parts. That way they can't be arsed to break the bottle and get water all over. I have never put clips on my gerbil's cage unless they were chilling out in the same house as a cat because they've never tried to escape at all. I have a metal water bottle hanger that seems to work really well. Also, it's a gerbil trait to bury their food, so it's actually better if you don't prevent them from doing this as it upsets the natural order of things. Mine ALWAYS cover their food - but it's always gone by the time I want to feed the next. Ceramic food bowls are the best because they're heavy and can't be bulldozed.
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Dec 19, 2009 16:16
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Nereid posted:I have never put clips on my gerbil's cage unless they were chilling out in the same house as a cat because they've never tried to escape at all. I have a metal water bottle hanger that seems to work really well. Metal water bottle  Wish I had one, just can't find anything but the usual plastic ones over here. I recall one night passing by the aqua really tired and checking the gerbils before going to bed... just to notice the little terrorists ate the bottle and wet all bedding. Midnight facepalming and bedding changing is so refreshing. I keep a tight lid on my aqua since it's one and a half meter drop if they manage to get out. Much less than that is enough to crack their front teeth in.
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Dec 19, 2009 17:43
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Super Pet makes a glass water bottle with a metal hanging bracket and a little metal spring thing to hold it in place, as well as a small metal cap for the plastic screw-top. I bought mine after the rats completely chewed through the quick-release for my Lixit bottle and flooded the bottom of their cage. They did this while I was on vacation and my grandmother was watching them, but thankfully they managed to wait until the morning I got back - she wouldn't have known what to do, and she was scared to pick them up from inside the cage, so they would have had to sit in their wet Carefresh until I got home to clean it up. Petsmart sells them in 6 oz and 12 oz sizes, either of which I would think would be big enough for gerbils. If you don't have one local to you, Petsmart ships pretty cheaply.
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Dec 19, 2009 20:22
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Candida albicans posted:Metal water bottle Wow, my gerbs have never gone after their very much plastic water bottle. It's just got a metal hangar. They've emptied it a few times into their bedding, but I kick their asses good for that. By which I mean clean the tank.
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Dec 20, 2009 07:11
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I've just been given two 6 week old female mice and a basic mousey set up kit type thing. Looking forward to posts from anyone who has good experience with mice as I've never had wee babies before, only ever adult males. So far they're still really skittish and won't let me near them to touch them, but I have managed to get one (the more outgoing of the two) to snuffle at my finger when I put one through the cage bars (though she's only looking for treats haha). I've also got two cats who are sooo intrigued with them! I know better than to leave them alone together, but would it be too stressful for the mice if I tried to get them used to the cats chillin' in the same room as them? Is that ever going to be possible? They get a bit panicky round the cats at the moment but like I said, they're a bit skittish anyway and even a sharp movement from me across the room still sends them racing into their house so I'm not quite sure. Is that normal for them at this age? I've had them here since Thursday (its now Sunday). Also this might sound like a dumb question but, does a lot of what applies for rats apply for mice? Or are they more different than I think? poo poo I'm tired, and I'm really sorry if this makes little or no sense. I would appreciate any advice/help though!
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Dec 20, 2009 09:53
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Does anyone have a good resource page about chinchillas? I just got a facebook message from a friend asking what I know about them, so I've got a bit of a bad feeling. All I could say was that I know they need sturdy, solid wheels and dust baths, since that's pretty much the extent of my chin knowledge, so any help would be excellent in case it turns out to be a case where someone ended up with a chin and has no idea how to take care of it.
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Dec 21, 2009 00:07
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Serella posted:Does anyone have a good resource page about chinchillas? I just got a facebook message from a friend asking what I know about them, so I've got a bit of a bad feeling. All I could say was that I know they need sturdy, solid wheels and dust baths, since that's pretty much the extent of my chin knowledge, so any help would be excellent in case it turns out to be a case where someone ended up with a chin and has no idea how to take care of it. What used to be Chins-n-Quills is now Chins n Hedgies. Chins-n-Quills used to have really good information, experienced owners/breeders and sellers with chin appropriate toys, treats, etc. This new site was spun up by previous staff of Chins-n-Quills when something happened to the original forum. Hope this helps.
