Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

[tortoise]

DS4's hamster story continues. He has been saving for 5 months. He has had opportunity to buy things, but says "no, I'm saving money for a hamster" We swapped DS12's hermit crab into the smaller aquarium, so the larger one would be ready for a hamster. DS4 and I made 2 hamster houses out of cardboard and sticks. I found a hamster "estate" on FB marketplace for very cheap and picked that up this morning and wrapped it up. I plan to get a hamster for him in January.

 

[Britesea]

The hamster story makes the title of this thread particularly apt, lol

 

[Lazy Gardener]

I grew up with hampsters. Generally, they make good pets. However, when I got one for my dtr. it was a nasty tempered creature. We couldn't handle it without it trying to bite us. So... we took it back and traded it in for a parakeet. When you get a hampster, be sure to handle it, to be sure it is not a "biter".

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Hope the hamster story has a happy ending in January. I can remember having hamsters when young. Some sweet - some not so much. My daughter had guinea pigs. They were pretty cool!

Merry Christmas to you and the family!

 

[Britesea]

I had guinea pigs also. very gentle, and larger than hampsters so they are not quite as fragile. Most people don't know though, that they are the only other animal besides us that cannot manufacture Vitamin C- they need it in their diet just like us. I think that's why so many die early.

 

[tortoise]

I would love a guinea pig! We petsat one a couple years ago. She was so friendly! Very fun, the kids loved her.

DH has little tolerance for animals that poop indoors. I'm surprised he is warming up to the hamster. He was dead-set against it when DS4 first got the idea, but I think seeing DS4's determination and focus has made a difference. I think at first DH assumed I had put him up to it. I have no idea where DS4 learned about hamsters or got the idea to own one! We've been reading hamster books and watching hamster videos. DS4 has already decided to name it Humphrey after the Humphrey the hamster book series.

@Lazy Gardener I am concerned about temperament too. I've been researching hamster species and talking to pet store staff. All signs point to Djungarian a.k.a. dwarf hamster. I'm hoping that we can tell the hamster's temperament in the pet store.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Given a choice, I'd choose a guinea pig any day over a hampster. Guinea pigs are MUCH more personable, seek attention, and more interactive with their environment. Most guineas that live in the home will remind you not to forget them every time they hear the refrigerator door open. They will also snuggle in when you hold them and "purr." I believe their life span is also longer. Down side: they require a bigger cage. Hampsters can usually be potty trained to use a jar in their cage. Then, it's just a matter of keeping the jar clean. I don't recall if guineas use a corner of the cage, or just urinate where ever they happen to be. You might research to see if guineas can be "potty trained", perhaps to a small litter pan in the corner of the cage. Then, it would be a matter of cleaning their corner between litter changes for the entire cage.

A gerbil might be an other option. They don't urinate. But, they are MUCH more hyper.

How will your allergies do with a pet of this nature?

 

[Lazy Gardener]

When I was a kid, my guineas lived in an outdoor cage in the garage during the late spring through early fall. Hampsters are not as cold tolerant. That might also be a selling feature for you with hubby. If you got a guinea, he could be an outdoor pet for half of the year.

 

[flowerbug]

i had hamsters as a kid. the story from my Mom when she got them for me is a good one as she had them in the car and they were packaged in a cardboard box, that they chewed through to get out. so she was chasing them around the car and then the parking lot and one of them got eaten by a seagull. so she had to go back and get another pair.

i had them for some years after that. we had a lot of fun. even took them to the beach for weeks during the summer, i'd build sand castles for them with tunnels and places for them to run through. of course i kept an eye out for seagulls...

they were funny to put on a bigger table with a light plastic bowl over them, they'd run around and move the bowl and if someone came in that didn't know they were under there it would startle them.

after they died i did get another pair but by then i was also getting into fish and wanting to be outside more so i didnt' spend as much time with the 2nd pair as the 1st. i think we ended up giving them to someone else that wanted some because i felt like they'd be more appreciated and taken better care of.

 

[tortoise]

I didn't know that gerbils don't pee. Pet store has them. I might need to do some ready, but I doubt DS4 can be swayed. My siblings and I had a gerbil when I was a kid.

I should be okay for allergies as long as I don't use pine bedding. If it's bad, DS12 will have to supervise cage cleaning for me? I don't have any known or obvious animal fur/dander/saliva allergies so I'm expecting it will be okay