My New Pet Lol

AlexAndCarmen · Jun 13, 2006

We have this little hedgehog in our garden every night. She is the cutest thing. I love them, wish I could just scoop her up and put her under my bed :lol:

. No, but seriously, she is pretty friendly, doesn't mind me walking around the garden while she's there. Although, she does only come out when the kids are in bed. We've had a huge hit of slugs and snails at the moment, so no wonder she's been hanging around.

How small she is, next to the kids trampoline :wub:

Keep well, Carmen

grahamsokel · Jun 13, 2006

i love hoggies.I have had them in my Garden for years but for some reason i havent seen any this year :unsure:

moray · Jun 13, 2006

she's lovely, I must admit I don't see as many as I used to which is a real shame, lovely little creatures.

AlexAndCarmen · Jun 13, 2006

I know. We used to have loads, as well as foxes and grey squirrels around here, but over the last 2 years, we only ever see a couple of hedgehogs and no more foxes or grey squirrels

. We did have a huge one hanging around last year, probably double the size of this little one. Hopefully she'll be back, and hopefully she/he has found a love interest and we could get some babies :wub:

.

downsouth · Jun 13, 2006

Cute!!

happyannie · Jun 13, 2006

We don't have those in the wild over here unfortunately but they were a big thing in pet stores a few years ago. A friend of mine got talked into buying 2 for his son and as it turned out, they were both preggers so they had hedgehogs all over the place. :lol:

They're so cute but I wonder if it's fair for people to expect them to live like a cat or dog in a house being carried all around and fussed over. I dunno?

AlexAndCarmen · Jun 14, 2006

happyannie said:
We don't have those in the wild over here unfortunately but they were a big thing in pet stores a few years ago. A friend of mine got talked into buying 2 for his son and as it turned out, they were both preggers so they had hedgehogs all over the place. They're so cute but I wonder if it's fair for people to expect them to live like a cat or dog in a house being carried all around and fussed over. I dunno?

I know, we saw a few in a pet shop a couple of years ago. I didn't think it was right to sell a "wild animal" as they are nothing like a domestic pet. It is much better to see them out in the wild. I'm wondering if this little one wasn't preggers, her belly was really fat, either that or too many slugs :sick:

. I can't imagine carrying them around to be very comfortable for either party concerned. I've seen on telly, they curl up when picked up. What did your friend do with all the babies :wub:

?

happyannie · Jun 14, 2006

Well, he tried to give me one which wouldn't have progressed in an orderly fashion in a small house with 3 cats. His son was young so I think he used it as a lesson of sorts, printed up some brochures and they went into the hedgehog business until the babies were sold or given away.
Petshops sell Sugar Gliders too, a marsupial from Australia I think. I've also heard of Arctic Foxes being sold as pets too. People's search for the exotic wrongs the animals involved doesn't it tho?
It's nice you have outdoor pets at your house. I've had my share of squirrels and birds including a Bluejay who demanded I throw him out some peanuts whenever he'd see me outside. Loved your photos! Post some more if you can get them!

AlexAndCarmen · Jun 14, 2006

We come from South Africa, and my mom had a bush baby as a pet when she was a little girl, she said it was vicious and bit them all

. My dad also had a friend who owned a chimp!! Of all things. Luckily, they eventually enforced a license law, not that it stops people from having these wild animals as pets. I think it's unfair, especially if they live in groups, and then end up as a pet with no interaction with their own species! We also had a friend, just before we moved over to the UK, who had a lemur!! His mother ended up with it, and one night it got into a mood and attacked her!! She ended up giving him to a petshop where the owner dealt in wild animals (for protective breeding programmes) and he had a few that people had as 'pets', and the little thing finally had some friends. The only pet we had that was exotic, was a patagonian conure (think it's spelled that way). My husband bought him as a baby from a breeder and he was the noisiest bird ever. He also hated me and whenever he was out, he'd attack Alex if he even came near me!! Loved me to death he did. We donated him to a bird park that had others of his kind, so he ended up with a lady love. :wub:

Hopefully with the rain we've had today, she'll be back tonight for some juicy slugs

. Well, enough talking nonsense. Keep well, Carmen

happyannie · Jun 14, 2006

Interesting stories from far-off lands. Thanks!

starrynightxxi · Jun 15, 2006

not trying to start a debate, but i think in the right conditions many animals can make good pets, even if they are normally wild, so long as people are educated in their care. I wouldn't condone owning something large and deadly like a tiger or anything of that nature, but smaller animals such as sugar gliders and hedgehogs, i think, are different. but again it really depends on a person being willing to give them the time they need and for social animals such as sugar gliders, to always have at least two. it's no more or less cruel than keeping one horse or one rat, both of which are very social as well. The trouble is pet owners who have something simply because it's exotic and are unwilling to make the commitment their pets need. That is when animals suffer, common ones no less than exotics.

Though i agree, too, that petshops should never stock such exotic animals. They are almost guaranteed to end up in the hands of someone who doesn't know and doesn't care to find out.

AlexAndCarmen · Jun 16, 2006

I do fully agree with that starrynightxxi. But unfortunately in South Africa, we weren't educated properly in the care of most of those kinds of animals. As I said, my own mother had a bush baby, and because they had absolutely no idea of how to handle or care for it, it attacked them and ended up being gotten rid of. Not too sure, but I think my grandmother gave it back to the pet shop

. As we can see on this forum, people like Graham are very capable of looking after these types of animals, but obviously he is clued up. As you said, it depends on the type of person. And obviously, I strongly disagree with tiger and other huge wild animal keepers.

She came back the other night. Made a huge fuss outside, such noisy little things. She is too adorable.

Keep well, Carmen