by Karen Louise Hollis

Created on: June 16, 2010   Last Updated: June 17, 2010

I decided to write this review, because I have heard many times that parents plan to buy their kids a hamster or a gerbil. As we have owned umpteen rodents over the past twenty-odd years, I feel I have enough experience to provide some advice on which rodent makes a good pet.

I would definitely recommend a dog or a cat as my first choice of pet, because they live longer and are much more part of the family than a caged pet. But obviously for some people – maybe due to allergies or living in an apartment, for example – cats and dogs are not a good idea.

I am definitely in favour of kids being bought up in a house with pets. They teach children about caring for others, responsibility and obligation and ultimately, how to cope with death. A first pet for a child is often a rodent – usually a hamster, occasionally a gerbil or a rat.

We have had all of these. I first got a pair of rats in 1988 and my last rat in 2006. At one point, I ended up with fourteen! We have had plenty of hamsters too. I inadvertently bred a litter in 1989 and had about ten at most. My kids have also had several in the past decade or so. Gerbils are a relatively new experience. We have had four gerbils over the years.

Whichever pet you choose, you need to research the animal and find out some basics about its health and requirements. They will all need housing, food, bedding, toys and a water bottle. You might also want to buy a pet carrier to transport it.

Hamsters, rats and gerbils cost a similar amount. You can expect to pay between £5 and £10 per pet. Hamsters should be kept by themselves, gerbils should be kept in same-sex pairings and rats in same-sex pairs or larger groups.

You need to buy the biggest cage you can afford, but make sure the bars aren’t too widely spaced. You can find out all this kind of information from the internet or ask at pet shops, so I won’t spend too much time explaining practical requirements. I would prefer to tell you about our experiences with each type of rodent.

I have found quite a few mothers seem to hate the idea of having rats in the house, so they much prefer their children to buy hamsters. Certainly the parents should expect to have to handle the animal at some point and you will need to be able to do this, so if you are phobic about rats, don’t buy them. But otherwise, I would recommend rats over all other types of rodents.

Rats are intelligent, friendly, sociable and make rewarding pets.

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