#diy hamster treat

[pets12pets]

Making Fun at Home: DIY Hamster Toys

In today's fast-paced world, finding ways to relax and have fun at home has become increasingly important. While many turn to technology or expensive hobbies, there is a simple and affordable option that can provide endless entertainment: DIY hamster toys. These furry little companions have become popular pets for their adorable antics and gentle nature. However, purchasing toys for them can quickly add up and may not always cater to their specific needs. That's where the creativity and resourcefulness of making your own hamster toys come in. Not only does it allow for personalized and unique playthings, but it also promotes a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. In this article, we will explore the benefits of making your own hamster toys, as well as some fun and easy DIY ideas to keep your furry friend entertained for hours on end. So grab your crafting supplies and let's get ready to have some fun at home with our beloved hamsters.

[tehloserprince]

I was tagged by @santacoppelia - thank you! 🥺🧡

1. were you named after anyone? Michael Jordan, ha ha. No, really, my mom's a huge fan. She's followed his career ever since his UNC days. I love telling people that's how I got my name. For the record, although I have an obligatory fondness for my hometown team and a nostalgic love for the Bulls in their Jordan Era, I'm currently a Bucks fan.

2. when was the last time you cried? It's really difficult for me to cry. It's such a relief at times, tho. I cried a few weeks ago, when I realized my special needs dog was having some epilepsy-related issues. I've mostly accepted that I'll probably never see him with a grey muzzle, but I really hope we can share more time together. There are still so many things I want to show him.

3. do you have kids? Nope. Sorta did, once, but I don't really talk about that much. It was a good experience, and I still love/think about her. But my kids are all the critter variety these days ;) I enjoy hanging out with my friends' kids, but they're all growing up too quickly :/ What even is time

4. what sports do you play/have you played? I never really played anything professionally, but I liked soccer, basketball, and running when I was younger. I got into boxing and Muay Thai when I was a little older, and also did a lot of hiking. Unfortunately I'm crippled, so I'm limited in what I can/should do. I try to go on lots of walks with my pup and swim whenever I can. Sometimes I still wrap my hands and hit the bag, which is fun.

5. do you use sarcasm? No, never. (/s obvs)

6. what's the first thing you notice about people? The way they treat other people - especially the most vulnerable - and animals. Physically, eyes and smile. I'm more impressed by people who can be genuinely kind without ulterior motivation.

7. what's your eye color? Hazel.

8. scary movies or happy endings? Depends on my mood! In terms of scary films, gore feels lazy and boring to me. I need a film to get inside my head in order to be scary. But I'm a sucker for happy endings too, which is a lot of projection on my part, ha ha.

9. any talents? Err. Uh. Writing, I guess? Remembering a lot of random info? Friends are consistently surprised that I'll remember so many little details, especially if it's like ... me surprising them with something they mentioned liking at some point. Funny enough, I'll frequently forget why I walked into a room these days, but I'm glad some parts of my memory still excel! I'm also told that I'm extremely patient, if that counts as a talent.

10. where were you born? Charlotte, NC.

11. what are your hobbies? Writing, reading, watching movies and television shows (mostly with the BFF), random crafts, DIY home improvement stuff (I painted my entire house despite my health worsening over the years and I'm very proud of that), canine behavior/training, and playing video games. I don't have as much time for games, but I still enjoy it. Started a new game of Red Dead Redemption 2 this winter, and I've been spending hours just roaming the land with my horse.

12. do you have any pets? Ha, yes! I do a lot of animal rescue and have some life goals related to that, so hopefully I'll always be surrounded by critters. My beloved dog (Skippyjon) passed away in 2022 (old age and CHF). I had a cockatiel for 21 years - a birthday present when I turned 8. We basically grew up together, and the house is still way too quiet without him. I had other dogs (Smokey and Locke), and a lot of fish. In college, I had an "illegal" hamster, Kai (Kaizoku). He was fat and wonderful. I chose him because he squeezed past his siblings, sat in their food dish, and started shoving food in his mouth. King behavior tbh. I had a rat named Stevie in my late 20s. Currently, I have a deaf special needs dog (Oscar aka Ozzy), a cat that I hand-raised because she was found abandoned shortly after birth (Swayze), and a rabbit (Shasta aka Bad Bunny). At some point, I decided that all my rabbits would be named after soda brands, ha.

13. how tall are you? About 5'10".

14. favorite subject in school? Literature, Spanish, Philosophy, sometimes History, Classical Studies, Art. Anything that wasn't math, because I always struggled with that.

15. dream job? If I could make a living off of writing and spend a lot of my time doing animal rescue, I'd be content. Even if I was wealthy, I'd ultimately pursue a simple, cozy life without a lot of fanfare. I'd love to have more money to invest in animal rescue and local community welfare (kids should always have basic necessities imo). Maybe someday ...

Tagging anyone who feels like doing this! Feel free to reblog or tag me if you wanna let me know that you did it. Thanks, this was fun :3

[adarede]

average day for average member of society: 

 wake up at 6am, eat liver and onions for breakfast. read a national daily newspaper and a provincial daily newspaper. 

 7am: go for a run, wearing a replica football team shirt, a man's base layer top, and tracksuit bottoms. 

 7.20am: have a shower. shave. die hair using permanent hair colourant. apply body moisturising lotion, deodorant, self-tanning product, face cream, perfume, mascara, liquid foundation, lip gloss, and nail varnish. 

 8am: take the car in for an MOT. have a new exhaust fitted in a fast-fit auto centre. 

 8.30: purchase a caravan 

9am: go ten-pin bowling

10.10am: visit a DIY shop and purchase some butane gas, a sheet of MDF, a patio set, and some luxury vinyl tile flooring. 

10.30am: go home and get started on a light spot of DIY, while enjoying a canned stout and an electronic cigarette. 

11:45am: suddenly remember that today is your day with the kids, and call Geraldine the nanny in a panic. She reassures you that she collected Annie and Jasper at the normal time, and took them to the soft play centre. tell Geraldine to invoice you for the soft play centre fee, and let her know you'll meet her there at 12:15. 

11:55: rush to the shops on your bicycle. purchase a selection of soft toys, a child's sit and ride toy, some disposable nappies, and a high chair (you can't remember if you already have one). 

12:25pm: meet Geraldine and the kids at the soft play centre. apologise profusely for your tardiness and propose a hot pub lunch to make up for it. 

12:30pm: call directory inquiries, asking for the number of the nearest pub, then call that pub to ask if they serve hot lunches. they do, so you make a reservation. 

12:50pm: arrive at the red lion in Geraldine's car, with your bike balanced on the roof. bemuse the staff when you present your own high chair for Annie to sit in. Annie reminds you she is 4 now so can use a big girl chair.

enjoy a lovely hot pub lunch, with a draft bitter for yourself, a spirit-based drink for Geraldine, and both fizzy drinks and fruit juice for the kids. 

2pm: ask Geraldine to drop you off home, since your car is still being serviced. Geraldine's car breaks down, so you call the AA (calling directory enquiries first, because you can never remember phone numbers. Geraldine looks disapproving, and you make a mental note not to mention you've called directory enquiries to get her number before too). give the kids the soft toys you brought earlier, and attempt to entertain Geraldine by doing tricks on your bicycle. "well, at least you brought your helmet, I suppose," is all Geraldine says, and plays games on her phone without looking at you. you pretend you didn't want her to in the first place, to maintain your dignity in front of your children. 

3pm: take the opportunity to call your solicitor to make an appointment to update your will. 

3:20pm: purchase dental insurance over the phone. this reminds you of your poor elderly mother in her nursing home, so you call the florist to arrange a delivery of flowers there. 

4pm: the AA arrive, and luckily the car can be fixed on the spot. you make it home at 20 past 4. 

4:30: the kids complain of being bored, so you take them to the pet shop down the road. they manage to convince you to purchase a hamster and a bag of dog treats; the latter is for feeding dogs in the park, they tell you. this inspires you to buy some wild bird seed as well, to feed the birds in your back garden. you make a mental note to buy the necessary materials to construct a bird table tomorrow morning. 

5:15pm: you get home and start cooking dinner. the kids lose the hamster immediately upon getting it home, but they find it soon enough in the corner of your sleeping bag - you have it set up in the living room in order to be better prepared if burglars break in, since you anticipate them entering through your french window. 