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Dec 21, 2009 01:01
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I'm really fond of http://www.chincare.com/ because all of their information is based on scientific and medical research, and well sourced.
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Dec 21, 2009 15:16
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Thanks to both of you. It's interesting to learn about chins since I know so little. No word yet on why the info might be needed, so hopefully there's nothing wrong.
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Dec 21, 2009 22:09
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maplecheese posted:I was at a newly opened Chinese grocery store before my SPCA exotics shift today when I discovered that they had yellow bell peppers for the utterly ridiculous price of $0.59/lb. So I bought one ($0.20!) to give to the SPCA guinea pigs... and when I got in and started cutting it up, as soon as they smelled it, they all completely FLIPPED THEIR poo poo. Just constant deafening WHEEK WHEEK WHEEK WHEEK WHEEK WHEEK WHEEK from all 9 of them at once. I've made guinea pigs happy before, but I've never made guinea pigs THIS happy. Definitely more than 20 cents worth of entertainment, right there. The guinea pigs at the lab I used to work at would get cabbage as a treat a couple times a week. We always brought it into the room in a plastic bag, so anytime they'd hear a plastic bag rustle, they'd start squeaking. It was so cute.
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Dec 22, 2009 02:28
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SolanaSkyes posted:The guinea pigs at the lab I used to work at would get cabbage as a treat a couple times a week. We always brought it into the room in a plastic bag, so anytime they'd hear a plastic bag rustle, they'd start squeaking. It was so cute. When I first got pigs, I had one girl named Kali who was the shyest, most timid pig ever. If you were moving around in the room, she was hiding in a pigloo, or if she couldn't find a pigloo in time, under another pig. One evening, I got the girls out for floor time (after carefully blocking off all hiding places). Undaunted, Kali managed to worm her way between two pieces of fencing and darted under the microwave stand. I spent about five minutes trying to dig her out with no success, and then went to the fridge, grabbed a plastic bag full of lettuce, and shook it. She darted out from her hiding place covered in dust and wheeking like crazy.
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Dec 22, 2009 02:56
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welp I tried to shorten my gerbils nails yesterday and it was one  after another.No matter how I tried it, I just couldn't get those squirmy little creatures of darkness to hold still long enough to clip even one nail. Thankfully they don't really "need" nail clipping, but some of their nails are a bit long so I figured to try it anyway. Normally they have one clay pot in their aqua that helps to keep the nails short, but not short enough in my opinion. I then proceeded to plant sandpaper in their aqua with different methods but all they managed to do was trying to eat it  Next plan is to cover the entire interior of their sandbathing box with sandpaper. They love to scratch the walls of that so it might even work.
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Dec 23, 2009 07:41
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Candida albicans posted:welp I tried and I just stopped bothering. Sigh. Almost lost one of my girls to a nail clipping adventure.
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Dec 23, 2009 21:28
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Edit: Offline now. Merry Christmas SA, here's a webcam of my guinea pig's cage: http://stickam.com/tokyotofu It will only be up for a while, and they just had a few hours of floor time while I was cleaning their house, so they might be pretty lazy when you do see them. But, enjoy for a bit.  Sirotan fucked around with this message at 00:09 on Dec 25, 2009 |
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Dec 24, 2009 22:01
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Sirotan posted:Merry Christmas SA, here's a webcam of my guinea pig's cage: http://stickam.com/tokyotofu I'm watching the white one eat hay.
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Dec 24, 2009 22:25
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Hey my GF made a video of our new pet gerbil Graham. There's some cuteness at 2:41. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK1hqH9mJp4 He still hasn't gotten the hang of the ball or his wheel yet and he just kinda scratches at it and tries to get out. He loves the hell out of cardboard though and chews at it like it's his job.
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Dec 26, 2009 17:45
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CagedLiberty posted:I love that this dude is actually making a  face.
