Mouse or hampster?

[Chicago526]

I want to get a little furry pet. I've always liked watching the little guys run around their little homes. I had a guinea pig once, but I'd really prefer something smaller.

Other than the guinea pig, I've got no experiance or knowlege about little furry pets. Would a mouse (or mice) be better than a hampster (or hampsters)? Is there another pet I should consider?

Thanks!

 

[minnieandmickeymouse]

I had a rat once! I know that may sound crazy, but when I went to the pet store looking for a small pet, they suggested the rat over the other 2 you are mentioning. The mice or hamster are more likely to bite you (what they guy at the store told me). I had my rat (Marryann) for years. She was great. I could put her on my shoulder, and she and my cat would play together! I would get a rat again in a heartbeat, if I was going to get a small pet like that. I had a hamster once, and it would bite, and I didn't like not being able to handle my pet hamster. Just my suggestion.

 

[cats7494]

I have had mice, gerbils, and hamsters. Of them all - mice and hamsters are easier to handle.
I do agree with Minnie that rats do make good pets. I have never owened one - but have had friends who have. They are very tame and docile.

If you do buy hamsters - make sure that if you buy more than one - to get them at the same time from the same cage! They tend to hoard food if you add a new hamster and may fight.

We also have a chinchilla now - and they are great pets too! Here's a picture of ours: He is a sweetheart!

Good luck with your choice - let us know what you decide!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I would pick the mouse over the hampster, and the rat over the mouse. All our hampsters did was try to get out. The little white mouse we had was cute, and the rats I had when I was younger were smart & friendly. They made great pets.

(on a side note -- we had the rats so we could have a supply of food for the several snakes we had -- we were in Boy Scouts)

 

[Pop Daddy]

get a dog, do you really want a rat

 

[experiment626mom]

I agree with the rat. They do make great pets, despite the ignorance of alot of people. They are very sweet and aren't apt to bite you as quickly as hamsters or mice.

Let us know what you decide

 

[clarabelle]

Hamsters -like most rodents are nocturnal. Hamsters can get testy if you wake them up
We have gerbils -they are a bit more adaptable to our schedule and don't bite you if you wake them

 

[FINFAN]

Another Rat vote here....we have 2 Dumbo rats, named for their larger rounder ears....just adorable and highly intelligent...really make the dog (bichon frise) look kinda dense. We are on our second pair (both female) as the breeder,( yes breeder, our rats are regitered) only sells them in pairs as they are very social. They have an average life span of 3 years. Our first set lived just under that, and our current ones turned 1 year old on Tuesday! Very easy to maintain, lovable, QUIET, and love to snuggle in the kids hoodies pockets or in the hood itself. They ride around on the kids shoulders as well. When our town had a big Harry Potter party this summer my kids were drawing more attention than the book was as everyone thought they had "Scabbers" the rat/character. The rats stayed on them for over 6 hours, and were very patient about being pet and held by others. If you can get past the tail thing, rats are a fabulous pet.
I am in Naperville and give you the name of our breeder...the babies in her litters are spoken for very quickly and there is usually a wait list. She is a RN and will answer any ?'s you may have concerning cleanliness etc. Here is her website:

www.sweetgenes.com

and the breeders name is Debbie.

C'mon...think Mickey!


PAM

 

[Buckalew11]

I had to get past the tail thing, that is for sure! But we had a smal white dumbo rat (named Stitch) who was friendly and very docile. She never offered to bit or even nip at you. I would have never believed that we would have liked having that rat so much but we did. My vote is for a rat too.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

I love my hamster, with no "P" in the word

 

[lisajl]

I vote for a rat! We have one and she is wonderful!

I agree with the other posters. Most hamsters/guinea pigs, etc. will bite.
They are not the best pets.
The only bad part about these little pocket pets is they don't live very long.
Rats usually make it 3 years, if they don't get some kind of cancerous tumor.

We just had a benign mass taken off our rat. She is doing great!

When you go to the pet store, ask them what they think. They will help you out.

Lisa

 

[piglet too]

My kids have gerbils, but try to get two at the same time from the same cage so they have a playmate. I made the mistake of waiting a week, and now have two cages for them.
We have not been bit, nibbled yes, but not enough to hurt. Both of ours are friendly and they eat treats right out of our hands. I love to watch them when we give tehm the empty toilet paper rolls, they go nuts over them!

 

[Rajah]

I've been partial to rats ever since I ran into a girl in college who had one and she took it to the dorm "getting to know you" party. He was so cute and fun and friendly.

 

[HappyMommy2]

I had all those types of pets growing up, and but my favorites were gerbils because:
1. Their cage DOES NOT STINK! No matter how often we cleaned out the hamster,
mouse, guinea pig cages, they would stink so quickly. Gerbils make virtually no
urine (they're desert animals so they conserve their liquids), so you don't have
to clean them out nearly so often to keep their cage fresh-smelling.
2. Gerbils have fur on their tails! Rats and mice can be good pets but I just think
gerbils are physically so much cuter.
3. They are generally pretty good-tempered--as someone else said, they are generally
not as grouchy as hamsters; just handle them a lot when they are young so
they will be used to it.
If you don't get a gerbil I would suggest a hamster over a mouse. Hamsters are more fun than mice IMO because it's neat to watch how they fill up their cheeks with food. We used to feed ours all kinds of little hamster treats and we loved watching them load up till their cheeks were huge, then unload it all in the corner of their cage for later!

 

[LindsayDunn228]

I don't know what is the deal with you guy's hamsters. My little guy has only bitten twice in the year we've had him.

 

[Chicago526]

Thanks, everyone!

I didn't even thing about a rat. I've heard good things about them from other sources, but didn't think about them at all. I'll have to look into it.

We won't be getting ANY new pets until we are settled into our new home, we are moving in 2 days! Can't wait!

 

[Mel6197]

I had my Pet Rat for about 4 years. Got him a Rabbit Lease and off we went, him on my shoulder.
He especially liked to snuggle. Find a warm spot on you and go to sleep. Not going to find a hampster or mouse to do that.
I found the Rat to be more "Mellow"

 

[vettechick99]

I've had both so my rec is: Do NOT buy a mouse! Unlike Mickey, they are boring, they stink, they are anti-social and they are up from dusk til dawn - and I don't mean hanging out their crib reading the Disney Magazine. They are UP! Extrememly active and annoying.

Hamsters aren't near as bad and they actually seem to keep themselves clean. And they're much cuter, especially when they pack them cheeks full!

 

[LindsayDunn228]

I'm sorry, but I just have to add one thing: it is hamster, not hampster

 

[hucifer]

I once tried to kill a rat with a shovel. It was in my garden.