5.45pm: dinner is quiche, veggie sausages, a pre-packaged salad, and some instant mashed potato. Jasper informs you he is on an all-meat diet at the moment. you worry that he has been watching too much alpha male youtube; you thought youtube kids blocked that kind of thing. he is only 6, after all. you tell him that quiche is a kind of animal, and salad is meat too, since it's the flesh of a plant. Jasper starts crying, and you discover that he didn't know meat came from animals. None of this makes sense to you. You hear a scraping sound coming from the kitchen, and see that the hamster has been eating your newly laid vinyl flooring. You put the hamster, with a handful of muesli, in the cardboard box your latest wine delivery came in. 

6:05pm: the kids have located the fromage frais in your fridge and have eaten 6 by the time you get back to the dining room

6:10pm: you corral the kids into the living room and put on a blu-ray to watch. the hamster slowly chews through the box in which it had been placed. you leave the kids to it while you go up to the attic to dig out an animal cage. in the attic, you see your action camera, interchangeable lens camera, and digital compact camera, and get lost in a reverie, imagining all the wonderful photographs you could take with them. 

6:30pm: come downstairs again armed with the cage, an acoustic guitar, and a fishing rod, and retrieve the hamster from its latest location (dangerously close to chewing through an unused inkjet printer cartridge).

6:45pm: suddenly remember you still don't have a car, so purchase the necessary train tickets to take the kids back to their mum's house. 

6:55pm: change into a formal jacket and trousers, a tie, and a hat; the dating agency called yesterday and you have a date tonight in london. 

7:05pm: get the kids and the hamster out the door and take the bus to the station. give the kids a craft set each; you keep them by the door just in case of surprise journeys.

7:13pm: run to catch the train. due to skill and practice, you do not fall over as you sprint in your high heeled shoes. 

7:47pm: get off the train, and take a taxi to drop the children off at their mother's house. leave the kids to give their mother the gift you purchased yesterday for her of a shower head and some knitting wool. ring the doorbell and get back in the taxi before anyone answers the door. you see the door open just as your taxi turns the corner at the end of the road. 

8:03: catch the next train to london. arrive at 8.30 at king's cross, and take a taxi to the bar at which you are meeting your mystery date. touch up your make-up using your phone screen as a mirror. 

8:40: stop at a tesco express to buy a cooked pastry based savoury snack, some hand-rolling tobacco, and a lamb shoulder. buy some condoms, and then, hedging your bets, buy some tampons too. 

8:50pm: arrive at the bar, and weave your way through the crowd towards a woman standing alone with her back to you, wearing a cocktail dress. she turns, and you recognise Yorickina from the picture given to you by the agency. She smiles, evidently recognising you too. 

"what are your hobbies," she immediately asks.

"i do enjoy package holidays covering a range of foreign destinations," you say, put on the spot. what is a hobby, anyway? "oh, and slimming." 

Yorickina looks sceptically at your noticeable belly. you slightly lift your shirt, showing that beneath there is concealed your emergency supplies kit, which contains hair gel, gin, a greetings card, and a canned lager. in fact, despite appearances, you have a very trim figure. 

"What's your favourite mode of transport," you ask Yorickina. "Oh, ferry, for sure," she replies. "Although I do enjoy travelling by coach". 

You feel your heart speed up: could Yorickina be your perfect counterpart? 

"May I buy you a drink," you ask. She accepts a double vodka, and you get yourself a draught cider. "i mostly spend time tending my horse," Yorickina continues, "but I also enjoy purchasing computer peripherals." 

"Oh, but that's fascinating!" you exclaim. "I tend to spend most of my money on watersports equipment e.g. windsurfing equipment, but I also enjoy a spot of golf on the weekends." 

You spend a very enjoyable couple of hours getting to know Yorickina, but before you know it, she says she has to go home. You convince her to stop by a kebab shop with you on your way back to the station. It has started to rain outside, but luckily Yorickina was carrying two umbrellas.

on the train ride home, you check your schedule for tomorrow. You have to pick up your car in the morning, and the surveyor is coming over to value your house in the afternoon. And once you have your car back, you will be able to collect your caravan and start planning your next holiday. You look up the cost of a marriage licence. 

You get home at around 11.30pm, and settle into your armchair with a whisky, various selected popular brands of sweets, and a cigar. You read a couple of chapters of your e-book. 

at around 12:15, you get up, brush your teeth and have another shower, and set up a duvet and pillow on your sofa (the sleeping bag on the floor is but a decoy). you send a flattering message to Yorickina, before turning off your phone and tucking yourself into bed. you blissfully drift off to sleep, dreaming of ultra low sulphur diesel and wide, empty toll roads.

[creweemmaeec11]

I’ve been thinking about getting a pet rat, do you have any tips or what to start researching??

Absolutely! Pet rats are fantastic!

Heres a bunch of general info!

They are easy to care for, super interactive and intelligent, they can be trained to do tricks, mine are shoulder trained, which means I put them on my shoulder and just leave them there while I walk around and do whatever else, and they just sit and watch and hang out and it's great (they have awesome balance) and they love it. They can even be litter trained.

What rat should you get?

The first thing to know, is you can never, ever, have only 1 rat.

You NEED to get at least 2.

They are very social animals, and they need a friend. I can not stress this enough. Under no circumstance should you be buying a single rat.

Having only a single rat, on top of being just generally cruel, leads to behavior problems, depression, aggression, anxiety and just a really bad time for both the rat and the owner. Most rat breeders will actually refuse to sell you single rat baby unless you already have rats and your looking on simply getting another one. Please do not buy a single rat.

The next thing to consider is whether you want males or females. There is actually a big difference between their behaviors, potential health problems, and even diets.

-Male rats tend to be more lazy, cuddly, and want to spend more time with you. However, they do smell more, as they scent mark. Males should never eat anything citrusy, (lemons, oranges, ect) as studies show it increases chances of tumors.

-Females tend to be more energetic and playful and just want to go,go,go. They don't want to be held as much, and good luck getting them to stay still long enough to cuddle. They smell less, though. They can have bits of citrus, but most reccomend to just steer clear of it regardless. Females are also prone to mammory tumors (how I lost hex) unless spade at a young age.

Some health tips for both genders:

-They can eat pretty much anything, I often call mine "glorified greenbins". They love supper leftovers, scraps, ect. One of their favour treats is the bones from cooked chicken(good for grinding down teeth too)

-in general, avoid things with too much protein and try to keep it low in their diet (so dont give them too much meat) protein has been linked to hair loss, tumors, and other health problems

-stay away from peanutbutter or other sticky foods unless its watered down. Rats don't have a gag reflex, and thus can't dislodge something if they choke. Many risk it, but it's not worth the risk in my opinion.

If you have a cat or dog, make sure their cage is in a place your other pets cant pester and scare them.

Their cage

Just some quick tips and info:

While rats don't need a big cage, the tiny hamster cage the guy at the pet store will try and sell you won't cut it, esspecially once they are full grown. I personally recommend Critter Nation cages (as most people do, they are the community standard) but they are expensive new. Search facebook marketplace or other sites for second hand cages, they are a great way to get a good cage cheap.

Rats will chew through any cage that isnt metal, they can't be kept in plastic bottomed cages either.

Rats need airflow. Most rat owners of the western world strongly disagree with keeping rats in tanks.

It's important your rats have at least one place to hide, somewhere out of site they can go if they feel stressed or scared.

Toys! Rats are very intelligent, and need stimulation! They arent picky though. While you can buy fancy toys, they also don't mind diy (theres plenty) or even just some cardboard boxes, pompoms, cardboard tubes, fabric scraps like old destroyed clothing cut up, socks, ect! (I could make a whole nother post on great rat toy ideas alone)

Rats are great climber and jumpers, something to keep in mind while arranging their cage

I'm ready to get my rats, where do I get them?