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Dec 27, 2009 01:55
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Hey guys! I have a question....or two. Two days ago I was in the shower and I heard my cats going nuts. When I stepped out of the bathroom, I found them batting around mouse. It was pretty mangled up. Figuring that there would be more, I got a Have A Heart Trap and captured two tiny baby mice. I scooped them up and put them in a small tank. They have fur and are eating solids. What in the world do I do with them? Keeping them is my last resort since I already have cats, dogs and rats. Nobody I know is willing to adopt them - except for the ones that want to feed them to snakes. I don't want the little babies to be eaten. I live in New Orleans and The SPCA won't take them and I don't feel right releasing them because they are so tiny and I doubt they would survive very long. I have no idea what kind of diseases wild mice carry, so I haven't fooled with them much. drat they are cute, though.
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Dec 27, 2009 08:54
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Honestly, I'd try to find a wildlife place, but they're going to make terrible pets. Wild animals are wild, and they're going to be basically unhandleable. Even half-wild/half-domestic rats are often so skittish and spastic that they can barely be handled.
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Dec 27, 2009 14:22
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When you say small, do you mean small enough that they're unable to fend for or feed themselves? If you think that they would be able to find food for themselves, I would consider releasing them somewhere. Is there perhaps any nature areas nearby that have enough cover that they wouldn't immediately be picked up by a hawk etc? It's problematic in the city because you don't want them to just run into someone else's home and become their problem or possibly wind up in a snap or glue trap.
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Dec 27, 2009 17:03
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I would personally gas them. Especially if you've been feeding them. They are going to make awful pets, and setting them free might either end up with them back in your house or eaten by a predator because they don't know how to live outside of your house. I'd also be concerned that they carry a parasite or something that could get at your rats 
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Dec 27, 2009 17:06
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RurouNNy posted:What used to be Chins-n-Quills is now Chins n Hedgies. Chins-n-Quills used to have really good information, experienced owners/breeders and sellers with chin appropriate toys, treats, etc. This new site was spun up by previous staff of Chins-n-Quills when something happened to the original forum. Hope this helps. Oh man thank you so much for posting this! I used the old site to research Chinchillas and eventually found a breeder on there to get mine from. Now she lives with my mom but I still like to look for toys and info so I can help her out with proper toys and care. Content! My boyfriend got me a tiny robo hamster for Christmas because I have always had a small caged pet and recently I have not had one so I've been missing it. (Like I said I had a chinchilla, rat, hamsters, gerbil, mice.) I read that they are good in pairs or groups so I was considering going to the pet store he got her from to get a buddy for her. Is introducing another hamster a big ordeal? Like is it pretty much the same as chinchillas? Pics! Her name is Bitey, but she doesn't bite.  
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Dec 27, 2009 23:18
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SonicYooth posted:When you say small, do you mean small enough that they're unable to fend for or feed themselves? If you think that they would be able to find food for themselves, I would consider releasing them somewhere. Is there perhaps any nature areas nearby that have enough cover that they wouldn't immediately be picked up by a hawk etc? It's problematic in the city because you don't want them to just run into someone else's home and become their problem or possibly wind up in a snap or glue trap.  Click here for the full 1600x1200 image. They are that size. There is a nature area close by, but I have no way of knowing how well they would evade predators. Is it too late to release them? I've had them for less than a week.
