<p>IMO getting an undomesticated animal as a pet is a bad idea and frankly unfair to the animal (unless it is a rescue, like a baby or an injured animal with no chance of returning to the wild or something.) Everyone wants these animals that are “exotic”, but most of the time that means they don’t interact well with humans or have habits that don’t mesh well with humans–peeing all over or digging through furniture or being hostile towards people outside the “family” group or getting stressed out over sounds/activities that are normal in human society . . . I’m sure it took a long time for humanity to breed the undesirable traits out of dogs and cats to the point where they will play fetch with us or purr for us, and yet you get people keeping alligators in bathtubs or mule deer in trailers or Paris Hilton with that poor (nocturnal) kinkajou that attacked her after she dragged it around to stores all day. </p>
<p>Dogs and cats are great pets. Domestic rats or gerbils, too. I would avoid hedgehogs.</p>
<p>We had gerbils once. They were supposed to be the same sex but turned out they weren’t as evinced by the babies that arrived. Cute the *first *time it happened. Tried separating the now larger group into separate cages but apparently never quite got the identifying the sexes right. More babies. Not so cute when they ate the babies. Even less cute when some of them turned on one of the older ones, presumably because he was old and infirm. They had torn half the skin off his body when we found him. Separated him from the rest but he died. It was a really horrible experience and we did not like gerbils at all after that.</p>
<p>I will have to forward some of your posts to my daughter.</p>
<p>we love pet rats… they are very interactive and fun but they can easily stay in the cage for awhile if you are a bit busy for a few days…ride on your shoulder…very cute!</p>
<p>I want a pet snake. :)</p>
<p>^see username</p>
<p>Rats are very intelligent, social, and friendly! I would get some except I’m sure my cats would spend all day staaaaring in at them, plotting how eat them.</p>