General Discussion

African clawed frog [emoji=blue gem] [emoji=treefrog] [emoji=blue gem]

@singularuniverse answering some questions will help narrow down what sorta thing you're looking for!

What are you hoping to get out of owning a pet? (Eg companionship, something to watch, an occasional playmate but is ok with alone time etc)
How much time do you have on an average day to spend with the pet (Do you go to work / school etc)
Do you or your family have any allergies?
How much are you hoping to spend and how much can you spend per month on your pet?
Does noise bother you / your neighbours?
How much space do you have for an enclosure?

@singularuniverse I would caution against some of the things WillaTheWitch said. If your rats only live to one year old, they either are ill, had an accident, have very bad genetics or you're doing something wrong with your care.

Rats from breeders, kept well with good food can also be expected to live to 3 reasonably commonly, 2 is a bit young unless the rat has health issues such as fast growing skin tumours (a relatively common disease in rats).

Also always have proper rat food (a complete block style food is best), never just feed them scraps because there ARE things humans eat that are poisonous to rats. That isn't to say you can't feed fresh food, fresh fruit and veggies every other day is highly reccommended. My rats also loved it when I strung up a bit of cooked chicken for them, they'd savage it like tiny piranha! Plain yoghurt or plain mixed with bits of fruit they also like, never give flavoured yoghurt as the sweeteners likely in it aren't good for them.

As far as rats go, definitely buy two, never just one. Also I would add a another word of caution about rescue rats. I've had rats from breeders and rescue rats and the rescues were many times more difficult than my breeder rats were. Rescue rats can sometimes just be rats needing rehomed due to changed circumstances in their first home, but more likely they will be rescued from dire circumstances such as severe overcrowding. This stress can impact them their whole lives and as such I'd never reccommend rescues to someone new to rat keeping.

Rats can also grow to be surprisingly big. Some of my boys grew to be over 10 inches/25 cm long, NOT including their tails. XD By the way, never pick up rats by their tails, the tail can break or the skin can tear off in what's known as a 'degloving' and it's not pretty. Both hands cupping or a hand around the shoulders and one under the bum are what I always did.

In closing, ditto to everything Dinogrrl said and the rat applicable things Blackthorns said, both on page 2.

I agree with everything @Avessa said!

Rats are wonderful companions. I've had around 12 over the past 5 years or so, and currently only have one (he's my last, and he has behavioral issues around other rats since he was a baby). If you decide to get rats, please get them in pairs, and I recommend starting from a younger age if you can. They need the companionship, especially since we don't live right in that cage with them 24/7. Getting them some a responsible breeder who knows how to breed for the right temperament (and not just pretty colors) will do you a world of good, as pet stores with feeder rats are just grab bags filled with bad luck. My current and only rat, for example, was a feeder rescue because I couldn't bring myself to feed him to my snake at the time. And while he's super sweet and has a great personality with humans, he has very bizarre reactions to other rats and also skin issues since he was very young-- likely a symptom of his feeder heritage, where most aren't bred for particular behavioral traits, colors, or health. Just something to be wary of when you're considering where to get a rat from.

Also, when selecting a cage, the minimum recommended space for rats is 2 cubic feet per rat-- and more, if you can afford it. And they need climbing space, so the taller the cage, the better-- NO aquariums, as they don't have climbing space nor so they have the proper ventilation for rats. The ammonia build up makes them very susceptible to respiratory issues, so a wired cage (recommended wire spacing is 1/2 inch, especially for younger rats) is necessary. I recommend dust-free paper bedding, not wood shavings. My favorite cage that I had when I had 4 rats at once was the Double Critter Nation cage. It's a big ole thing that uses fleece-liners on the plastic trays (rats can be potty trained to use a litterbox!) and had a lot of space for ratties to roam around. I don't have it any more since I downgraded, but if you're looking for the BEST cage, it's definitely the top contender.

I've had all of my male rats neutered, and that's helped with any aggression issues/marking/ smells. I've noticed a trend that males (in general) are more laid-back and females are more active and willing to explore, but I've had rats that cross this barrier from both sides, and getting a mixed pair is fun too provided you can get the male neutered. Spaying females is recommended by some veterinarians since it helps decrease the likelihood of mammary tumors as they get older, but because it's a much more invasive surgery and therefore riskier, I personally just have the males neutered when kept in mixed company (neutering also helps to prevent testicular tumors!). Definitely make sure that you have a veterinarian that sees pocket pets/ small animals, because it WILL be necessary to take them to the vet if they ever get sick (and not all vets see small animals, so be sure to check beforehand!). Some people believe that because they're small, they're not worth paying for vet care-- but that's not true at all!