I'd personally urge you to avoid big pet store chains, as those rats are typically mass bred with little care. Leople have bought females that turned out to be pregnant, rats that had mites, ect. Search online to find local rat breeders. These rats are bred to be healthy, handled daily as babies, ect. They will be more expensive, but will have less health and behavioral problems and will typically live longer (trust me, I learned the hard way)

Other things to keep in mind and be aware of:

people don't like rats. Especially elders. I've heard it all, many claim you'll catch diseases from them (despite the fact theyve lived in their cage their whole live and have been bred to be pets. Where would they have caught the disease to give to me in the first place? Its idiotic and completly false) I've had family members comment rude things of their photos, "I'd scream if there was a rat on my shoulder" ect. (If you rent, you may have problems with other tenants or the property owner, worried about them "getting loose in the walls" or some sh*t)Don't let idiots sway you. Rats are wonderful, very clean and intelligent animals. Just be prepared to defend your babies, and teach/show people to give them the respect they deserve.

rats don't have a long life span, and while some can live to be around 5, most only live about 2 years. Just understand this.

Know you will make mistakes, and that's okay. Every single pet owner has and will make mistakes. You will learn.

Anyway, that about sums up my little spiel, but here are the basic topics to research when thinking about getting rats:

How to care for pet rats

Rat diet and limitations

Things to know about pet rats

There are many, many good resources online! I also reccomend joining some rat facebook groups. The people in them are super nice and informative to questions, and its wonderful having a community behind you, and have somewhere to go with any questions!

I hope this helped! If your thinking about getting rats as pets, I encourage you to! Just do your research. They make wonderful pets and companions.

Also know that I'm not an expert, or a vet, I'm still learning everyday. This is just what I've learned via owning them. I urge you to do your own research into some of the things I mentioned here.

[sourwormsaresour]

Headcanons on the type of pets La Squadra would own?

Holy shit this was too fun to make, especially with giving the pets names.

Sorbet and Gelato have their own Crusty-White-Dog™ that's a Maltese Terrier named Armani. The dog hates and barks nonstop at everything deemed threatening (aka, everyone and particularly the rest of La Squadra) and yet those two will claim she's the sweetest thing in the world. True to her name, they deck her with Armani branded clothes, either specially made dog fashion or they had a DIY done to make it look like an Armani outfit- down to the bright pink leash she wears dripping in the Armani logo. She eats the finest dry kibble and only drinks Ferrarelle Sparkling water; she will know the difference if you switch it up. She's the epitome of "I demand pets but only do so with your eyes" to everyone. Despite loving Sorbet and Gelato the most, she demands all their attention on her and she will cockblock those two if she catches them being affectionate to each other instead. Despite having a nice bed, she always sleeps between the two of them and will whimper if they kick her out of the bedroom so they can get intimate. Those tear-stained eyes always look like they've seen everything, despite being constantly babied by her owners. If Armani could, she would kill everyone.

Risotto, the biggest man in Vento Aureo, has a little Syrian hamster he called Ace. He thought that a pet with a shorter lifespan would allow him the perfect balance of having a pet but not being very attached to it compared to pets that live longer- he was wrong. If you ever come into Risotto's office as he worked, either you are greeted with Ace running around in his green hamster ball, walking around Risotto's desk as he worked, or running in the hamster wheel behind the desk. Ace's tank is an old Aquarium tank Pesci gave to Risotto that is now full of soft bedding, toys, and Risotto frequently cleans it. There are days where Risotto just spends hours watching his hamster walk around the room, eating little treats, and staring at Risotto with its beady eyes. It's gotten to the point where you can't walk into Risotto's office without noticing a lone sunflower seed or piece of bedding on the ground that Risotto didn't notice until you pointed it out. Every time Ace passes from old age, Risotto buys a new Syrian hamster and calls that one Ace. He hasn't kept track of how many hamsters that came and went so far, but treated every one of them as if they were the first Ace. He takes pictures of Ace doing the most relatively boring things and will share them with his members.

Illuso got a Sulphur-crested cockatoo named Scapino as a joke. He thought they didn’t require much attention but later felt bad when he found out that they need specific proper care. He proceeds to care for it as if it was his child. Illuso taught his bird how to speak and swear at people, specifically swearing at Formaggio and occasionally at Ghiaccio. This man will shower his bird with the best treats (expensive nuts, dried fruit, chicken bones) and has a special bar for it to perch on when they're in the shower together. This bird has free reign all over Illuso's place and wears a little anklet thing to verify that it has an owner should it escape. The two of them have spa days together and it’s one of the most wholesome things in the world to witness. Scapino will actually join Illuso on missions too, staying in the mirror world the whole time, and it provides him some comfort from his social anxiety. Sometimes Scapino sits on his shoulder as he walks. Illuso trained it to stay and hide in the mirror world so that it wouldn’t fly away or blow his cover when he’s working. But the bird will fly around in there and will watch anyone that’s getting murked in front of him with no remorse and commenting on it too. Imagine you’re dying in the mirror world and your last moment is this fucking bird looming over you going “night night, motherfucker”. JESUS CHRIST. 

Prosciutto used to be on the whole “pets are unnecessary” train but he had considered looking at breeders for the best quality dog. And then one rainy day he found an abandoned Portuguese Water Dog puppy in an alleyway and at Pesci’s insistence took it in. Turns out the puppy was bought by a rich family for their kid but then abandoned when the kid wasn't interested in it anymore. Prosciutto insisted that the dog was going to stay for one night and then sent to the pound first thing in the morning. It's been years now and the little dog is now a big fluffy good boy named Pon Pon. The second biggest chunk of Prosciutto's paycheck is for this dog; I'm talking grooming services with paw-ticures, an all-organic raw diet, the nicest beds that even a human would wish they can sleep on. Pon Pon is properly trained with all the basics and tricks, because Prosciutto doesn't want to deal with a misbehaving dog, but it will use puppy eyes against the old man now and then. He give you the best smiles if you call him a good boy and if you glance at the right time you can see Prosciutto smile for a brief moment. Had he lived longer, he would have made Pon Pon famous on Facebook like Boo the Dog. Prosciutto will also not admit that this dog has helped him get laid a few times, because every person he did bring home always got a kick out of Pon Pon.

Ghiaccio has a pet snake- an albino ball python named Bianco. Ghiaccio was also on the “pets are unnecessary” train too but mainly because he can't stand loud pets (i.e. Illuso and Sorbet and Gelato’s pets). When Risotto suggested he get a snake, Ghiaccio looked into it, researching and meticulously setting up the proper enclosure  and found himself going to a local reptile expo to find Bianco for sale. He’s fascinated by his snake to say the least, and would use leftover containers or Tupperware for Bianco to spend more money on proper equipment or food. Ghiaccio is really involved in online reptile forums and frequently debates with people on topics such as the best substrates to use, whether live rodents are better than frozen, ethics of breeding certain species, etc. He often gets worried when Bianco becomes picky and Ghiaccio would spend sleepless nights trying to get his baby to eat. Ghiaccio would walk around with his ball python wrapped around his neck or lets him slither around in his room under supervision but he mostly leaves him alone in the enclosure. There are times where he would claim he has the best, smartest pet and everyone just rolls their eyes like “yes the white fettuccine that got stuck in a toilet paper roll an hour ago is so smart”. But they let him rant about it. It’s kind of cute to say the least.

Pesci is the definition of people whose entire LIVELIHOOD is making his room into an aquarium. His room is full of strictly maintained, cleaned, and decorated tanks full of various types of aquatic animals. I’m talking Dwarf Puffers (Antonio, Portia, Jessica, Bassiano, and Solanio), Albino Gold Axolotls (Moe, Larry, and Curly), Red Ear Sliders (Franco and Ciccio), Clown Fishes (Browser, Mario, Toadstool, and Koopa), Brazilian Sea Horses (Tom and Jerry), a Blue Betta Fish named Valentina in a 30+ gallon aquaponics tank that grows a variety of plants each season- to name a few. He rebuilt his entire room to keep everything running and even had Melone help him set up timers for lighting and temperature control. Pesci will cry if you somehow made the pH level off by 1 or did not care for his animals properly when he’s away. He’ll even lecture you about bad tank setup. He's a prominent member of the aquarium  community in Italy and will regularly redecorate each tank to suit the year and mood. This is where he’s spending his cut on the 20 million lira job: caring for his mini aquarium room. He occasionally gives away his pets’ offsprings for extra money (he doesn’t breed but sometimes he ends up having a ton of baby animals he can’t take care of) and would have been a YouTuber for his fish content. Now that I think about it, Pesci reminds me of my mutual @nexter2nd. Please go follow them.

