small Pet suitable for flat

mylittlepony

What would you recommend, I have shortlisted to:

A pair of:

Mice
Dwarf Hamster
Bearded Dragon
Gecko

Prefer a pet that would like to be handled.
I have been advised that geckos not great for handling, and that mice / hamster can nip.
Recommended dragons but they will grow up to 2 foot so never seen a fully grown dragon in the flesh only baby dragons.
Would like to read other people experiences.
Have always had medium / large pets, dogs, horses cats, pig, goats, cattle grew up on a farm but currently I'm living in a flat in town. The dogs, horses and pig still live on the farm at home with my family and I visit regularly but Like to have a small pet suitable for flat living.
Thanks in advance.

frag420

A fish maybe?

listermint

a little pony perhaps?

listermint

Joking aside,

Any one of them would be okay if looked after and stored as they should be.


Why would an apartment matter ?

baby and crumble

If you want an animal that you can handle I would personally not recommend dwarf hamsters. They're awesome and funny little guys but can
Be very hard to handle. Often they are more of a 'watch me' type of pet.

I know I'm biased but I'd highly recommend a Syrian hamster. They're a good size, easy to handle once you take the time at the start to tame them slowly, and are so much fun! Make sure you have the space for a decent sized cage- most 'hamster' cages sold for Syrians are only suitable for dwarves. The best thing is actually to make your own bin cage from a big plastic container. The large clear storage boxes in ikea make great bin cages. Stay away from the modular cages like rotastak, the ones with the tubes. Hammies can get stuck if they have food in their pouches.

OldNotWIse

A rat. I had two before. Far more fun than other rodents. They are smart and really funny. I remember one of mine stealing a box of cigarettes on me once - found him behind the sofa with the cardboard half chewed! They dont mind being handled either. They would always seem to know when it was time to go back to the cage and would hide behind a bookshelf. Only problem is their short life span - they'll likely leave you heartbroken after 3-4 years

mitosis

I would recommend checking your lease agreement. It would be extremely unusual for a Landlord to allow pets.

Knine

mitosis wrote: »

I would recommend checking your lease agreement. It would be extremely unusual for a Landlord to allow pets.

Not that unusual. I am renting. They should talk to their landlord before getting pets.

mylittlepony

Hi, allow pet just need to ask permission in advance.
Of course not a big pet like a dog for a flat that nonsense.
No rush take my time research, make decision, would like to adopt or rescue ideally but wait and see, ask permission before getting pet of course, etc.

toadfly

I would recommend a pair of rats. They can be very tame if handled correctly from the start.

Rips

The <snip> have a pair of lovely rats.

Small furries are really difficult to rehome, so good on you if you can offer a home to something.

Please recommend rescue groups by pm only :-)
Thanks,
DBB

Rips

BTW Rats seem like a good choice for what you describe. Rats live a little longer then the others and they are a little more robust - Dwarf Hamsters in particular seem to succumb to quite a few different illnesses.

They are generally more social and they are also crepuscular, which means they will be active when you are most active, in the mornings, and the evenings after work. In reality though, a rat will be active whenever there is a chance of a snack!

Hamsters can be quite social but they are nocturnal, so they can sleep all day.

Guinea pigs are the only other domestics that live longer, and can be quite social, and are also diurnal.

TooManyDogs

Rabbits, they can be housetrained and make great pets.

Silverfish

I voted for mice, I keep them and they're the business. They can nip but its more of a warning gnaw, it's not sharp and doesn't hurt.
My pet mouse likes to have her ears scratched - bit of a crappy video here

I also have rabbits, and they do require a bit of space to run about, and they can be VERY noisy, mine are always playing Bunny Formula One and crashing into things. They will also chew any wire they come across, so bunnyproofing is essential.

Fitzg

I second the syrian hamster and rat recommendations all have great personalities and love to be handled when you tame them - they really bond with their human buddies.

Semele

I have two rabbits in my small 2 bed flat. They are absolutely life-changing! I've never had animals that have so much personality yet are so easy to manage. It's all the cuddliness and trainability of a cat but without the noise or ability to climb on things I'd rather they didnt :P The first one was a bit of an impulse decision, just to avoid leaving him where he was really, but he turned out to be so amazing I've been entirely converted to rabbit-ownership and can't imagine not having them.

Knine

Fitzg wrote: »

I second the syrian hamster and rat recommendations all have great personalities and love to be handled when you tame them - they really bond with their human buddies.

The Syrian hamsters make great pets but they are nocturnal & make can make a lot of noise at night just when you want to get some sleep!

