Question about rodents

[Ergroilnin]

Hello!

 

While this is surely a weird question to ask in forums about tech, I want to ask something about rodents if anyone here has a proper knowledge about them here.

 

I am thinking about possibly getting a mice or hamsters or some other kind of small rodent as a pet (I am single after a bad breakup, alone in pretty big apartment and I know I do not have enough time to take care of any bigger pet, but it would be nice to have a little life to come home to and occasionally play with) and while I had few while growing up and know decently well how to take care of them in general way, there is something that I am definitely lost at.

 

I am and for the foreseeable future will be living in an attic apartment that does not have exactly the best thermal isolation and so during winter times like right now, if I do not actively heat it up, it can get as low as about 10 degrees celsius (for example when I am at work, I obviously do not heat up my apartment due to big thermal loses and expenses that come with it).

 

Now I am not planning on getting rodents from pet shops ever again, I would surely get one from some hobbyist that nurtures the babies well, though I guess that does not really matter all that much when it comes to this exact question.

 

What I am wondering about is if these little rodents that are raised as pets can easily survive and not be bothered by these lower temperatures as I am obviously not gonna heat up the whole apartment just for a bunch of mice or hamsters, if they would be uncomfortable or even possibly die from it, I won't get them in the first case obviously.

 

Obviously wild mice, hamsters etc. do survive these and even much lower temperatures in the nature, but pet and wild animals differ, so I am not exactly sure.

 

Would it be enough if they just had some kind of insulated place to cover in or possibly set up two covers with one being heated up by a guess an IR? lamp like the one you normally get for reptiles so the rodents would have an option to heat up in case they felt like it?

 

Just in case anyone asks, I come from middle europe (specifically Czechia) and we get both decently cold and decently hot temperatures during the year, in short we get anywhere between -15 to +30 celsius depending on the season with some days possibly going lower or higher respectively).

[dalekphalm]

1 hour ago, Ergroilnin said:

Hello!

 

While this is surely a weird question to ask in forums about tech, I want to ask something about rodents if anyone here has a proper knowledge about them here.

 

I am thinking about possibly getting a mice or hamsters or some other kind of small rodent as a pet (I am single after a bad breakup, alone in pretty big apartment and I know I do not have enough time to take care of any bigger pet, but it would be nice to have a little life to come home to and occasionally play with) and while I had few while growing up and know decently well how to take care of them in general way, there is something that I am definitely lost at.

 

I am and for the foreseeable future will be living in an attic apartment that does not have exactly the best thermal isolation and so during winter times like right now, if I do not actively heat it up, it can get as low as about 10 degrees celsius (for example when I am at work, I obviously do not heat up my apartment due to big thermal loses and expenses that come with it).

 

Now I am not planning on getting rodents from pet shops ever again, I would surely get one from some hobbyist that nurtures the babies well, though I guess that does not really matter all that much when it comes to this exact question.

 

What I am wondering about is if these little rodents that are raised as pets can easily survive and not be bothered by these lower temperatures as I am obviously not gonna heat up the whole apartment just for a bunch of mice or hamsters, if they would be uncomfortable or even possibly die from it, I won't get them in the first case obviously.

 

Obviously wild mice, hamsters etc. do survive these and even much lower temperatures in the nature, but pet and wild animals differ, so I am not exactly sure.

 

Would it be enough if they just had some kind of insulated place to cover in or possibly set up two covers with one being heated up by a guess an IR? lamp like the one you normally get for reptiles so the rodents would have an option to heat up in case they felt like it?

 

Just in case anyone asks, I come from middle europe (specifically Czechia) and we get both decently cold and decently hot temperatures during the year, in short we get anywhere between -15 to +30 celsius depending on the season with some days possibly going lower or higher respectively).

In short, about temperatures: Hamsters should ideally have a temperature range of 18C (65F) to 24C (75F). They can tolerate minor variances outside of that range, but they can become sick if exposed for either too cold or too small for too long.