Melone has a Holland Lop bunny and you cannot change my mind. He actually had a pet bunny growing up, another Holland Lop named Echo and Grep, and his current one is named Sudo; all three are named after UNIX commands. He has a large dog crate he diy-ed to be a roomy enclosure in his room for her that he cleans frequently but also allows Sudo free reign of the room when she wants to go out. Because of his job, he makes sure all his wires are covered so his bunny isn't tempted to chew them and watches his bunny diligently whenever she roams around. Easter time is when the denim jacket, pastel bows, and flower crowns come out and Melone makes sure to take a lot of photos. He also housetrained his bunny and taught her a few tricks, similar to how he trained Echo and Grep years ago. Sudo is spoiled in terms of getting a lot of pets, new toys, and feasts on the finest veggies and delicious hay. Melone also makes sure the first thing he teaches his Juniors is to not harm the bunny. Surprisingly, he's against breeding Sudo and has her neutered. This is mainly because he doesn't have the time to breed and raise more bunnies but also he hates the idea of selling the grown bunnies off afterward. 

You know that Formaggio has a cat: the little Russian Blue cat named Sweetie Baby. Sweetie Baby was a kitten that he found outside his home. The little thing was the sole survivor of its litter and nearly starving to death, so he took her in thinking he will bring her to the shelter when she recovers; that cat now lets him live in HER apartment rent-free. Despite feeding her cheap dry food and constantly shoving her into bottles, he treats her like a queen otherwise. He will dress her up in little outfits (much to her annoyance) and often would be too aggressively affectionate towards her. Still, there are moments where she would cuddle with him during the later nights and allow him to put on one iced-out bow he just spent a quarter of his paycheck on. Walking to his apartment and even the backdoor of La Squadra’s HQ means carefully walking through the stray cats mewling at your feet, because Formaggio will feed any cat he sees. Initially, Risotto wanted the cats gone, but then he finds out the cats doubled as security when he watched some robber attempting to break in but getting their eyes scratched off instead.

[bufomancer]

I’ve been considering getting some pet mice in the near future, but I’ve never kept them before. Seeing as you’re experienced, I was wondering how mouse care compares to other rodents? I’ve had hamsters, gerbils and guinea pigs before so I have experience with rodents in general, but when it comes to mice my knowledge is very limited. Would you say keeping other rodents would make it easier for a beginner mouse keeper? Such as if there are aspects of hamster/gerbil/guinea pig care that can be applied to mouse care? As this would help me feel more prepared for mouse ownership, despite being a beginner. Also do you have any general tips when it comes to their care? I’m trying to figure out if mice would be a suitable pet for me, so I’d appreciate any general info, from someone with experience, might help me make that decision, if that makes sense. If I do end up getting mice I will do a lot more research first! So I’m not expecting you to educate me in detail or anything, for now I’m just curious about the general care and experience needed to be a good owner, so if you have any thoughts that could help me I’d appreciate it! I have a tendency to ramble sometimes so I hope this isn’t too long and confusing haha.

I got mice as my first ever rodent, so I certainly think you’d be able to handle them!

I haven’t personally kept any other rodents but I care for them at one of my jobs so I’ve made it a point to familiarize myself with their care.

Rodent and small mammal care in general tends to have a lot of similarities. And I think mouse care is pretty straightforward!

A 20 gallon long is a good minimum size for a single male mouse, and a 40 breeder is a great size for a trio of females or a male and two female african soft furs. You can also make DIY bin cages or use commercially made rodent cages, just make sure that bar or wire spacing is no larger than 1/4” since mice can squeeze through small gaps.

Odor can be a problem especially with males but honestly it is manageable. Deep bedding helps with odor, and I recommend aspen mixed with paper. Paper bedding is not very effective at controlling ammonia, which is bad because mice have delicate respiratory systems. But some mice prefer it for nesting, so I like to use a mix. You can also shred paper towels or toilet paper for them to nest in. Aim for 3+ inches of bedding. You can bury empty cardboard tubes, cardboard boxes with the bottoms cut off (so they don’t get pee on the bottom and they last longer), commercial hides (especially the heavy ones so that they don’t fall if the mouse burrows underneath) etc for them. And also mice love to climb! So give them plenty of hanging toys. You can make DIY ones, or use wooden bird and rodent toys for them. Mine love rope bridges. Scatter things to chew in the enclosure, make sure they have food and water available at all times, and give them some treats every now and then for variety. That’s the basics of it!

Also important to make sure your cage has good ventilation because mice can be messy. Some are polite and pick one place to pee and poop on (my male Puff uses his wheel) while others (like my other male Dog) will go anywhere and everywhere, making spot cleaning more difficult. Good ventilation will cut down on odor and ammonia buildup. If they’re in a room with a window that opens, that’ll help air circulation! Or you can use a small fan to gently help with air flow.

If you have any other questions let me know :)

[katalyna-rose]

Kat’s Rat Shopping List

I’ve gotten a few requests for a shopping list of my rat setup (tagging @collapseofthesky because they requested this, specifically, but I’ve had a few others message me), so I thought I’d give it a try and also add a few explanations for why I do some things the way I do. As such, this is going to be a very long post and is therefore under a cut. There will be a basic shopping list without all the explanations at the very end of the post under TL;DR if you don’t care about the rest or whatever.

I had a lot of fun with this and spent way more time on it than I meant to, and might be open to doing more of this kind of thing in the future.

Cage

First up, the cage. Obviously. I’ve said it before but it’s a Double Critter Nation and a Single Critter Nation with the side panels removed and zip tied together. These are sometimes sold in pet stores (the locally owned pet store I prefer has them in stock). I bought mine online because of a really good sale, but you can sometimes get really lucky and find them for resale on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist for super cheap. I love this cage because the whole front opens up and that makes it super accessible and easy to clean, decorate, and get to my pets wherever they may be. It’s also huge!

US minimum for rat cages is 2 cubic feet per rat, with a minimum of two rats because rats cannot be housed alone as they are extremely social animals. No, human companionship is not enough, rats need same-age, same-species companionship at all times. Please be aware, as well, that minimums are not the ideal to strive for. Whatever space you intend to dedicate to your rats, fill it! Fill it all up! And if you don’t have enough space for a large cage, don’t get rats. My setup, with the Home Depot/Lowe’s large cement mixing tubs in the bottom, is roughly 45 cubic feet of space. If we’re looking at minimums, this means I could house 22 rats! There’s no way that 22 rats could ever actually be comfortable in my setup. It would be insane, chaotic, and extremely messy. So why would 2 rats be comfortable in 4 cubic feet? They wouldn’t. More space is always better, hard stop.

Also remember that wire cages with bar spacing of no more than an inch for adult rats and no more than half an inch for small or young rats is a must. Tanks are absolutely not recommended for rats due to poor ventilation, which will cause respiratory issues and allow ammonia to build up much faster.

Bedding

This is different from nesting. Yes, it is. Bedding is the substrate used at the bottom of the cage or on shelves to catch errant droppings and urine, and is generally left where it is by the rats because they have no interest in it.

My main bedding is pine wood horse stall pellets. They are as dust free as the alternatives like shavings or paper pellets, and combine the best aspects of both those types of bedding with the ammonia-neutralizing effects of wood shavings and the compact, easy-to-clean nature of pellets. I love them. I also get them super hilariously cheap from Tractor Supply Co, so despite it being a little bit of a drive for me (about an hour round trip) the fact that it’s half the price of the next cheapest option more than makes up for it. I buy a bunch all at once and currently have a few bags left in my trunk because I didn’t have enough closet space for them. It’s great stuff. It crumbles when wet so it helps me keep track of how much and where they’re urinating, and it’s easy to spot clean those areas in between deep cleans.