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Dec 28, 2009 02:22
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It's funny, there's tons of info on the web about how to humanely catch mice but not much about what to do with them afterwards. I'm afraid I don't have much to offer - if it were me I would take them sooner than later out to a nature area and leave them near a big brush pile or something. Maybe take a big handful of birdseed as food until they are able to search for their own. Edit, found this - seems to be somewhat sane advice: http://mouseranch.com/FYI/releasing.shtml
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Dec 28, 2009 04:38
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Personally i'd set them free, away from housing, or find some way of .. disposing of them Our cat brings mice in occasionally. Usually they're in no fit state to survive so they end up in a bucket of water. If I didn't, they would shortly die of shock anyway. Sad but that's life. On the rare occasion I get to the mouse before the cat has hurt it too much, I set them free in the woods across the road, making sure the cat stays inside until he's chilled the gently caress out and forgotten about it. If they were caught in your house then they're vermin really, and can carry Weil's Disease which is harmful to humans. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptospirosis her0n fucked around with this message at 04:48 on Dec 28, 2009 |
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Dec 28, 2009 04:46
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I appreciate the advice. I'll let them go. This was my first time with this. Yeah funny how there is so much info on how to capture a pest without hurting it, but then not much info on what to do after. Lack of info is what prompted me to ask here! her0n, thanks for that link. Most informative - and disgusting.
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Dec 28, 2009 10:11
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So we got another guinea pig, this time from the local pet store... I know what you're thinking but we don't have a rescue or good breeder within 250 km. Couple of days later and now all three of them have suddenly started to scratching themselves all the time  We got the first ones from the local zoo, run by a sketchy fellow who wears more gold than a 70's pimp and only hires russians. These piggies (probably bred as food for the reptiles) had no problems what so ever and were better taken care of. At least I know better now and won't spend another dime in a pet store.
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Dec 31, 2009 12:23
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cat with hands posted:So we got another guinea pig, this time from the local pet store... I know what you're thinking but we don't have a rescue or good breeder within 250 km. Couple of days later and now all three of them have suddenly started to scratching themselves all the time This is why it is SO important to quarantine any new pig that you get for a period of at least a week (some people recommend more) so that they can get over any illnesses they have or issues can be diagnosed and not passed on to your other pets. Of course its too late for you to do this now but hopefully this can be a cautionary tale for some other people. It sounds like your new pig just had mites, which luckily is easily and cheaply treatable. [Long story of my own sick pig follows.....] I have been dealing with a sick pig as well. Naturally I noticed she wasn't eating and her weight was down on Christmas Eve of all days. (My pigs always get sick at night, on Sundays, holidays, etc...its a conspiracy.) One good thing about being a guinea pig owner for more than 15 years now is I've 'been there done that' with the force feeding routine. Boy let me tell you, they really love it! Force feedings every 4 hours for 5 days straight. Got her into the vet the day after Christmas and it turns out she had a mysterious ulcer on her tongue. The vet was puzzled and so am I. It was so swollen and red that she couldn't eat or even close her mouth. Poor thing. But, after a full week she is eating carrots and celery and other greens. Has barely chewed on hay, but that stuff is pretty tough so I'm sure its still hurting her. Whats hilarious now is, the entire time she has been sick she has just glued herself to the side of one of my other pigs (Waldo). She literally sits with her face buried in Waldo's side. Now all I hear from their cage is annoyed squealing from Waldo who just wants her own space. She also acts quite calm when I try to hold her now. Previously she has been extremely skittish, hated being held and petted, and she also never squeaks. I rescued her about a year ago and she had lived with two previous owners so I think she had a traumatic life before I got her. Maybe this illness has changed her little brain chemistry and now she is gonna be more friendly.  Edit: Here is even a photo I took on my phone to show a friend, formerly sick pig (Chuck) on the left, just sitting there STARING at Waldo who just wants to take a nap. She sat there doing that for a good 30 minutes: 
Sirotan fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Dec 31, 2009 |
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Dec 31, 2009 15:15
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cat with hands posted:Couple of days later and now all three of them have suddenly started to scratching themselves all the time
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Dec 31, 2009 17:20
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Ivermectin dosing is incredibly easy to do and it will save you SO much money. All it takes a little basic math to work out the dosage and you're good to go. You'll also have plenty of the stuff leftover should you have any further mite breakouts in the future; a bottle of injectable to dose a horse will topically treat more guinea pigs than you'll ever see in your life. (Just to be clear, you don't actually inject the stuff, it's just the injectable form is suspended in liquid and easiest to use. You draw off the dosage appropriate for your pig, squirt it onto their skin - the bald spots behind the ears are easiest - and sort of rub it in. Repeat a week later and a week after that, and no more mites.)
