need a new pet

In December i lost my closest animal companion and am still in so much pain from the loss i need a new one. Some might say to wait until the pain stops, but everyone grieves differently and for me i need a new animal to bond with to heal the bond that was broken from losing the last one. The problem is i need to find a new animal and i haven't been able to due to space, size, living conditions, and the animal doesn't meet the requirement. The only animal i can find is a ferret but i can't get that for a while because of money and the people i live with are prejudice. The animal needs to be a small mammal that's easy to transport, this animal needs to be able to accompany me everywhere, this is in potential since obviously you can't take them everywhere, mostly i need to be able to take it back and forth between two houses. Aside from small it needs to be friendly and affectionate and bonds strongly, like a dog or rat and not like a hedgehog or hamster. The cheaper the better and if it'll save me money on vets like a flying squirrel that'd be great. I know it's a long shot and this is a last desperate resort, I've looked everywhere for an animal i can have with no luck so if none can be found i wont be surprised. The ferret really is the closest to perfect so if you can think of anything like a ferret that doesn't smell and is less expensive to keep I'd really appreciate it. Thank you all so much.

Here is a list of animals i cant have, if you can think of any not on it let me know:
guinea pig
hamster
gerbil
rat
flying squirrel
kinkajou
ferret
dog
cat
fox (both silver and fennec)
mice
prairie dog
hedgehog
rabbit
teacup pig
raccoon
skunk
sugar glider
wallaby
opossum of any kind
chinchilla
degu
Patagonian cavy
genet
slow loris
bush baby

(some of these are primates and are on the list because primates are illegal is Maryland, if this is untrue don't hesitate to correct me)

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Originally Posted by Faolan

The animal needs to be a small mammal that's easy to transport

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A Cat? What was the pet you lost?

Try a bearded dragon, or a blue tongue skink. Skinks are nice, because feeding is easy, they'll eat pretty much any fresh food ingredients you can eat. So after getting one and setting it up, the cost is super low. They're really friendly too, and cute, and social.

He said it needed to be a mammal...

Umm...I think you listed off every mammal on the "can't have list"...what did you lose?


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Why not a rat?

The last pet i had was a rat. Unfortunately a cat is out of the question, my dad hates them with a passion, my dog would kill it on sight, and my mom is allergic. also my sister has a rabbit and my brother has a rat so it would not be welcome. I believe i put cat on my list already.

yeah like slim said it needs to be mammal, not feathers or scales. Something soft i can pet and cuddle, otherwise a BTS would be great idea.

I'm truly sorry for your loss. I do not know what I would do if I lost my dog who is my best friend. I'm not trying to be mean in any way, shape, or form. but if you don't have proper space or living conditions for pets and If you are looking for a pet that is cheap to take care of and saying the cheaper the better and saving money on vet bills I do not think you should own a pet. Again I'm not trying to be mean or anything like that but you have to think of your pet and your pet should always come first. Being a pet owner comes with a lot of responsibilty to give your pet the best possible life. Accidents happen and your pet will need vet visits and regular check ups.

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Originally Posted by Faolan

The last pet i had was a rat. Unfortunately a cat is out of the question, my dad hates them with a passion, my dog would kill it on sight, and my mom is allergic. also my sister has a rabbit and my brother has a rat so it would not be welcome. I believe i put cat on my list already.

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Why would a new rat not be welcome? Rats are social animals so they need to be with other rats..

If you already have a dog I would love it and give it all the attention in the world....and probably work with it on the (small) animal aggression.

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What is the difference between most of the animals you can't have and a ferret?



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can't figure out how to edit, but after Nick_bp comment i should add that i don't mind vet bills. Obviously any animal needs to have a vet, i just meant nothing that needs a lot of vet appointments. I only brought it up because i was thinking about how ferrets need to visit the vet at three times a year and get a lot of ailments that cost a great deal of money to fix, and that's in comparison to a flying squirrel with a natural resistance to all parasites and can't get rabies. But i agree strongly with Nick_bp and thank him for saying it, no one should have a pet and not be able to give it every bit of care, medical or otherwise, that it needs to live a long and full life of happiness.

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Originally Posted by Faolan

can't figure out how to edit, but after Nick_bp comment i should add that i don't mind vet bills. Obviously any animal needs to have a vet, i just meant nothing that needs a lot of vet appointments. I only brought it up because i was thinking about how ferrets need to visit the vet at three times a year and get a lot of ailments that cost a great deal of money to fix, and that's in comparison to a flying squirrel with a natural resistance to all parasites and can't get rabies. But i agree strongly with Nick_bp and thank him for saying it, no one should have a pet and not be able to give it every bit of care, medical or otherwise, that it needs to live a long and full life of happiness.

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Feed a natural raw or whole prey diet and you won't have a ton of vet visits for your ferrets.

