Congratulations you went crazy with me

[Wannabefree]

Ok so if you were reading my journal and found me just bear with me. I want a side business because I want my own place and my current job is not conducive to getting said thing. I want animals frankly because I'm tired of people and they're cuddly and cute...the animals, not people....in general. So I talked to a buddy who is raising feeder mice, and hedgehogs, and naked cats, and little things. Not exactly "farm" animals but they kind of have a farm too so if it's raised on a farm and it's an animal...well...ya see where that's going? Anyway, I got to thinking I don't have to muck through duck poop and goat pellets to do what I love...raise and breed animals for profit(not strictly for profit I'm not that hard up for money) and as a hobby. I have limits because of my space/time constraints, and I want something small, maybe even tiny, but not arachnid or reptilian at this time...maybe small rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils....fancy schmancy little things with pedigrees that will sell decent at shows but I can't settle on what I should get. I'm sort of a beginner with small rodent type animals besides rabbits.....maybe flying squirrels or no not ferrets they smell horrific no matter what you do. So I don't continue to ramble let me just ask, does anyone else do this? What do you have? How difficult is it to raise? What's the estimated space needed? Overhead estimate? Eventually I'd like to make this a full time gig, so would like to leave room for expansion and I do NOT want to own a pet shop. I don't want fish. I do t want anything that eats like a goat, and I don't want say English Lops that are complicated by ear issues. I want hardy, small, fuzzy, show quality, good pedigree balls of fluff and fun that people actually are interested in buying lol tall order? Maybe, but it's just an idea that's in my head to occupy my entrepreneurial spirit.

 

[Hinotori]

We never made much with raising pet rats. Even with us selling the blue ones back when the color first appeared. It was pure hobby as we barely made enough to cover food.

I haven't done rabbits, but I've heard it's just as bad as chickens with cost of going to shows.

I've decided I won't do anymore chicken shows. This giant mutation that popped up in my silkies is too good to pass up since we don't have the big ones in the US. So I'm going to concentrate on breeding large fowl silkies and hope in the future it will eventually pay off.

 

[Britesea]

The talk about culling puppies reminds me of a family story. When DH was a boy, the family first moved onto their new farm. Mother made sure that all the children understood that livestock was going to be eaten, so don't get too attached. Each child got involved in 4H, and big sister's project was apricot tea cup poodles. When her bitch whelped, everyone crowded around to look at the tiny adorable balls of fluff. The youngest boy was allowed to hold one and while tenderly stroking it with 1 finger, lifted his eyes and asked "When do we eat them, Mama?"

Big sister was NOT AMUSED...

 

[Britesea]

My MIL used to raise guinea pigs. She was responsible (both solo and working with another) for 3 or 4 new breeds. You can eat the culls (very nice with Shake n Bake). They need to be protected from cold and heat, like rabbits. They can die with great facility otherwise. Their litter makes excellent compost.

She made pretty good money with them. Paid for more than one family vacation

 

[Wannabefree]

I understand that, it's still not going in my mouth. I don't eat crustaceans either, and that's been going on for thousands of years too.

 

[tortoise]

Rabbits are tough to sell for decent prices.

I hear hedgehogs sell fast, but I'm not immersed in exotics to be a good source of intell.

 

[tortoise]

Guinea pigs? (Excuse me, cavies, for show people). Like rabbits you can eat your culls? No idea what the market is like for them.

 

[OzarkCountryGirl]

Wannabefree, if you are looking for exotic pocket pets, what about sugar gliders? Ferrets aren't quit as exotic, but still popular in many area. Or chinchillas (the rodent, not the lagomorph). Chins can be sold as either pets or their fur, for which they have been historically bred. Another up and coming exotic is the short-tailed opossum, sometimes referred to as the pygmy opossum. Fennec foxes are another still, however those require a LOT of attention, and may or may not be legal in your area. Though they are certainly adorable. Personally, I'm quite fond of Coatis (Coatimundi), but again, they require a bit of attention - think mix between a raccoon, a Jack Russell terrier, and a Capuchin monkey.

 

[lcertuche]

DS used to raise Angel fish to sell. One pair can have a bunch of babies! She also raise finches. She kept them in a small cage. I think she had 2 or 3 hatch. Probably not enough to make a living though. Mama used to raise and sell fancy shmancy guinea pigs.

 

[Hinotori]

Sorry, going to rant here for a moment. Not directed at anyone here. It's because of the dog talk and what's going on in this area lately

What gets me is the morons selling dogs for the high prices that parents most likely came from another puppy mill. No testing on parents. No health guarantees. But they think if they charge more for registration because AKC means 'quality'. Or the ones selling crossbred mutts from untested parents and charging even more than purebred dogs.

With one of the local Facebook groups I'm in, I see people selling 'last in litter' 'price reduced to 2000' for mostly mutts that aren't even crosses of the breeds being claimed. Mostly pitbull mixes. Dumb (cencored myself) puppy flippers. Lately, more often than not we hear about people buying these puppies and the things have parvo. After selling, the seller immediately deletes their (fake) Facebook profile and turns off their phone number. Big warnings about them in both the pet and local buy/sell/trade groups and tons of heartbreaking stories.