To reiterate what was stated above, block-style food is best. I find that Oxbow and Mazuri are both excellent block diets. These are formulated so that the rats cannot pick and choose which parts of the diet they want to eat over others, and this way they get complete nutritional care. It also helps keep their teeth at a proper length since their teeth are always growing (another reason why you need to supply enough things in their cage for them to chew on!). You can supplement their regular food with fresh veggies and fruit (no citrus for males, though!) and the occasional meat treat (mealworms are also a good treat). I also give my rat an Omega-3 fish oil supplement on some ground up food to help with his skin issues. That may not be necessary for other rats, but it can help their coat/skin and joints in the long run.

Rats are definitely my favorite animals. They're very silly and fun, and incredibly smart and loving. Just make sure to do some proper research into the husbandry before committing!

Snails make fantastic pets! They’re absolutely adorable to watch and are fun to hold. Some species do breed very rapidly and you may have to “take care of” their eggs so you don’t end up with too many snails, as a previous user said. I’ve kept garden snails and am currently keeping caracollus snails in a bioactive terrarium. I love watching them eat and they make really silly faces sometimes.

Colubrid snakes are also wonderful. Most of them are very docile and eat like champs. They can get long (4-5 feet ish) but don’t get very heavy or huge. They don’t make messes and are very quiet, which is great for apartment living! They also come in lots of fancy colors! I have an amelanistic corn snake who is very sweet and is a joy to keep.

I... Cannot recommend birds. Especially parrots. If you really want a bird, consider something like a pigeon. Keeping a parrot is like having a two year old child for 20+ years... they’re so messy and loud and demanding, even conures. Just, if you’re really dead set on a pet bird, remember that certain species are a very demanding lifetime commitment.

a turtle. I have haid my tutle for like a few years now they're not really that hard to take care of since you only need to clean whatever they live in and give them food

I see many people suggesting guinea pigs, so I gotta say now: THEY ARE A HERD ANIMAL.

You WILL need a minimum of two! They're social animals, and human beings and other creatures will never be a substitute for other guinea pigs. My sister has a herd of 7 females, plus one neutered male. You can potentially house unneutered males together, but there is always the risk that one or more may turn into a bully. My sister also has 4 unneutered males (set in a different area from the female herd), and they're divided into three side-by-side pens. This way they can see and socialize with each other, but not actually be able to harm one another. Two are on their own, the other two are together because they are brothers and get along great. The first two gps she got were from the store, but the next four were rescues (mom, dad, and the two brothers). She then bought one from a breeder. Her next three were also rescues, but two were pregnant, resulting in two new females and one new male. The father from her first rescue has since passed away (appeared to be tumors, so he had to be euthanized).

I'd recommend big pens rather than cages. My sister lays down some kind of big thick plastic sheet, then towels, and then fleece over that. The fleece is changed out for fresh fleece every other day, and the old fleece is washed. The towels are changed as needed. She vacuums daily to every other day, as their little poops can easily be vacuumed up (another bonus to using fleece vs bedding!). They have water bottles, hay bins (they need hay available at all times), pellet trays (pellets are also available at all times), and every day they get loads of fresh veggies (you can even pick dandelion leaves for them! Just make sure they're away from pollution and herbicide/pesticides, or any other dangerous foreign thing). They're so adorable to watch, and their little wheeks and popcorns (popcorning is a thing they do when happy or excited - looks like a funny little hop!) when they hear you getting them veggies is just heart-warming.

If you go the aquatic route, there are many snails to choose from! Mystery snails are one of the easiest to control, as they need a male and female to reproduce, and the eggs are laid above the water and easily removed. They also come in a variety of colours! Some people might claim they'll eat live plants, but only actual Apple Snails do that. Mysteries will only eat dead and/or dying plant matter, not unless you are starving them.

