Keeping a Gerbil

Gerbils are cute, friendly, and tame, if raised from a young age. They only need a small cage or aquarium, and are very cheap to buy and care for. They also breed readily and easily.

To stock a gerbil cage or tank, you only need a bottle, bowl, litter, and wheel. They also can run in a small hamster ball, and can run through tunnels. Also gerbils enjoy chewing. They need chew toys and toilet paper/paper towel rolls to gnaw on.

My cousin had a gerbil for a while. He was very tame and friend

Gerbils can be very delightful pets, although usually short lived.

A pile of gerbils. Gerbils are very sociable animals. It is best to get at least two.

A very cute little gerbil.

Chinchillas

This is a less well known rodents. They are exceptionally long lived, even to over 20 years. They are in the same family of rodents as Guinea Pigs, meaning that the young are not born helpless and they have fur. They also live a lot longer than most small rodents like mice, rats, hamsters, and gerbils.

A black adult chinchilla

Baby chinchilla being bottle fed

And of the hardest parts of keeping chinchillas, is they need very cool temperatures. During hot weather they may need a fan blowing on them. This is owing to the fact that chinchillas originally lived on mountains in Peru.

Chinchillas were once extremely rare, but about 28 were caught and kept in captivity. These animals were bred and all the domestic chinchillas we have today came from these few wild rodents.

Chinchillas take baths in a special kind of sand. They can not be washed in water.

Chinchillas have a friendly personally, once they are tamed. They don't usually bite. But they will not tolerate rough handling. They are not good pets for young children.

Chinchillas love to climb.

The world's ugliest mammal?

The Naked Mole Rat is quite possibly the ugliest species of mammal. Look at these pictures!

Baby animals are cute, right? Not all of them, as this baby Naked Mole Rat proves.

This is an adult Naked Mole Rat. Look how long and sharp its teeth are!

                                                    Facts about Naked Mole Rats

• Naked Mole Rats can live an extremely long time, up to 28 years. Most small rodents live less then 5 years.
• Naked Mole Rats live in colonies, much like those of bees. The queen is the only one that breeds. There are also workers and soldiers.
• Naked Mole Rats are apparently immune to cancer.
• A queen gives birth to 3-28 babies, which are known as "pups."
• The tunnel systems made by Naked Mole Rats can stretch up to three miles.
• Naked Mole Rats seem to be unable to feel pain.
• Naked Mole Rats are sometimes called "Sand Puppies."

                                     

This is a Silvery Mole Rat, a furry relative of the Naked Mole Rat.1

Hamsters

Hamsters are small, adorable, and cheap pets. Many people want a hamster after seeing just how cute they are.

This is a Syrian, or Golden hamster.

Hamsters can become rather tame, but if they are handled roughly they will bite. Of course, hamster bites aren't dangerous.

Hamsters, like all caged mammals, need regular time outside of their cage. Do not let a hamster run free in your house! They will get lost! Instead, put your hamster in a large plastic tub or a small pet playpen. Also, if you do not handle a tame hamster regularly, it will lose its tameness.

The most expensive item you'll buy when you get a hamster is its cage. This can be an aquarium (ten gallons for a Syrian or two dwarf hamsters) or a wire cage. They can also be kept in a plastic tub, if it has high enough sides. They really don't need too much space, though some people give them lots of cage space anyway.

This true hamster lover has some plastic and wire "Habitrail" cages as well as bin cages.

The most expensive part of hamster care is the bedding in its cage. If you want to save lots of money on hamster keeping, my blog has instructions for making your own small animal bedding. It looks like this:

Homemade paper bedding for your hamster!

Do not keep more that one Syrian hamster in one cage! They will fight to the death! Most of the time Dwarf hamsters can live together, with the notable exception of the Chinese Dwarf hamster.

If you go on vacation, regardless of what people on the Internet say, your hamster can be left alone for up to a week. My cousin's dwarf hamster did just fine home alone for a week.

If you are willing to dedicate the time to care for a hamster and give it regular exercise, (as well as making sure it cannot escape) you probably can keep a hamster. But especially young children should not keep hamsters, since they are likely to drop a hamster or let it escape.

Foster a Pet

Pet keeping can be expensive. Would you like to take a pet into your home - free? I have some questions and answers about fostering pets.

Where can I get pets to foster?  Animal shelters or Humane Societies will probably have pets to foster.

What pets can I foster? The animals that are usually fostered are dogs, cats, rodents, rabbits, ferrets, or birds.

You may be able to foster puppies to young to be adopted, like these puppies, along with the litter's mother.

What are some problems with fostering? Eventually you will have to give the pet to someone else. This can be sad, especially if you have had the animal for several months.You will probably also have to pay for some pet keeping costs.

What will the shelter pay for? The shelter will probably cover the following: food, vet bills, and litter (if needed.) If you go on vacation, you can often just return the animal to the shelter, saving you the cost of a pet sitter.

What will I pay for? You will probably have to pay for a cage or kennel, bed (for a dog or cat), and toys.

How can I foster a pet? Anywhere from days to months.Some animals never get adopted. Sometimes the shelter will take the animal back after a while, but you might be able to foster it again later. If someone decides to adopt the pet you are fostering, you will have to, of course, give it to them. then you can foster another pet!

Fostering a pet is a great idea. A house is a much better place for a pet then a shelter. (If you haven't already done so, check out my post A Trip to the Humane Society) I personally would like to foster small birds and small mammals.

Frugal Friday: Make Your Own Rodent Bedding

 Probably the most expensive part of keeping rodents is the bedding. Making your own can save you a lot of money. This can be done with blank paper, notebook paper, paper from a shredder, or newspaper. 

Step 1: Cut the paper into strips if is has not been shredded.

Step 2:  Soak the paper.

Step 3: Tear the wet paper in to pulp.

Step 4: Strain the pulp and crumble it.

Step 5: Dry the paper in the sun.

  If the paper has ink rinse it multiple times. If you want dyed paper you can add food coloring or soak white paper with notebook paper or construction paper.

About the Zookeeper

My name is...The Zookeeper.

I am 11 years old. I’ve loved animals all my life and I got my first pets when I was nine.

I do not have a dog or cat – yet - but I currently own three adorable animals: a budgie named Kiki and two baby turtles named Yertle and Myrtle. I also volunteer with cats at a rescue. I have kept numerous reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates. I love to write and take pictures so I decided to write a blog all about animals!



I know a lot about animals from personal experience with my pets and with those belonging to others. I also read books and do research online.

On this blog you will find:

Videos about animals
Pictures of various animals
Informative articles
Tips for pet keepers
Money saving ideas
And more!

If you have pets (or love them) this is the perfect place to find out more about animals of all kinds!