When choosing a wood, if that’s the route you want to go, remember to check what is safe to use. Pine is only safe when it’s kiln-dried, since it contains fragrant oils that can cause respiratory issues in rats, mice, and hamsters. Some people will advise you to stay away from it entirely, and that’s fine, but since pine is often the cheapest option it’s not always viable. Aspen is a safe wood, but harder to find in pellet form and slightly more expensive as shavings. I use aspen shavings in my litter trays. Cedar wood is NEVER safe, no matter how it’s treated. I don’t think cedar is ever safe no matter what for any animal it’s marketed to, actually. It’ll cause respiratory distress in rats, mice, and hamsters, and guinea pigs and rabbits should never be on shavings regardless though I’m pretty sure they’ll still experience respiratory distress. The oils naturally in the wood are not safe, do not use cedar. Also make sure your bedding is as dust-free as possible, also for respiratory reasons. If you have a small animal, their respiratory system is extremely delicate, and that’s just a fact of pet ownership that you should have learned before getting a pet when you were researching how to care for it.

Since I have two shelves in my cage and they are both shallow to the point of not even having a lip (Critter Nation’s only flaw is the trays that come with the cage), I line my shelves with fleece over an appropriately sized bath mat. Fleece makes a great shelf liner, but I don’t recommend using it in the entire cage because it gets dirty really fast and most rats will chew it up, so you’ll both be changing it every other day and going through it super fast as it is destroyed. However, it makes great shelf liners, especially when very little of the shelf is actually available to the rats like in my setup, where the shelves are mostly covered in other things. Remember that fleece must always be lined with an absorbent layer underneath because the fleece itself allows liquid to pass right through it. That’s the point: the fleece stays relatively clean and dry while the absorbent layer takes all the gross stuff away. Towels are generally not recommended for this because rats can get their nails stuck in the fabric and rip them out, which is painful and distressing for the rat and also you. Anything super absorbent with a really tight weave will do lovely here, hence the low pile bath mats I use. I get them for one or two dollars at Ikea and wash them every week. I keep several around to rotate through. The fleece I use is also a fleece blanket from Ikea for a couple bucks that I cut into four sections because that rendered it the perfect size to tuck around the shelves. This makes my bedding extremely cheap, and that makes me happy because I can spend that money on enrichment instead.

Nesting

This is the material that the rats like to push around, dig in, and sleep in. It’s important to provide soft but preferably absorbent materials for the rats to nest in because it’s enriching, comfortable, and helps them regulate body temperature. Multiple types of nesting are recommended for enrichment purposes. Rats like texture! I use unscented, unlotioned tissues as a main nesting material for within their hides because they’re cheap, safe, absorbent, and soft. I bought 30 boxes of 100 tissues each for super cheap online, but you can also buy dollar store tissues or whatever you have access to. Just make sure they don’t have scents or lotions, because those are not safe for your rats’ delicate respiratory systems. The empty boxes (plastic removed) can also be given for the rats to chew up and play in, or you can save them up to DIY some fun toys later, which is what I’m doing.

I also have two dig boxes, which will also go under the enrichment section. The bins I got for cheap from Target, but obviously you can get bins wherever you want to get bins. Just measure to make sure they fit in your cage properly. The only dig box I want to talk about in this section is the hay box, because the dirt is not actually a nesting material but rather an enriching one. So, hay. My girls love this stuff so much that they drag it all over the cage to shove it into all their sleeping areas. They build actual rat nests in the box, tunnel through it, stash food in it, shred it for fun, and generally spend as much time as possible with the hay. I use oat hay for the seed heads that provide additional enrichment and snacks because the rats have to get to the seeds in order to eat them. If you are feeding a low-quality diet to your rats, do not use oat hay because they’ll fill up on seeds instead of eating their nutritionally-balanced food and that is not good. My rats love their food so much that the seeds are a sometimes snack that I don’t need to regulate because they do it themselves. Any good quality hay will do for a hay box, however, and timothy hay tends to be the cheapest option. Just make sure it’s not super low quality, because low quality hay tends to be dusty. As mentioned previously several times, rats have delicate respiratory systems and dust is bad for them. I buy my hay from Small Pet Select because I like supporting small business, ethical business, and businesses that provide excellent products. They are, however, primarily a rabbit site. I keep hoping they’ll expand the other sections of their shop. Also, make sure your rats aren’t trying to eat the hay. This is highly unlikely because rats are smart and know what’s edible and what isn’t, and hay is not edible for rats. If for some reason your rats are eating hay, do not give them a hay box.

Other nesting options I’ve used in the past include cut up bits of fleece, cut up old clothes you might have lying around, and generally just bits of fabric. Just remember to change out/wash them regularly. Ammonia will build up, and once again that’s bad for your rats’ respiratory systems.

Hides and Hammocks

Rats are prey animals. Surprise! As such, they need plenty of places to hide and feel safe. Rats love small, dark places to rest in. Much like many introverted humans, myself included! Make sure to include plenty of hides all over the cage. Variety is excellent here for enrichment reasons. My rats absolutely love Space Pods! Lixit makes the ones I use, but there’s also a brand called Sputnik that’s basically the same thing. I’ve never seen them in stores, but they’re all over the internet. For rats, make sure you get the large size. Honestly I wish it was larger than it is, but oh well. The girls love it anyway. I kept getting sent only the bottom halves, which is why I have two half space pods in my cage. I got a refund or replacement on both because it’s not what I paid for, but, like… I received the usable half, so I’m gonna use it. The girls don’t like to sleep in them without the covers, but they’ll hang out in there and clean themselves, and they climb through them to get from one spot to another.

In addition to the space pods, I also have various other hides. Lixit also makes a pill-shaped plastic hide that I keep on the shelf over the dirt box. They used to use it a lot more than they do now, and I’m not entirely sure why. Even so, they still use it! I also have a woven grass tent that they enjoy, and a cork log. Neither of those are really for sleeping, but they do hide in them sometimes and generally like to hang out there.

Hammocks are great, and also available in wide variety all over the internet and in stores. My favorite banana hammock was just retired, but I intend to get another. The girls loved it and so did I! Hammocks come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and can pull double duty as both a place to sleep and a way to break up the cage so there aren’t any dead drops where your rats can fall from a height and hurt themselves. Fill your cage with hammocks! All the hammocks! Support small creators by buying homemade hammocks! Learn to make them yourself! They’re cheap and easy! Hammocks are great.

Enrichment Part 1: Levels

Rats are climbers. Rats need vertical space as well as horizontal space. Rats are sometimes clumsy idiots who fall off of things. As such, all vertical space must be filled with all kinds of fall breakers. As mentioned before, hammocks are great for this. So are ladders, bridges, ropes, and that Ikea tie hanger I have strung across the back of my cage. If your rat falls from anywhere in the cage, make sure there’s something to catch them!

Also make sure there’s something to do on all the levels of the cage, even if that thing to do is just get from one level to the next. Rats are dexterous and adventurous. Ramps are boring because they’re easy. If you have sick or injured rats, absolutely use ramps! Accessibility matters! If your rats are of sound body, however, make them work for it. Lava ledges and bird perches make great alternatives to ramps. Screw them into the cage walls and watch your rats hop around! They love it. Ladders are also fun, especially if they’re not used the way ladders are meant to be used. Suspend them from things, put them at weird angles, just make sure they’re secure. I get a lot of my levels from the bird aisle at the pet store (or virtual pet store). Be aware that sometimes your rats are going to prefer to climb directly on the bars of the cage. That’s normal! The bars are there, so the rats will climb them. That’s all there is to it!

Climbing frames like the wooden wine rack from Ikea that I have in the bottom of my cage are also good to have. My girls love it, and it does double duty as a chew toy.

Enrichment Part 2: Chewing

Contrary to popular belief and old science, rats do not actually require chews to keep their teeth trimmed. Rats trim their own teeth by bruxing, or grinding their teeth together. This does not, however, negate the need for chews. Rats like to chew! What your rat likes to chew best is entirely subjective. Some rats love wood and sticks, some rats will always chew fabric over anything else, some rats will never chew fabric. Every rat is different! Try as much variety as you can and keep stocked up on the things your rats like best. My rats really like woven grass, and I try to keep at least a couple different kinds around for them. I keep a grass mat on a shelf that they like to pull apart, and the woven grass tent will likely have a short lifespan, as well. There’s a woven grass tunnel thing that they’ve put into the dirt box and are slowly but systematically shredding. My girls also like willow sticks, so I’ve got a couple hanging toys of willow that are very slowly being chewed because there’s so much else to chew. The wooden bridges see a fair bit of chewing, and even the lava ledges get chewed on the edges. My girls also love destroying rattan and wicker balls. I bought a bunch of them for cheap and toss a new one in there about every week or so. They love them. I also got a couple things from Small Pet Select like a pine cone, a bit of natural loofah, and a dried okra pod. So far the okra pod has seen the most action and is shredded halfway to infinity. I think they like that it has seeds inside, but the others get chewed sometimes, too. There’s enough variety in my setup that everything lasts a decently long time. Except the rattan balls.