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Dec 31, 2009 17:51
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Still curious about adding another hamster in with the one I just got.
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Jan 1, 2010 05:20
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Awesome Kristin posted:Still curious about adding another hamster in with the one I just got. If it's a syrian hamster they are NOT friendly towards other hamsters and will not do well with a cage-mate. I'm curious, how many people here have degus? I absolutely love degus. I had mine for about 7 years before they died. I don't know how old they were when I got them. Right now I have a pair of guinea pigs, and I love them to pieces but I can't wait until I have the space to get another pair of degus.
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Jan 1, 2010 06:49
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Awesome Kristin posted:Content! My boyfriend got me a tiny robo hamster for Christmas because I have always had a small caged pet and recently I have not had one so I've been missing it. (Like I said I had a chinchilla, rat, hamsters, gerbil, mice.) Like I said it is a robo hamster and I read they are better in pairs or groups. I just wanna hear some advice and see if that is true.
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Jan 1, 2010 07:14
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helpful people posted:Thanks a lot, I might take them to the vet anyway for a routine check up but you no doubt saved me some money and trouble! We put in a divider in our large cage when we introduced the new one, I assumed we should have used two seperate cages? Or did we the owners act as carriers?
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Jan 1, 2010 13:39
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Awesome Kristin posted:Like I said it is a robo hamster and I read they are better in pairs or groups. I just wanna hear some advice and see if that is true. Generally Robo's can be kept in same sex pairs or in groups. Although, I had three males when I was little and they fought constantly it was never really serious; just lots of squeaking and an occasional scab. They had plenty of room (a 15 gallon) but I think I would make sure there was multiples of most things like food sources and hides to discourage fighting. Mine generally fought going into their hides or when I put veggies in their cages.
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Jan 1, 2010 17:12
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cat with hands posted:We put in a divider in our large cage when we introduced the new one, I assumed we should have used two seperate cages? Or did we the owners act as carriers? Both from my understanding. You're supposed to (at least ideally) have the cages in two separate rooms for 2-3 weeks so that you can observe both to ensure that they are healthy before trying introductions. Sometimes this isn't possible in small apartments so in that case just having them apart is a good first step. Also you need to wash your hands between handling them so that you don't carry mites etc back and forth. No harm done in this case, mites are cheap and easy to treat. Oh and next time you might try posting on guinealynx and asking about adding another pig to your herd - the people over there are almost always able to find a rescue or someone willing to do a transport of a pig to a more remote location. I understand your decision but just sayin' in case there's a next time. Post some pictures once you have the pigs stabilized!
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Jan 1, 2010 17:31
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SonicYooth posted:Both from my understanding. You're supposed to (at least ideally) have the cages in two separate rooms for 2-3 weeks so that you can observe both to ensure that they are healthy before trying introductions. Sometimes this isn't possible in small apartments so in that case just having them apart is a good first step. Also you need to wash your hands between handling them so that you don't carry mites etc back and forth. No harm done in this case, mites are cheap and easy to treat. Ditto this. 3 weeks is commonly recommended because ringworm has a 21 day period before it can show up. It seems to have the longest incubation period, so if you manage to rule it out, typically everything else has already shown up. But it also keeps your pigs from having mites, lice, respiratory infections, eye infections, intestinal parasites, and a whole slew of other goodies from the animal you're bringing in. This is really important with pet store animals, because recent studies are suggesting that even animals that appear healthy can be carrying all sorts of crap subclinically. It seems impossible to have THAT many sick animals... but health inspectors recommended that they raze the building to the ground of the place in Texas that was raided for milling animals because it was such a huge hole of infection and disease.
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Jan 1, 2010 19:52
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After being off hand feeding for three days, my pig with the mouth sore is losing weight again and not eating more than a few nibbles of veggies I stick in front of her. I'm really hoping its just the antibiotics depressing her appetite and not some underlying illness.
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Jan 1, 2010 20:10
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