 

You should install a thermometer onto the cage itself. Provide plenty of material for the animal to burrow into. And, if the temps regularly drop to 10C, you need to install some kind of small space heater (making sure to install it a safe distance away). Ideally get one that has it's own thermostat (even better if it's a wireless thermostat, and you can place it on/in the cage), so you can program the heater to only come online when the cage itself gets too cold.

 

I would look into maybe getting a cat instead. You'll still need to care for whatever pet you buy (mouse/hamster or not) every day. Change the food/water, clean the cage/litterbox, etc. A cat will likely handle the cold a lot better (and they're very good at finding warm places).

[Ergroilnin]

21 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

In short, about temperatures: Hamsters should ideally have a temperature range of 18C (65F) to 24C (75F). They can tolerate minor variances outside of that range, but they can become sick if exposed for either too cold or too small for too long.

 

You should install a thermometer onto the cage itself. Provide plenty of material for the animal to burrow into. And, if the temps regularly drop to 10C, you need to install some kind of small space heater (making sure to install it a safe distance away). Ideally get one that has it's own thermostat (even better if it's a wireless thermostat, and you can place it on/in the cage), so you can program the heater to only come online when the cage itself gets too cold.

 

I would look into maybe getting a cat instead. You'll still need to care for whatever pet you buy (mouse/hamster or not) every day. Change the food/water, clean the cage/litterbox, etc. A cat will likely handle the cold a lot better (and they're very good at finding warm places).

Thanks for the response.

 

Unfortunately I cannot get a cat because of the contract (cats would damage the floorings etc.) not to mention I am slightly alergic to them.

 

Obviously I would need to attend to basically any pet everyday, but I was thinking about the kind of pet, that would be totally fine with me ocasionally leaving them alone for the night if I planned accordingly. 

 

I do not have any pet right now and if I won't be relatively easily be able to provide just the right kind of enviroment for them without it costing me way too much, I won't put the animals through it.

[dalekphalm]

1 minute ago, Ergroilnin said:

Thanks for the response.

 

Unfortunately I cannot get a cat because of the contract (cats would damage the floorings etc.) not to mention I am slightly alergic to them.

What exactly would a cat do to the floor to damage it? Even if you've got carpet, it would be highly unusual for a cat to destroy a carpet. Only main risk is if they piss on the floor, and that's usually (but not always) caused by inhumane neglect by the owner.

 

In terms of allergies, if you're allergic to cats, you're probably allergic to most/all animals. Though different animals will cause different severity of reactions (and some may not even produce noticeable reactions). I'd want to check your reaction with a hamster or mouse before buying it. Handling the animal in person should do the trick.

1 minute ago, Ergroilnin said:

Obviously I would need to attend to basically any pet everyday, but I was thinking about the kind of pet, that would be totally fine with me ocasionally leaving them alone for the night if I planned accordingly. 

That's basically any pet, outside of maybe a dog.

1 minute ago, Ergroilnin said:

I do not have any pet right now and if I won't be relatively easily be able to provide just the right kind of enviroment for them without it costing me way too much, I won't put the animals through it.

As I said, you need to increase the temperate range to 18-24C - a small space heater w/ a programmable thermostat is the easiest way to accomplish this, and won't cost too much.

 

If you cannot afford the heater, then I can straight up say you can't afford a pet anyway.

[Curious Pineapple]

Cats are a nightmare if you go away for more than one night. We occasionally go away for weekends, Friday evening to Sunday evening. They're OK with dry food for a couple of days but apart from the health problems that it can bring over longer periods of time, leaving them alone isn't that good for them.

[dalekphalm]

37 minutes ago, Curious Pineapple said:

Cats are a nightmare if you go away for more than one night. We occasionally go away for weekends, Friday evening to Sunday evening. They're OK with dry food for a couple of days but apart from the health problems that it can bring over longer periods of time, leaving them alone isn't that good for them.

They're not too bad if you have more than one (they're oddly social creatures, even if they can be anti-social a lot of the time).

 

But you have to ensure their needs are met: Food, water, and a clean litter box.

 

Most cats will be alright if you don't clean the box for a day - many will be okay if you don't clean it for a few days. Most will start to become displeased after that. If it's frequently not cleaned for 3+ days, most cats will just start shitting and pissing on the floor.