I have no ideas lol. I have reptiles and inverts, and an apartment coming that allows everything but carpet animals (dogs cats etc.) I was wondering what a smallish mammal (small enough to be kept happily in an enclosure) and a smallish bird, a smart one with a personable attitude, but a good starter too. Thanks loads!
Wanting to get a Bird and a Mammal, but...
- Thread starter Nivek
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Cockatiels are nice birds, they are smart and friendly. They are readily available in different colors and not too expensive.
As far as a mammal, there are a lot to choose from. My personal favorites are ferrets and chinchillas. Chinchillas have an advantage over ferrets for apartment living because they have no odor. Lots of info on the net about these guys too, but they run about $100.
Good luck finding your new buddies
As far as a mammal, there are a lot to choose from. My personal favorites are ferrets and chinchillas. Chinchillas have an advantage over ferrets for apartment living because they have no odor. Lots of info on the net about these guys too, but they run about $100.
Good luck finding your new buddies
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all kinds of choices
well chinchillas do come in morphs,,and cockateils depend were your getting them i have found them between 38$-140 at pet stores,,,so shop around also quacker parrots are nice,,green cheek conure,,,they are a blst a little more challenging than cokateils but still a very much so begginer bird in my opinion,,,theres also alot of other choices for mammals,just do some research,,
well chinchillas do come in morphs,,and cockateils depend were your getting them i have found them between 38$-140 at pet stores,,,so shop around also quacker parrots are nice,,green cheek conure,,,they are a blst a little more challenging than cokateils but still a very much so begginer bird in my opinion,,,theres also alot of other choices for mammals,just do some research,,
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Chinchillas do come in color morphs but you may have to do a lot of looking to find them. They can be black, white, gray, mosaic, beige,and even spots ( I have only seen a spotted one in books). They would be comfy in a indoor rabbit cage, they make cage kits just for chinchillas that come with the dust bath house. I will see if I can find a link to some setups that would work.
I think retail for cockatiels runs between $60-$125 depending. I paid $100 for an albino cockatiel about eight years ago. They are pretty cool birds. You may find them cheaper in the paper because they are fairly easy to breed.
Here are some common chinchilla cages in a variety of styles and prices. No need to get the big fancy ones if you can't afford it, the plain cheap one can be converted with a few corner add ins with ramps.
http://http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_list.jsp?ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023695&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302026331&bmUID=1140118044680
I think retail for cockatiels runs between $60-$125 depending. I paid $100 for an albino cockatiel about eight years ago. They are pretty cool birds. You may find them cheaper in the paper because they are fairly easy to breed.
Here are some common chinchilla cages in a variety of styles and prices. No need to get the big fancy ones if you can't afford it, the plain cheap one can be converted with a few corner add ins with ramps.
http://http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_list.jsp?ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023695&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302026331&bmUID=1140118044680
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You can get indoor bunnies too - litter tray train them like a cat from a young age, but watch for nibbling!
I always used to have pairs of male rats, who are great pets, really friendly and clever (don't smell if you clean 'em regularly!) but they do only live about 5 years max. My next mammals are gonna be either ferrets (depending on the cat and where I'm living) or pygmy hedgies which are SO cute
Let us know what you decide!
Hels
I always used to have pairs of male rats, who are great pets, really friendly and clever (don't smell if you clean 'em regularly!) but they do only live about 5 years max. My next mammals are gonna be either ferrets (depending on the cat and where I'm living) or pygmy hedgies which are SO cute
Let us know what you decide!
Hels
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I wouldn't suggest a ferret, as technically they are "carpet mammals" and need at least 4 hours of out of cage time a day, and more is always better. Not to mention they can cause as much, if not more, damage than a dog or cat could ever do.
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There is also love birds, parrotlets and parakeets. The best bird I ever had was a parakeet, he said over 20 words, would follow me around the house and was generally a clown. Parakeets are so underrated....
Rats are great too, they are smart, gentle and easy to keep.
Rats are great too, they are smart, gentle and easy to keep.
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I have a chinchilla!
I would recommend a chinchilla. They are wonderful once they get used to you. Mine talks to me and tells me how it is, lol. But they do need out of their cage for an hour so too, kinda like ferrets. Oh and when they take their dust bath, cutest thing you will ever see! Wonderful pets, IMHO.
I would recommend a chinchilla. They are wonderful once they get used to you. Mine talks to me and tells me how it is, lol. But they do need out of their cage for an hour so too, kinda like ferrets. Oh and when they take their dust bath, cutest thing you will ever see!
Wonderful pets, IMHO.Well, I haven't had a chance to do a whole lot of of research:wall: However, I am leaning towards chinchillas, I always liked them as a child, and they just stuck with me as a cool pet I guess. I know they range from 100 to ungodly expensive in pet shops, so where is the best place to purchase one? Also, how are they smell-wise?