Fitzg

good point Knine!! I totally forgot about the 2am wheel rattles and general punkish rough-housing that hamsters carry on with! A friend of mine got a silent wheel for her hammy and it is actually silent! one of my guinea pigs was incredibly noisy, bless her, she used to grab her water bottle in her teeth and rattle it when she was drinking - just her habit. And now that I think of it, sometimes the pair of them would have loud arguments about who was sleeping in the igloo and who was in the cabin! I acclimatised and slept through it all but whenever I'd have friends over they'd be woken up…

OldNotWIse

Fitzg wrote: »

good point Knine!! I totally forgot about the 2am wheel rattles and general punkish rough-housing that hamsters carry on with! A friend of mine got a silent wheel for her hammy and it is actually silent! one of my guinea pigs was incredibly noisy, bless her, she used to grab her water bottle in her teeth and rattle it when she was drinking - just her habit. And now that I think of it, sometimes the pair of them would have loud arguments about who was sleeping in the igloo and who was in the cabin! I acclimatised and slept through it all but whenever I'd have friends over they'd be woken up…

I think thats the cutest thing I have read on boards today

baby and crumble

The loudest things hamsters do is usually to do with their wheel. If you invest in a good one you'll be amazed. We got the largest wooden karlie wonderland we could and it's deadly. It's huge so no arching backs when running, and all you can hear is little pattering feet. It's actually adorable!

Knine

baby and crumble wrote: »

The loudest things hamsters do is usually to do with their wheel. If you invest in a good one you'll be amazed. We got the largest wooden karlie wonderland we could and it's deadly. It's huge so no arching backs when running, and all you can hear is little pattering feet. It's actually adorable!

Lol you would think there was a herd of elephants in my house if you heard the carry on of several of the syrians at night that we have had.

Raminahobbin

Knine wrote: »

Lol you would think there was a herd of elephants in my house if you heard the carry on of several of the syrians at night that we have had.

I was the same- had a bunch of Robos at one point and not only would they be going non-stop in the wheels cos there was so many of them, but they'd be arguing incessantly over who got the 'good' wheel and who got the 'bad' one! My ability to sleep through anything increased though, but friends staying over hated it

baby and crumble

Knine wrote: »

Lol you would think there was a herd of elephants in my house if you heard the carry on of several of the syrians at night that we have had.

Hmmm, starting to think my experience with Isabella was a bit of a one-off... who knows what the next few years have in store for me with Esme :eek::eek::eek::eek:

Dingle_berry

For a pet that enjoys being handled have you considered parots and parakeets?

Raminahobbin

Dingle_berry wrote: »

For a pet that enjoys being handled have you considered parots and parakeet?

Surely they'd be crazy noisy in a flat/apartment? Couldn't imagine the neighbours would be too happy!

Vojera

Raminahobbin wrote: »

I was the same- had a bunch of Robos at one point and not only would they be going non-stop in the wheels cos there was so many of them, but they'd be arguing incessantly over who got the 'good' wheel and who got the 'bad' one! My ability to sleep through anything increased though, but friends staying over hated it

Hehe, I had one dwarfie who had this obsession with filling up his pouches, emptying them onto the wheel and then running on the wheel to scatter the food, and then putting it all back in his pouches to empty them into the wheel... ALL NIGHT! It was a constant rhythm of *rattle rattle rattle thunk... CLATTER CLATTER CLATTER CLATTER*

I'm a big fan of guinea pigs (I have twelve!). However you MUST get at least two as they're very social and usually pine very badly if kept alone.
Also, you will need to either buy your cage online or make your own (see Guinea Pig Cages for examples) because the cages available in pet shops are far too small.

They are funny, friendly little guys. It can take them a while to trust you but if you stick with them most will be content to sit on a towel on your lap all evening while you watch TV, etc. They also have their own language which is pretty complex for a rodent, and you can work out quite easily what they're telling you (it's mostly demands for food - they're very greedy).

Pet shop staff aren't always the best at sexing them, though, so do your own research and double check that you have a same-sex pair.

If you suffer from hay fever or bad allergies then they may not be for you as they require hay 24/7 and it's a non-negotiable part of their diet.

baby and crumble

I would love a pair of piggies. My brother had a colony when we were little, he even bred from them really successfully. They're so noisy when they chat though!!!!

Dingle_berry

Raminahobbin wrote: »

Surely they'd be crazy noisy in a flat/apartment? Couldn't imagine the neighbours would be too happy!

That depends on which species (breed) you get and how well you look after it.
For example cockatoos are screamers. They will scream sometimes, it's just their nature. They are also very needy and will scream and self harm if they don't get enough attention from you. (All parots will need interaction as well as toys or they will be loud and self harm)
We have a Senegal and she(?) is very quiet by comparison. If we have a lie in we can hear her chattering away to herself. The only time she "screams" is when we leave. She lets out one or two short screams to try and call us back.
I have no experience with rats etc but I think a hand reared parot would demand more of you but give you more in return. If you're considering one please do not buy from a pet shop. Especially the large chains. They tend to buy off breeders and whack up the price, sell hand tame as hand reared, they rarely feed a full diet so the birds get sick and as the birds are on display in the shop they pick up bad habits like biting.

Vojera

baby and crumble wrote: »

I would love a pair of piggies. My brother had a colony when we were little, he even bred from them really successfully. They're so noisy when they chat though!!!!

Noisy, but it's something you wouldn't be without after a while. There's nothing like the patter of little piggy feet matched with their excited wheeks when you come home from work. My guys are always happy to see me and they always put a smile on my face, no matter how crappy my day has been.

mylittlepony

Update: I adopted a bearded dragon.

Graces7

does no one keep gerbils any more... i had these before cats and way before dogs and they were great. they dont smell like mice do and hand tame very well.