hamster or gerbil - which to get?

[KNJWDW]

Another vote for a guinea pig! We just got one about a month ago and I am surprised what a fun pet it is. She is really sweet and funny. The kids take her out of her cage and play with her constantly. She will also just chill out and sit in their laps for a long time. She is easy to take care of, doesn't smell, etc.

 

[Rosebud123]

This is a no brainer! Gerbils for sure!!!! They are way more fun to play with and watch. They have wake/sleep cycles throughout the day, so they'll be awake plenty of times when you/your kids are awake. Hamsters sleep most of the day. Gerbils are desert animals so they don't drink as much water, which means you don't have to clean their cage as often! (Every 1 - 2 weeks.) They don't smell at all! They're super easy to train. Ours crawl right up my arm as soon as I put it in their cage.
We've had gerbils for years and years and we always get them from a breeder. They need to live in pairs and, when the first one dies, you'll need someone with experience to gradually introduce the survivor to a new furry friend.
Tons of people breed gerbils. Look online to find someone.
Good luck!

 

[Rosebud123]

This is a no brainer! Gerbils for sure!!!! They are way more fun to play with and watch. They have wake/sleep cycles throughout the day, so they'll be awake plenty of times when you/your kids are awake. Hamsters sleep most of the day. Gerbils are desert animals so they don't drink as much water, which means you don't have to clean their cage as often! (Every 1 - 2 weeks.) They don't smell at all! They're super easy to train. Ours crawl right up my arm as soon as I put it in their cage.
We've had gerbils for years and years and we always get them from a breeder. They need to live in pairs and, when the first one dies, you'll need someone with experience to gradually introduce the survivor to a new furry friend.
Tons of people breed gerbils. Look online to find someone.
Good luck!

 

[Rosebud123]

Neither, get a rat. They're friendlier, easier to handle, trainable, cleaner, etc etc etc.

We'd love to get a rat, but I'm not sure we have enough time to play with it outside its cage. Plus they're kind of smelly, aren't they? Love how smart they are!

 

[mjkacmom]

We'd love to get a rat, but I'm not sure we have enough time to play with it outside its cage. Plus they're kind of smelly, aren't they? Love how smart they are!

Rats are the least smelliest of the rodent bunch. Always get at least 2, since they're so social. The great thing about them is, outside the cage, they don't need much supervision - they love human contact, so it's not like they're going to try to escape. Just have to make sure they're not chewing on electrical wires. There are many rat owners who don't even own cages (they litter train).

 

[FormerFF]

Guinea pigs are friendlier and alert when humans are. Get two, they're social creatures, and get a big cage.

 

[gemini2727]

Looove gerbils! We have had multiple groups of three since my kids were little. We always get three sisters (one for each child). They get along beautifully and I have noticed (from comparing with our friends' hamsters) that gerbils smell much nicer We never had a biting problem, but they do love to chew, so save up those paper towel and toilet paper rolls if you do get them. They need to chew to keep their teeth a good length. They like to sleep all cuddled together and they live about 3-5 years. So easy to take care of, we keep them in a 10 gallon fishtank so they are easy to watch and to keep clean. Good luck with whichever pet you choose!

 

[dhardawa]

We have had so many rodent pets. We've had:

Full sized hamsters - Never had a problem with them
Rats - Very social, but they drip pee all the time when being handled which is just gross.
Guinea Pigs - Hated them. They were loud and messy and not social at all.
Dwarf Hamsters - Love, love, love them. I know a lot of people say they are mean, but we have always purchased either very young or ones that were from a breeder and handled from the time they were tiny. We have two right now, Ravioli and Tortellini. They are SOOOO cute and super social. Did I mention how cute they were? Also, they live well in groups especially if they are litter mates (which ours are).

 

[dhardawa]

Rats are the least smelliest of the rodent bunch. Always get at least 2, since they're so social. The great thing about them is, outside the cage, they don't need much supervision - they love human contact, so it's not like they're going to try to escape. Just have to make sure they're not chewing on electrical wires. There are many rat owners who don't even own cages (they litter train).

Wow, you never met my rats. Even with cleaning cages constantly, they were stinky, stinky, stinky. WAY worse than the hamsters.

 

[justintime]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I hadn't even thought of a rat, so I was open to that option as well, but when we went to the pet store, my daughter was afraid of them (they were on the larger side). She then asked the employee to see a hamster, but the first two he tried to get out bit him. He took out a gerbil and DD loved it. The employee said they like to be in pairs, so we got two. He told us they were both girls, but it appears that he was wrong. And it also appears that the female gerbil was already pregnant when we bought her. She just has 5 babies!!! Yikes.

 

[dizneechic]

He took out a gerbil and DD loved it. The employee said they like to be in pairs, so we got two. He told us they were both girls, but it appears that he was wrong. And it also appears that the female gerbil was already pregnant when we bought her. She just has 5 babies!!! Yikes.

WHOOPS!!! Was the gerbil pg when you got it or are you certain you have a boy and girl. Time to get a bigger cage!!!

 

[homemaker]

With 5 children in the house we have may caged animals. Hamsters are okay but not the kid of animal your children can pick up and play with. They can also bite if you get one that is not very friendly. Guinea pigs are better. They can be easily picked up and you can play with them without fear of them getting away. The only downfall is that the cages are bigger and can be smellier if you children don't clean it frequently. We have also had ferrets. More expensive animal with an even bigger cage, but very social. You can liter train them and they live for a longer time them the other little critters.

Best of luck on what even you decide to do.

 

[justintime]

WHOOPS!!! Was the gerbil pg when you got it or are you certain you have a boy and girl. Time to get a bigger cage!!!

I looked online and it says that gerbils are pg for 24 days, and we only had her for 13 days when she had the babies, so she was definitely pg when we bought her. But also, when the man in the store said they were both the same sex, they were really squirmy, so I don't think he got a really good look. Now that we have been able to see them more closely, we can see that we definitely have both a boy and a girl. And I just read that they mate immediately after giving birth!! Wonderful, now she is going to have more babies in a month

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Yikes!

I think that's one of the "pros" to having a Syrian hamster. They prefer to live alone, i.e. without another hamster. (Though they enjoy human company.)

Good luck with the babies, Mom!

 

[eduk8r26]

If you lived in California, you can't have gerbils. They are outlawed. I think because if they get out, they procreate so fast they would soon take over.