Enrichment Part 3: Digging

As much as rats like to climb, they also like to dig. That’s why it’s highly recommended to have a dig box. Safe substrate is important here. If you’re going with potting soil, make sure it’s just dirt and doesn’t contain any fertilizer. Personally, I found potting soil to be kind of annoying a little expensive. I prefer coconut soil. I use Exo Terra terrarium soil, which is sold in compacted blocks that you have to hydrate. I use two thirds of the recommended water because my rats don’t need humidity. I use three blocks per dig box, and replace the soil every month because the girls will do their business in it sometimes, leave food in it, leave bits of tissue or hay or various shredded chews. Basically, the dirt gets dirty in bad ways and needs to be replaced sometimes. It can also grow things if left too long because of the humidity (which will be a problem regardless of the type of substrate being used). So every deep clean, both dig boxes get emptied, wiped out, and refilled.

The hay box gets an honorable mention here, since it pulls double duty as both nesting and digging. Triple duty, really, since it’s also a forage toy.

Enrichment Part 4: Misc

Yeah, I didn’t know what category to put this under, so here we are. Litter boxes! No, seriously, this counts as enrichment. Training your rats, whether it’s to do tricks or just poop where you want them to, counts as enrichment. Rats are incredibly smart! They’re at least as trainable as the average dog, especially if they come from an ethical breeder who breeds for health and temperament (let me just slide a reminder not to buy live animals from pet stores that source from highly unethical breeding mills in right here; please support ethical breeders and rescues), and will happily take to any training. Remember that positive reinforcement is the only ethical way to train an animal. Treats are great for this, and your pet will love you even more because every living thing loves food. My rats actually didn’t require much training for their litter trays. Make sure that whatever you’re lining the litter trays with is not the same as their normal bedding. If you’re using aspen shavings in the main cage, use pine in the litter trays, or literally any distinct safe bedding. I use shavings in my litter trays and pellets in my main cage. This helps the rats distinguish the litter trays from the rest of the cage and makes it easier to identify where to do their business versus where not to do so. When you first put the litter trays in, just go in at least once a day and toss any poops you see into the tray. If you see your rats using the litter tray, offer a treat while they’re doing so. Rats are extremely clean animals and they like their mess contained as much as you do. It would not be possible for me to only deep clean once a month if I didn’t have litter trays that I clean out about twice a week (or more, if necessary) to get rid of the majority of the mess and smell. I’d be deep cleaning every two weeks at least without them, so the litter trays are a great investment overall. Your rats will never be perfect about using them, because they’re still rats, but they’ll help a great deal.

Also under this section are forage toys! Do not feed your rats from a simple bowl, it’s boring and encourages stashing, which means you’ll never know when they’ve actually run out of food because they’re just going to pick it up and take it somewhere else and have a great big hoard that you’ll find on deep clean day. You can definitely scatter feed, that’s enriching as well because it makes the rats go looking for their food, but forage toys are the ultimate way to feed your rats, I think. I mostly don’t get my forage toys from the small animal aisle. I do have one that’s small animal specific, a little ball that they roll around the get the food out. I also have some marketed for cats, and some marketed for birds. Having multiple kinds is really helpful. I’ve also noticed that while some stashing still occurs, it’s greatly reduced. I refill the toys as they empty and everyone’s happy.

Food/Water

What you feed your rats is extremely important, obviously. Many commercially available pellet foods marketed for rats are actually extremely not good for rats. The same is true cat and dog food. It is a sad fact that the companies that make these foods tend to be far more interested in their bottom line than the health of your pet. As such, do your research! Always do your research! Know what’s in the food and what your animal should be eating, and try to match those two things up as closely as possible. In the UK rat owners typically will avoid pellet foods and prefer homemade mixes for these reasons, but making your own mix is not always feasible and can be tricky if you don’t know what you’re doing. Most US rat owners tend toward pellets because it’s a lot harder to mess up the balance of nutrients when it’s done for you. Also, the UK does not have Oxbow, which is one of the most popular brands of healthy rat food. It’s the brand that I use, and my rats adore it. Mazuri is another popular and healthy option, but my rats prefer Oxbow over anything else. I kind of want to try making my own mix at some point, but I’m not sure I ever will. Like with most of my rat supplies, I buy food in bulk because it’s cheaper. A 20 lb bag of Oxbow Essentials Adult Rat food runs me about 40 bucks. Be careful to buy adult rat food, even for baby rats, because any food that says Young Rat and Mouse is not going to have the appropriate balance of fat and protein even for young rats. Adult food will do just fine for babies, too. If you want to add some extra protein to their diet, try a boiled egg or bits of meat every now and then, but it’s probably not necessary as long as they’re getting enough food and some extra fruits and veggies now and then. If you want to try making a mix, do so much research before you try it, and make sure your ingredients are good quality.

Rats should also receive other foods in addition to their pellet or main food. Rats are omnivores and love fresh veggies, fruits, milk, eggs, and meat! Make sure you research safe foods before giving them to your rats, as not everything is safe. If you adopt your rats from an ethical breeder, they should have resources available to you on what’s safe and healthy. If you rescue, you can still reach out to established ethical breeders for tips and tricks, or find lists online as you do your research. Some veggies are only safe cooked, some parts of certain plants are unsafe while others are safe, and some foods are only safe for males or females but not the other sex (citrus and mango are the ones I remember that fall into that category). Just do your research and try to keep processed foods away from your rats. Sodium is also not good for them. Any raw meat or fish should be frozen and then thawed before being fed to your rats to kill any potential contaminants. Like always, do your research first!

Rats obviously require water, as well. Water bottles tend to be the most widely accepted way to give rats water, because they don’t evaporate and are easy to keep clean. I, however, have a terrible time with bottles, and they always leak or break. Thus, I have opted for water bowls instead. The girls love them more than the bottles I’ve used in the past, and they’re a little more enriching, as well. The only downside is that I have to wash them out daily. But since I spot clean daily anyway, I don’t mind at all.

First Aid Kit

Any responsible pet owner should always keep a first aid kit around, no matter what kind of pet they have. Pet owners who have particularly vulnerable pets should especially be careful to make sure they have a well-stocked first aid kit. This should include single-use sterile syringes without needles, gauze pads, vet wrap, infant/toddler ibuprofen or acetaminophen, medical tape, cat nail trimmers, and probiotic powder like Benebac. But most importantly, it should include the phone number and location of a vet that will see and treat rats. Have a vet picked out that you have confirmed will see and treat your pets BEFORE getting pets. If an emergency arises and you’re suddenly scrambling for a vet last second, not only do you waste precious time getting your pet the help they need but you may find out too late that the nearest rat-friendly vet is too far away. That means your pet will suffer unnecessarily and you are an irresponsible pet owner. Hard stop. If there is no vet within reach that will see rats, do not get rats. Rats will require a vet trip at least once in their lives, since all rats are extremely prone to respiratory illness. Sometimes this happens for no reason at all, because all rats possess a bacteria in their respiratory systems called mycoplasma. There’s no way to get rid of it and nothing you can do about it except make sure your rats live in a clean, well-ventilated environment with safe bedding and materials. Even with all this, sometimes your rats will get sick. That’s normal! Just make sure you can take care of them when it happens. As such, make sure you have a vet fund at all times of at least a couple hundred dollars, in addition to a well-stocked first aid kit and the name and location of an appropriate vet.

It’s also beneficial and enriching to syringe train your rats. What this means is putting a liquid treat like baby food, yogurt, or apple sauce into a syringe and giving it to your rats. This teaches the rats that the syringe is a good thing so that if you ever need to give them medicine from the syringe (rat medicine tends to be oral and dissolved in a liquid solution, so those needle-less syringes will be necessary) they’re more likely to take the medicine with minimum complaints.

