Ideas for a pet

[pritchke]

Siamese Fighting Fish - You only need to feed it once or twice a week.

or a small Turtle - Turtles are cool

[Sir Kenyth]

A hamster, gerbil, or similar small animal would be ideal. They're furry cute, and cheap, but not too smart or playful. Cage cleaning can be a pain as they go wherever the desire strikes them. A plus is that feces are odorless.

A cat is a good pet for an apartment. There's no caging one though!

A ferret is a really good small pet. They're freindly, extremely playful, and quite lovable. They're fairly smart and sleep most of the day (12-16 hours). The con is that they are more high maintenance than rodents. About the same as cats. Thier cage litter pan needs daily cleaning. They eat a not insignificant amount of pricey food and should get nutrient suppliments. They are also about $100 each and need an expensive cage with a few reasonably priced accessories. They need out of their cage for play at least a few hours daily. Although litter trainable outside the cage, they are not quite as diligent as cats and need to be watched. In the cage, they always use the litter pan. On a positive note, their digestive tracts are short and fast so their feces don't smell much. They have a musky BO and should be bathed weekly. They need vetrinary care much like a cat.

Maybe a ferret's for you, maybe it's not.

As a last resort, there's always the good old standby goldfish!

[Aelia Jusa]

I'm not sure where you got the idea that cats are smelly - as Rataxes said they're extremely clean and fastidious creatures. However I agree with Cloudy that it would be cruel to get a cat to keep in a dorm room. I am all for cats living inside and not going outside at all - they don't need to and they are perfectly happy inside so long as they have toys and so on - but a dorm room is nowhere near big enough or safe enough. As well, would you trust all the people on your floor not to tease it or let it out or give it beer (always good for a laugh [img]graemlins/idontagreeatall.gif[/img] )? I know I wouldn't.

Also if you're worried about smell, any rodent (mice, hamster etc) are going to smell far worse than a cat. Mice smell terrible. And as Epona said, birds will be loud and other students may complain. I really think that the best thing would be fish - you have to consider that it's not just your enjoyment that you'll be satisfying but the animal's welfare and happiness as well. A dorm room is no place for an animal.

[StigTC]

I'd say you need a tarantula.
They don't take up much space, they don't eat much, they're pretty and they're great for scaring the living daylights out of girls .

As for the snake suggestion. I'd advice against that, they take up more room than you'd think, unless you get a really small one and let's face, what's the fun in that.

[johnny]

Originally posted by StigTC: I'd say you need a tarantula. They don't take up much space, they don't eat much, they're pretty and they're great for scaring the living daylights out of girls . As for the snake suggestion. I'd advice against that, they take up more room than you'd think, unless you get a really small one and let's face, what's the fun in that.

You rather scare girls away instead of luring them into your dorm ??? I don't see the logic in that.

[NiceWorg]

Gongrats for reaching 3k, Aelia. [img]smile.gif[/img]

The problem is indeed my dorm room. Even thought it´s relatively big, 5*5 metres, and sunlight has room to dance there, it´s not where animals are made to live in. I know the responsibility and difficulties. I could not let the thing out for a second, because we live in 4th floor.. and there is practically no neighbors nearby.

Well, cat sand is never completely smell-less. And when it´s an adult cat, only makes it worse. They eat a lot and don´t like to live in one room all the time, so that is not really a possibility. Coming from a farm, I have lived with animals my whole life.. just not with exotic pets such as fishes and birds..

Very likely I am not moving out in two years, and graduation is even further away. Your point is obvious, though.. if a moving occurs, rooms that don´t allow animals are outruled.

But from the suggestions, hamster or cold fish are possibilities. Maybe Iguana or Turtle if it should really be extreme. One of these days I should to go to an animal shop and see what fits.

Thanks.

[StigTC]

I never said "scare away". My thoughts were more in the lines of them needing someone to hold them to calm them down .

Make sure it's a very small iguana, those things get BIG, as do alot of other lizards, in general if you want anything lizardy, make sure you do all the necessary research to keep them under the best circumstances, those wonderfull critters are too often miskept.

[ 06-11-2003, 05:32 PM: Message edited by: StigTC ]

[pritchke]

With a cat, ferret, or other type of large beast it would depends on the dorm room. If it is just a single room than No, get a fish or turtle, or spider. Some dorms are built these days are like apartments however with kitchen, living room, bath room, and bedrooms. If it is one of those than a cat may be OK.

[WillowIX]

Originally posted by Epona: Sorry, but I have to disagree with this. I have been owned by budgies all my life, and they are the noisiest, messiest pets on the planet. You can't leave them alone over a weekend, since they need almost constant attention. It would get depressed and pull its feathers out. People think - oh budgies, they're easy - but people who think like this have miserable unhealthy budgies. Did you know that budgies can live to be over 20 years old? Probably not, because most die of malnutrition and neglect before they reach 10 years - because people buy them and do not realise what their requirements are. They also have to have several hours out of their cage every day, and are very delicate - aerosol sprays, cleaning products, teflon cookware, smoke, incense, can all kill them quite painfully and so they are not at all suited to a dorm environment. NOT AT ALL SUITABLE! - an opinion based on 32 years of budgie ownership - and the noise and mess drive me up the wall sometimes, and I'm used to it! I agree with Cloudy - it is not a suitable set up for any pet really. A goldfish would probably be your best bet if you really feel the need for an animal in your life. EDIT: to add that you're wrong - LOADS of people are allergic to birds. Parrots produce a huge amount of dust from the feather sheaths breaking down, which can cause breathing difficulties for even mild asthmatics, and can also result in a lung condition similar to asbestosis.

Epona, I clearly stated that they need care as well. What I did say was that they do not need the space a dog would need. As for the noice I know you are right about that. But compared to you my next-next door neighbour loves the sound. It's not all bad (at least not to all).

As for allergies go ahead and compare the number of people being allergic to dogs/cats versus exotic birds. Allergies are more often developed against common allergenes. And most people bump in to dogs or cats every day than exotic birds. I'm not saying that people aren't allergic to birds at all you know.

[Epona]

Willow, sorry if I came across too critical of your post.

Unfortunately a lot of people think budgies are cute and easy to keep, and alas many end up being released (and likely dying because they don't have basic survival skills) or being dumped because people get fed up with the noise. I've heard such sad stories - some with happy endings tho - like the budgie that was put out with the trash because the owner got fed up with the mess, fortunately it was found and taken home by a bird owner.

I love the little tykes, they can make fantastic pets in the right circumstances - I wouldn't have had them my whole life if that wasn't the case! So intelligent and loyal, and very entertaining. My point was just that they're not suitable for a dorm situation - not everyone appreciates a dawn chorus! [img]smile.gif[/img]