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Yeah, they run about $130 or so and the cage is about as much. But they are well worth it. They don't smell at all, nothin. The only bad part about them is they like to chew and they are nocturnal so don't keep the cage in your room. Ours likes to throw things around in its cage at night. We let ours run around in the bathroom with the door shut for about an hour or so. Like ferrets they need excercise outside of the confines of their cage. Ours chews on the baseboards but that can easily be solved with some Bitter Apple Spray. If you decide to get one and have anymore questions just ask!!!!
Oh yeah, once you have one it will break your heart everytime you see J. Lo in a chinchilla coat.
We let ours run around in the bathroom with the door shut for about an hour or so. Like ferrets they need excercise outside of the confines of their cage. Ours chews on the baseboards but that can easily be solved with some Bitter Apple Spray. If you decide to get one and have anymore questions just ask!!!!Oh yeah, once you have one it will break your heart everytime you see J. Lo in a chinchilla coat.
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im lookin for one and have been reading a lot about them. they can live anywhere from 15 to 20 or so years. and they can learn tricks. haha
they can tell who you are by your appearance, voice, scent, even your footsteps ive read.
im having trouble even finding any around where i live.:wall:
they can tell who you are by your appearance, voice, scent, even your footsteps ive read.
im having trouble even finding any around where i live.:wall:
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Rats are also a good option being docile and intelligent, and very trainable. There are couple of morphs, dumbo being the most notable.
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I would go with the chinchilla. Got all the good points listed above.:clap:
The one thing is that they really should have multilevel cages if they are not going to be let out much.
My girlfriends chinchilla was in a rabbit cage for two years, and it spent it hardly moving and being afraid of people. I convinced her to go out and buy a taller cage with some shelves in it, (same rubber base, like 20$ more than a rabbit one) and then it was more friendly, actually jumping to what side of the cage people were standing by, and it was really active too.
(Her brother just got one and i think it only jumps off the shelves to get to its food dish for maybe a few minutes at a time.)
They are really intelligent, and maybe having a better view of people and the freedom to move where it wanted improved both its health and disposition.
I really don't want anyone to make the same mistake. For an animal that smart, and that lives 15 years, I would recommend a cage that suits the animal's needs more than your budget.
The one thing is that they really should have multilevel cages if they are not going to be let out much.
My girlfriends chinchilla was in a rabbit cage for two years, and it spent it hardly moving and being afraid of people. I convinced her to go out and buy a taller cage with some shelves in it, (same rubber base, like 20$ more than a rabbit one) and then it was more friendly, actually jumping to what side of the cage people were standing by, and it was really active too.
(Her brother just got one and i think it only jumps off the shelves to get to its food dish for maybe a few minutes at a time.)
They are really intelligent, and maybe having a better view of people and the freedom to move where it wanted improved both its health and disposition.
I really don't want anyone to make the same mistake. For an animal that smart, and that lives 15 years, I would recommend a cage that suits the animal's needs more than your budget.
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They are EXTREMELY intelligent!! Mine talks to me now, it took her a while to get used to me though. If wnats food, she lets me know. If she wants out, she lets me know.
I don't know if you can get them cheaper from breeders....
Oh oh, they LOVE raisans. That's the way to their heart. Just to let you know. They eat chinchilla food, try to get the stuff that doesn't have fruits and such in it. Too many treats is bad for them. I feed mine a few tablespoon fulls everyday and she barely eats all of it. They don't eat or drink a lot.
Their cage needs to be changed once a week. I just use the usual small animal bedding, no cedar of course.
They LOVE attention, they're attention whores. They nibble to "taste" you, some people take that as biting, it's not. They just check you out, see if you're edible, lol.
It is good to get a multi level cage. They need to run about or else they get stressed.
You need to buy volcanic ash for them to bathe in and a bath house. That is the best part about them, watching them roll around in the dust.
Ummm, can't think of any other info
I don't know if you can get them cheaper from breeders....
Oh oh, they LOVE raisans. That's the way to their heart. Just to let you know. They eat chinchilla food, try to get the stuff that doesn't have fruits and such in it. Too many treats is bad for them. I feed mine a few tablespoon fulls everyday and she barely eats all of it. They don't eat or drink a lot.
Their cage needs to be changed once a week. I just use the usual small animal bedding, no cedar of course.
They LOVE attention, they're attention whores. They nibble to "taste" you, some people take that as biting, it's not. They just check you out, see if you're edible, lol.
It is good to get a multi level cage. They need to run about or else they get stressed.
You need to buy volcanic ash for them to bathe in and a bath house. That is the best part about them, watching them roll around in the dust.
Ummm, can't think of any other info
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i live in san diego, and this lady is giving up her 14 year old chinchilla. poor thing must be old.