Storage

Maybe it goes without saying, but you also need places to put all of the things for your rats. Keep your first aid kit in a box to itself so you always know where it is, and organize your supplies appropriately. I really like Ikea bins for my bedding and food and other dry bulk items, and I keep a lot of my smaller stuff on a shelf at the foot of my bed. Work with the space you have, and plan appropriately.

And thus concludes this extremely long explanation of the bare basics of healthy rat living. Really, this is the bare basics and not even remotely comprehensive of the options available. Be creative when shopping, and definitely look outside of the small animal aisle at your local pet store because it will not contain anywhere near all of what you need.

TL;DR: A Basic Shopping List of My Specific Setup

-Double Critter Nation

-Single Critter Nation

-Zip ties

-2 Large sized cement mixing tubs from Home Depot/Lowe’s

-Pine wood horse stall pellets

-Low pile bath mats, enough to rotate while washing

-Fleece blanket, cut in quarters to fit shelves, enough to rotate while washing

-Bins to hold digging substrate

-Oat hay from Small Pet Select or Oxbow

-Exo Terra coconut fiber terrarium soil

-Lixit Critter Space Pods, large

-Lixit Small Animal Hideout

-Woven grass mat

-Woven grass tent

-Woven grass tube

-Rattan/wicker balls, lots

-Willow stick hanging toys

-Natural loofah

-Sanitized (and therefore safe) pine cone

-Dried okra pod

-Dog ropes

-Wooden bendy bridges

-C-clips, both the kind meant for shower curtains and smaller ones marketed for kids, for hanging things

-Hammocks. All the hammocks. From everywhere hammocks are sold.

-3 (sometimes 4) Ware Scatterless Lock-n-Litter Small Animal Litter Pan, Regular

-Ikea tie hanger

-Ikea wine rack

-Ikea storage bins

-Forage toys

-Oxbow Essentials Adult Rat food

-Ceramic (and therefore tip-proof) water bowls, and/or bowls that can be attached to the cage

-Sterile single-use syringes without needles

-Gauze

-Vet wrap

-Medical tape

-Infant/toddler ibuprofen/acetaminophen

-Cat nail trimmer

-Probiotic powder like Benebac

-The phone number and location of a rat-friendly vet

-A vet fund of at least a couple hundred dollars

A final note before the end: Always remember to do your research before getting pets, do not get pets if you cannot provide a good life for them with MORE THAN the bare minimum requirements for safe and healthy pets, do not buy live animals from pet stores unless it’s part of a rescue program, don’t take the word of just one person as law, don’t be afraid to ask questions respectfully, and always seek new ways to improve your pet care. This has been a PSA from your friendly small animal enthusiast.

[sak-soon]

Taco’s Bday:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjLRiY5yb6M

[stelloids]

for the whole hamster thing, i know you probably have already checked but just in case have you looked on places that let you advertise animals? it seems to be baby hamster season lol. also another side note, do you perhaps know of any hamster resources on youtube or stuff that you could recommend? i know you're not a hamster blog per se but you are incredibly approachable, thanku- hamster anon

unfortunately there aren’t really any proper breeders nearby, and i’d much rather not adopt any “accident” babies cause that’s usually the result of improper care :c dwarf hamsters can be kept in small groups with their siblings, but other than that, hamsters are very territorial and have to be kept solitary. unless they’re an actual breeder any babies someone ends up with are most likely the product of incest or unsafely keeping unrelated hamsters together

as for hamster resources, i SUPER recommend erin’s animals on youtube for learning about general care!! i refer to her channel and her old website/blog a lot. vanillahamham is another a+ channel that’s not very active recently but they have a TON of absolutely adorable diy tutorials and recipes for the cutest hamster treats ever!! they literally made a tiny hamster-sized kitchen with a working faucet and everything to film hamster recipe videos in........ it’s some truly delightful shit ok

[vanillahamham]

Butterscotch opens a limited edition Christmas box from Hamster Mail and checks out the toys and treats. These festive themed boxes are available this month and you can get one subscription free. Check out https://ift.tt/2P6UafO 🐹 👕 Merch store now online! https://ift.tt/2oVFzLm 💸 Support my work on Patreon https://ift.tt/2HpqtoE Thank you to my Patreons Mika Huotari, Danny Pirker, CyanicKnight, Christine Vincent, A Literal Egg Sandwich, Kim ju hyun, Sarah Prelgovisk, Maiva, Mike Ryan, Blythe Stensgaard and Eridanne Ampora! ❤ 🐾 Instagram/Facebook/Twitter: @vanillahamham (tag me in if you try any of the DIYs! I'd love to see them 😄) 🌍 Submit subtitles (most requested: 🇪🇸 🇰🇷 🇵🇹 🇯🇵) http://www.youtube.com/timedtext_cs_panel?c=UCTSvFDZmB2i8N8TJSvJYq5w&tab=2 Music: G-sound

[amigurumipatterns]

Hamish’s favorite treat is a punnet of strawberries, but this time it looks like he fancied a delicious mexican taco! . Hamish The Hamster was brought to life by @thecheerfulchameleon and is featured in our book Zoomigurumi 7. Click the link in our profile and find out more. Original pattern by @mojimojidesign. . #zoomigurumi7 #crochet #amigurumi #instacrochet #yarn #yarnaddict #diy #craft #crafts http://bit.ly/2TFOslL

[lacimeows]

Because someone just recently messaged me about my hamsters and I forgot I never posted any updates...

SO! We did more research on proper hamster care and decided to separate the boys due to Jerry becoming a bully. We created storage bin cages for each of them so they had plenty of room to play and roam.

Charlie is an absolute little angel, hes so sweet. Hes completely tame, doesnt mind being held and played with. Jerry is still very skittish when we come near the cage, he runs and hides if we walk by it or come up to it. I've tried holding my hand in and letting him come to me with a treat, and he does approach, although very cautiously, but as soon as he sniffs me he bites. Not hard enough to draw blood, but enough that when I raise my hand to pull away he hangs on for a second or two. If we persist, he hisses at us. I dont know what else to do, I'm currently trying the tissue trick to get him used to our scent. But other than that I dont know what else to do to calm him down around us. It may just be his temperament.

Still welcoming any tips! We dont have much money to spend on perfecting cage environments, but if anyone knows any cheap and easy DIY things for them feel free to let me know!

[littledalek15-blog]

Just because hamsters are small, doesn't mean they can live in a small cage.

The minimum size for ANY hamster, is 450 SQ inches. BUT a minimum of 600 SQ inches is recommended.

Syrian and Chinese hamsters are 100% solitary.

Drawfs "CAN" be kept together, IF they are true siblings and have never been split. Even then, they must have two of EVERYTHING and it MUST be identical.

Cages with levels aren't recommend, because hamsters have bad eyesight. Levels do NOT make up for floorspace. IF your cage meets the requirements, and has levels, there are ways to make them safe. DIY rails, extra bedding, and hammocks definitely help.

Connecting more than one cage does NOT make up for floorspace. It must be unbroken.

Connecting smaller cages to a proper sized cage is perfectly fine ♥️

Good cages:

Prevue 528

Bin cages

40 gallon BREEDER. The regular 40 Gallon is too small.

There are other cages that meet the minimum as well, some require minimum modifications.

Critter trail tubes (and most other brands besides Habitrail) are too small for Syrian hamsters. Please do not use these for your Syrians.

Bedding:

Pine and cedar are DEADLY.

If you want a wood bedding, Aspen is the ONLY safe wood bedding.

Other safe options are paper beddings without scents or baking soda.

Hemp bedding.

Coconut fibers.

4-6" of bedding is the minimum but more is ALWAYS better and you can never have too much ♥️♥️

Wheels:

Syrians must have at LEAST a 10" wheel but preferably 12"

Chinese must have at LEAST an 11" wheel preferably 12"

Drawfs can use 6.5" inches and up.

Wheels less than 6.5" are NEVER acceptable.

Snack shack treats are not safe. They are made with pine shavings and are not safe for your hamster to ingest.

