Small pets/reptiles in same room?

[Megg]

I would like to get guinea pigs, chinchillas, or ferrets, but they would have to be kept in my room. This is also where my boa and 2 BP's are kept. Would it be a bad idea to keep them in the same room? They would be kept across the room from each other, if it makes a difference.

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[Kokorobosoi]

I've done it with ball pythons and ferrets. If your tanks are on point and secure, then you should be alright if you stay alert to security.

However keep in mind chinchillas have to have low temperatures. Never above 75 degrees at the most. It should be between 65 and 70 degrees in the room. Anything above 75 and you run the risk of heat stroke. I keep ice packs on hand for days when the temps go to high and if the power goes out in summer. I can direct you to a good chinchilla forum if you'd like.

ferrets also need similarly cool temps. And ferret can be surprising... Well let's just remember that they were used for ratting back in the day. And they are related to the mongoose, which kills snakes. So keep them under close supervision when they are loose. The snake isn't always the one you have to watch.

I have no specifics about g pigs. Sorry!

That said, I have 2 dogs 2 ferrets 3 rats 4 chinchillas 2 bearded dragons and 3 soon to be 4 ball pythons in a two bedroom house. It can be done. The questions to ask are:

are my tanks secure
can I supervise all outside time for all animals
can my heating systems handle heating the tank/tub to temp in a cooler room all the time
do I have a backup plan if my heat fails
will I remember to wash hands and arms before I switch species? (I've been tagged simply because I wasn't paying attention and forgot I smelled like a chinchilla)

small animals are wonderful, and I wish you the best of luck!

[footballpythons]

you most definitely can do that

[Megg]

I've done it with ball pythons and ferrets. If your tanks are on point and secure, then you should be alright if you stay alert to security.

However keep in mind chinchillas have to have low temperatures. Never above 75 degrees at the most. It should be between 65 and 70 degrees in the room. Anything above 75 and you run the risk of heat stroke. I keep ice packs on hand for days when the temps go to high and if the power goes out in summer. I can direct you to a good chinchilla forum if you'd like.

ferrets also need similarly cool temps. And ferret can be surprising... Well let's just remember that they were used for ratting back in the day. And they are related to the mongoose, which kills snakes. So keep them under close supervision when they are loose. The snake isn't always the one you have to watch.

I have no specifics about g pigs. Sorry!

That said, I have 2 dogs 2 ferrets 3 rats 4 chinchillas 2 bearded dragons and 3 soon to be 4 ball pythons in a two bedroom house. It can be done. The questions to ask are:

are my tanks secure
can I supervise all outside time for all animals
can my heating systems handle heating the tank/tub to temp in a cooler room all the time
do I have a backup plan if my heat fails
will I remember to wash hands and arms before I switch species? (I've been tagged simply because I wasn't paying attention and forgot I smelled like a chinchilla)

small animals are wonderful, and I wish you the best of luck!

Okay, great! I'm leaning towards guinea pigs. I had forgot about chinchillas needing to be kept cooler, so thank you for reminding me. This is exactly what I wanted to hear before I brought any piggies home!

[Stewart_Reptiles]

So long everyone's husbandry needs is met, you do not take them out at the same time, and there is no escapee, I don't see an issue.

[Caspian]

I have my mouse cage in the same room as my snakes. The only problem I've encountered is that every time the fuzzies get to squeaking, I have four interested heads pop out of hiding spots. But then, they do the same thing whenever they hear a tub being opened.

[Megg]

I have my mouse cage in the same room as my snakes. The only problem I've encountered is that every time the fuzzies get to squeaking, I have four interested heads pop out of hiding spots. But then, they do the same thing whenever they hear a tub being opened.

Yeah, I had considered keeping rats, but decided that might be pushing my luck a little more than I feel comfortable doing.

[Caspian]

I plan on switching to rats. Really, I should have gone with rats in the first place, but being new to snakes - I've had my Kings for just about a year now, and the BP's for just a few months - I didn't realize how fast Ball Pythons grow. My male mouse is going to be snake-chow next feeding, when the fuzzies get pulled out to a separate cage, and once the females have their next litters and they're weaned, they're being fed off. Hopefully, by then I'll have a rat colony established. If not, I'll be holding out some of the female fuzzies that are in there now and picking up an unrelated male. I discovered it's surprisingly hard to tell which mouse is which, when they're all albino, but the fuzzies are albino, black and agouti - haven't checked genders to be sure there's a female in each yet.

I've had both pet rats and pet mice before. And gerbils, but I'm not trying to raise those for snake food. Rats can be incredibly personable. Mice can, too, but they tend to be more skittish in my experience. The last pet mouse I had actually came out of a feeder cage - guy was buying mice for his snake, and I took a look at them. One of them hopped into my hand, snuggled in, and started washing her whiskers - so I figured she deserved to be a pet instead of food. Rats also live a lot longer than mice.

I really don't think there would be any problem at all with keeping rats in the same room as snakes, so long as all the cages are secure. That way, even if there is an escape, they're not likely to be able to get into the other cages anyway. I have found that since I started the mouse colony, feeding responses have been a bit more aggressive - but toward food, rather than me.