Please Help! :0

[ChocolateCream81]

I have 2 cats and three hamsters.
I am getting a new pet after christmas. I was thinking a gerbil maybe? Or a chinchilla? What do you guys think? Please help i really don't know!!

[Gazmo]

don't rush into getting one just research around, and if you see anything you fall in love with

[Vectis Hamstery]

I would second the suggestion to do a lot of research. Pets like chinchillas live for much longer than hamsters (10+ years) so you have to think about the future as well as your current ability to care for them.

[BrainGirl]

Agree with above. Also to add that if you have any breathing problems that chinchillas may be a bad choice! The volcanic dust they need to keep their coats clean is extremely fine.

[LanTsocial9]

My friend had a chinchilla once, their nice animals until they bite you. She then got 2 gerbils and they SMELLED ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE.

I would do some research before buying either one, they're both very cute but there's many advantages and disadvantages to both.

Good luck!

[BrainGirl]

To be fair, a properly raised chinchilla is unlikely to bite. The only one I've had who had a tendency to bite was a rescue who was in terrible pain. She's a sweetheart now but it took a while to get her to relax.

As for gerbils, they're desert animals and have very concentrated urine but little of it. I found that they were very clean, relatively odourless animals but I guess it depends on how you keep them.

Chinchillas are also desert animals and relatively odourless but they produce a LOT of poo. I keep mine on cage liners and it's easy to clean them out every day or every other day, it just means a lot of laundry

One other thing to consider with chinchillas is that you absolutely must be able to control the temperature. If it gets too warm they can die.

[LanTsocial9]

Originally Posted by BrainGirl

To be fair, a properly raised chinchilla is unlikely to bite. The only one I've had who had a tendency to bite was a rescue who was in terrible pain. She's a sweetheart now but it took a while to get her to relax.

As for gerbils, they're desert animals and have very concentrated urine but little of it. I found that they were very clean, relatively odourless animals but I guess it depends on how you keep them.

Chinchillas are also desert animals and relatively odourless but they produce a LOT of poo. I keep mine on cage liners and it's easy to clean them out every day or every other day, it just means a lot of laundry

One other thing to consider with chinchillas is that you absolutely must be able to control the temperature. If it gets too warm they can die.

I agree with that, just saying my experience with them

[ChocolateCream81]

Yea I always make up a folder with care info inside for the pet i am getting (OCD or what! Lol), i was just wondering who had good experiences of certain animals to help me make a decision. Is there any other animals people have had good experiences with?

[Gazmo]

guineapigs are always great fun Ive had them since I was little, my first ones lived fo 8 years, and ive had my new two for about 9 months

[BrainGirl]

For all their special needs I do love my chinchillas, they're just a little, erm...intense

What sort of characteristics were you looking for? That might help to narrow down your search!