If you feed them kibble or fruits and vegetables and anything else that ferrets can't digest properly then you will probably expect plenty of vet visits, especially later in life.

Believe me we've tried to get my dog to tolerate small animals, gone to many trainers and stuff, this is a hunting dog so it's instinctual. She's not aggressive but her previous owners obviously didn't socialize her with cats or other animals, and before i rescued her she spent a year as a stray so we don't know what happened to her out in the wild. she also understands if there's an animal she shouldn't go after, but she's unpredictable and an animal like a cat would be too much for her to handle. If i go back to having another rat it won't be a problem because my first one taught her a lesson and she hasn't gone near a fancy rat since.

Then it sounds like a rat might be the way to go, in my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Faolan

I believe i put cat on my list already.

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Yes you did. Sorry I missed that.

I think if you really loved having a rat so much. Get another or two :p

Alright, before someone else suggests me getting another rat pair, I've started another thread http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ces-about-rats about what problems i had with my previous mischief and how i might do better for my new one. If I'm confident that i can do better then i think i will get another two rats.

I am glad you understand what I was trying to say. I wasn't trying to be mean in any way. Its just how your original post sounded when I read it.

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You said " but i can't a Ferret for a while because of money and the people i live with are prejudice"...Your family is Prejudice of a Ferret? Wow what did the Ferrets do?

Ferrets do not smell bad if you feed it a species appropriate diet. As in a raw or whole prey diet as someone else mentioned. Most kibbles are junk and will lead to health issues. The only good kibble is Wysong Epigen 90 since they don't use filler. Its all animal sources. But in general a low quality food will make them smell worse.

Getting a privately bred ferret will be better too since they are bred for health and longevity. All pet store ferrets are commercialized mill ferrets. Basically animals from a ferret puppy mill. They are poorly bred and genetically prone to illness.

Ferrets do not need a vet 3x a year if its perfectly healthy or not elderly.

But in general, you are right. they are not cheap to maintain.

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Originally Posted by ROACH

You said " but i can't a Ferret for a while because of money and the people i live with are prejudice"...Your family is Prejudice of a Ferret? Wow what did the Ferrets do?

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Most likely the musky odor.




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My dad lived with a friend who kept a ferret and it smelled terrible so he doesn't want one in the house. I've told him that if you get their scent glands moved and provide basic care of them and their enclosure they don't really smell but he's set in his ways.

So in conclusion to this post I now have two little ratties, Vincent and Peter, and hopefully when they cross the rainbow bridge I'll be able to get my ferret so i thank everyone for the ferret advice, it'll come in very useful. Thank you everyone for all for your help.

Good luck.

Also, scent glands don't really impact their body odor if you remove them or not.
The scent glands are like a skunks. The ferret with glands can 'poof' when they are excited or frightened. But it's more of a fart that will dissipate within a few minutes. So when you descent a ferret, the only thing you are getting rid of is their ability to 'poof'.

I'd like ot surprise my little fuzzbutt without worrying about her poofing, but that sounds like that'd be more useful for a monitor lizard, my boyfriend forbade me from getting one after i told them that aside from tail, teeth, and claws they also defend themselves by projecting diarrhea onto their enemy, and honestly i can't blame him.

Ever considered a small parrot? And I also wanted to add that reptiles can be cuddly too! Get a beardie, or another intelligent lizard species.


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Pet rats are the best. Smart, small and easy to train.


Even if you could afford one ferrets stink(yes even with those scent glands removed) and no matter how hard you try the only use a litter box about half the time. And they have a ton of health problems(impaction because they eat everything they arent supposed to) and they have hormone problems and cancer.I had three of them and friend that had half a dozen(her house covered in poo) and half developed some sort of health problem as they aged. I fed mine ferret specific food and made my own in a blender(fresh chicken, eggs, fancy oils, etc). So diet doesnt mean healthy ferrets. One died of cancer, one eventually went hairless and cost a bundle for hormone shots and still died and the other got out of the house after chewing through the dryer vent hose.

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Originally Posted by Miranda2

Pet rats are the best. Smart, small and easy to train.


Even if you could afford one ferrets stink(yes even with those scent glands removed) and no matter how hard you try the only use a litter box about half the time. And they have a ton of health problems(impaction because they eat everything they arent supposed to) and they have hormone problems and cancer.I had three of them and friend that had half a dozen(her house covered in poo) and half developed some sort of health problem as they aged. I fed mine ferret specific food and made my own in a blender(fresh chicken, eggs, fancy oils, etc). So diet doesnt mean healthy ferrets. One died of cancer, one eventually went hairless and cost a bundle for hormone shots and still died and the other got out of the house after chewing through the dryer vent hose.

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x2

I had a pet fancy rat in middle/ high school. One of the best animals I've known. It took three days to litter train her ( I made a small litter box with tissue boxes). Sniffy used to hang out on my shoulder. Just know that they only live 3-5 years, sometimes seven.


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