There is plenty of more information on hamsters, if you have any questions, please ask. ♥️

Also, if there is anything not mentioned that should be, please let me know!

[getsoftly]

Happy Howlidays - Sustainable Gifts for the Pets in your Life

Should you give your pet a gift this holiday season?

Does your dog even know it’s a special time of year? They probably do, but not for the reason you think.

Pets pick up on our emotions; they know when we’re happy, sad and yes, stressed. The holidays are a busy time of year and when we’re rushing around doing more tasks than we have hours, our pets notice. This season do something special for your furry friends so they can enjoy the holiday with you.

The gift of time

Spend time with your pet and you will both benefit. Oxytocin, also known as the cuddle hormone, promotes feelings of intimacy and trust. It has been found to be released with eye contact not only between mothers and babies, but also between dogs and their owners. So spend some time looking deeply into your dog’s eyes.

Take your dog for an extra walk and you can log in the steps as well. To get you both in the mood you can buy her a new leash. Teach your dog a new trick or take him to a training class to reinforce the bond you have. If you want your cat to sit with you, pull out some important work and it’s almost guaranteed that she’ll sit in your lap (or on your work). Spend some time playing with your pet.

Playtime

If you’re going to give your pet a toy, consider repurposing materials you have around the house. You can give your dog an old children’s toy like a stuffed animal, a squeaky toy or wooden blocks. You can make chew toys out of old t-shirts. A piece of yarn may be all you need for your cat. For more DIY pet toys check out these ideas from Puppyleaks.

Treat your pet

Treats are a great motivator for dogs. In the training world a treat your dog really loves is considered a high value treat. They’re the treats they give your dog after she’s mastered that awesome new trick you taught her. Cats like treats too, and may give you some extra love if you give them something special. When you’re buying treats for your dog, look for high quality ingredients and free of additives. Softly - Your Personal Sustainable Shopping Assistant can help you find treats that are certified to be free of certain ingredients.

Spread the love

If your pet already has everything she needs, consider donating to a charity that benefits animals. Start with your local animal shelter or rescue organization. They will often take donations in the form of both supplies and money. Other top animal charities according to Spruce Pets include The Humane Society, Friends of Animals, and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

Pets are an important part of our lives. They give us love on even our worst days. It’s important to remember them during the holidays and not pass our stress onto them. So be generous with your pet this season and give them something old, something new or just a scratch behind the ear.

How do you include your pets in your holiday celebrations?

If you need more ideas, check out our extended list of Pet SWAPS! that are certified to be:

- Environmentally Friendly

- Cruelty Free

- Free of Harmful Ingredients

- Free of Allergens, or

- Socially Just

Don't forget - using Softly will help YOU shop more carefully this holiday season!

Maggie's Macaroons Dog Treats

$$ ($25 to $50)

by Coco Therapy

These hypoallergenic dog treats are RAW, vegan, grain and gluten free, dairy free, egg free, and made with no preservatives, colors, or artificial flavors.

Organic Catnip for Cats and Kittens

$ (<$25)

by SmartyKat

SmartyKat catnip is all-natural and made with no fillers; it's pure, potent, and meets your cat's essential needs for stimulation

Check out our full list of Sustainable Gift Ideas for Pets!

Homemade for Hamsters

$ (< $25)

by Carin Oliver

20 easy projects for creating toys and exercise equipment for a hamster (and guinea pigs, small rabbits, gerbils, and pet rats and mice, too). The projects use materials and tools commonly found around the home. Treats may also be used and the book includes a list of those that are safe and not safe for a hamster.

Pets and Animals Charity Lists

ADOPT A SHELTER

FEATURED SHELTERS

Send items to the charity of your choice!

SHOP CHARITY LISTS

Donate through AmazonSmile

LEARN MORE

Add Softly to Chrome - It's Free!

This post contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you. Your support will help drive improvements in Softly!

[heyitsdib]

ArtPhotographyAnimalsTravel More Add post Login / Register Featured  Trending Latest 137 40 Life Hacks T

40 Life Hacks That Will Change Your Life

DIY

By​Tom

There are always these pesky little obstacles in life that make everything so difficult – pot always boiling over, zipper constantly unzipping itself or ice cream melting on your clothes. All these first world problems can easily ruin your day. Luckily, the internet is full of handy DIY life hacks and tips that can help you!

This awesome list of life hacks will teach you how to make your beer cold quickly, hammer nails without hurting yourself, keep your greedy colleagues away from your lunch, cover up dings on wooden furniture, keep your take-out pizza warm and many more! There’s even a section of life hacks for kids because you have to start them young!

Unfortunately, these DIY ideas and life tips are so widely spread that it is impossible to track and credit the original authors. If you notice your life hack here – please let us know, we will be more than happy to credit you and your DIY project.

Sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to our top stories.

137

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What do you think ?

Cat

1 year ago

Found so funny life hacks channel - www.youtube.com/DoctorWOW

4

Reply

danielwild32

3 years ago

Great List! My favorite hacks: - Boost your chances of being let out at a junction by making eye contact with the person you want to let you out. Once eye-contact is established, you are almost always waved out. - When travelling, mark your bag as ‘fragile’. It causes the ‘throwers’ (baggage handlers) to treat it more carefully, and elevates your bag to the top of the trolley, meaning it will hit the carousel quicker (sometimes yours is the first bag out!). - When doing exercise reps, choose the number of reps you want to do, then count backwards to zero, rather than upwards. There’s something about the psychology of hitting zero that is more motivating that going up to a particular number. Another 300 here:http://amzn.to/1QW3eiX

4

Reply

Susie C��roline

2 years ago

These are AWESOME suggestions! Thank you!

0Reply

ShariLint

4 years ago

I Love This!!! Great Ideas!!!

2

Reply

[hamsterhusbandry]

even when we provide cages with plentiful space and everything a hamster needs, they can still get bored or stressed! this boredom can result in distressing and harmful behaviours like bar chewing or pacing. in order to eliminate or reduce boredom, a hamster should be provided with additional enrichment. i add these to the cage on a regular basis and then remove and rotate meaning he has something new and interesting every night.

destroyable toys such as toilet paper tubes stuffed with treats and toilet paper. there are so many cool, creative ideas on the internet so have a google and look for diy toys which you can make.

find various edible and interesting chews and healthy treats your hamster likes! 

for example, i provide earl with... 

millet/oat/wheat sprays

dandelion root (only occasionally because he absolutely loves it and eats it in one night!)

whimzee chews

flowers/leaves from various hamster suitable forage mixes

some dehydrated fruits/veg last him a long time, a slice of dried apple lasts him a few days, but banana is gone in seconds.

just moving items round in the cage can interest your hamster! hamsters are very reliant on scent trails in their cage so you shouldn’t make big changes to layout regularly. it also depends on the individual and some hamsters become stressed when any items are moved at all but if your hamster is happy with it just swapping a tunnel for a different tunnel or swapping two items around can help with boredom

scatter feeding can be a great way to keep your hamster busy! this encourages natural foraging behaviours and keeps the hamster busy for a lot longer than just going to their bowl and filling their cheek pouches (i would recommend putting fresh food in a bowl though to avoid hygiene issues). also hiding treats around the cage is good enrichment! before i go to sleep i often hide a few sunflower or pumpkin seeds around earl’s cage so he can spend time sniffing them out and they’re always gone in the morning.

earl also spends a lot of his time making his nests. he enjoys finding and carrying his nesting materials to his house and building his nest. i never put the nesting material in his house but leave it elsewhere so he can spend time doing that himself.

out of cage play time is also very important. if your hamster is tame and happy to be out of the cage regularly, give them playpen time as often as possible. it is best to provide novel toys they don’t see very often for this time and allow them to explore and play. when you notice their behaviour changing and indicating boredom, return them to their cage.

but i would personally say the key to eliminating boredom, stress and unwanted behaviour is finding a cage set up that works for the individual hamster! earl was showing some stressed chewing behaviour in his last cage set up but i changed the layout, adding a longer unbroken area of deep bedding rather than two smaller ones and added a labyrinth house. since this change the behaviour has completely gone and he is very settled and happy! do plenty of research and make sure you’re providing absolutely everything recommended to keep your hamster happy because that is by far the most likely cause of stress in your hamster