But I find I prefer Malaysian Trumpet Snails - they're considered a "pest" snail, but I love the shapes of their shells, and so long as you don't overfeed them, they won't overrun the tank! But you could always sell them to other people/donate them/give them to your local fish store for credit (some places may take them, anyway). They dig into the aquarium substrate, which is not only adorable but also a great way to avoid pockets of gas building up (which, if released much later, can release toxic chemicals into the tank)

There's also the adorable Ramshorn Snail, also sometimes considered a pest. They, too, come in a variety of colours! I have a couple of red ramshorn snails, and they've had a bunch of babies already!

Another snail you could go with is a Nerite Snail, and their eggs won't hatch unless in salt water! But they pretty much only eat algae, so you'll need an established tank with lots of soft algae (like green algae, not black beard or hair algae) for them to munch on. They have a lot of different varities to choose from, including types with a spikey shell! I personally have two red racer nerites.

I also have a type of snail called an Assassin Snail. As the name implies, they're carnivorous, and eat other snails (doesn't matter the size - they'll hunt together to take down snails larger than themselves). I have them in their own tank, and when I have extra snails (or a deceased mystery snail, and I need the shell cleaned out) I just put them in there for the assassins to have. They'll also eat dead/dying fish, and leftover fish food, so they're in general a good clean-up crew. But they can also proliferate really fast if they have enough food. I started out with only three a few years ago, and within months they'd taken over the tank.

There's so many other aquatic snails to choose from, but these are the ones I have experience with! All freshwater, keep in mind. And you will still need to do proper tank maintenance (water changes, cycling, potentially a heater, a filter, etc), but I've been doing it for 6 years now and it's honestly so relaxing and rewarding. If you get a big enough tank, you could do snails plus something else. Personally, I have a 10 gallon with a young male betta, 2-3 mystery snails, and a bunch of malaysian trumpet snails.
I also have a 16 gal with a male betta, 7 dwarf cory catfish, a few mystery snails, malaysian trumpet snails, ramshorn snails, and sometimes one of the nerites will get put in there to do some algae control (my nerites change tanks every 2-ish months to ensure they get enough algae to eat, without stressing them with a lot of moves).
I have two 5.5 gals that have a single betta and a single mystery snail each.
I have a 29 gal with mystery snails, ramshorn snails, malaysian trumpet snails, a betta sorority (NOT recommended for newbies at all! Even experienced people have troubles, and I have to keep tabs on the girls every day, to make sure things aren't going to heck), and several different tropical fish (specifically 4 balloon belly molly females, a bunch of molly babies, 5 cherry barbs, and 7 or 8 panda cory catfish).
There's also the second 29 gal, which has the assassin snails, plus bunches of tropical fish (neon and longfin rosy barbs, rosy tetras, kuhli and java loaches, amano shrimp, cherry and rili shrimp, rummynose tetras, two glo tetras, one panda tetra, and 4 male mollies, three of which are balloon bellies).
Then there's my goldfish tub, which has my five goldie babies. I currently have a 55 gal for them, but I'm honestly wanting to replace the 55 with a 75, as a 55 will probably be too small once the goldies grow up. There's the three siblings from my sister's goldfish spawn, Nomster (orange and white), Cheesus (orange) and Stubby (creamy-white). These three are all fantails. Then there's Shounen, my rescue black moore baby (as his breed name says, he's completely black). And my newest one is Sauce Packet, also referred to as **** from my brother (I seriously don't know why, but it's his nickname now). He's red and white, but I can't tell what kind of fancy goldfish he is. He might be a ryukin, in which case YIKES I'll definitely need that 75...

If anyone wants pet tax, I can attempt to oblige!

I also have several plants myself, but my comment is already long enough haha

Ferrets! They are high maintenance and can get expensive to care for (and require a LOT of attention) but they are so cute! I personally don’t own one, but I’ve researched them quite a bit!

[img]https://66.media.tumblr.com/cb30e83b4844b4ee9c9c94025162e0e7/tumblr_pq39lnW1hW1wtjmfw_500.jpg[/img] [size=7][b][i]git tcho self a fubby[/i][/b][/size]

@MorningSkye : Thank you for your reply. Yes, please do research on the topic, it`s the best thing to do.



@Snivy14 : Forced: compelled by force or necessity : INVOLUNTARY - Case closed. And you are right, there is absolutely no need to be rude, that`s why I have chosen to be realistic instead.

Since MorningSkye is right about stealing the OP`s thread this shall be my last reply to you (or anyone else) here.