Bit sad this morning :-(
- Thread starter Bing
- Start date
My friend at work was ranting about buying a hamster for his daughter 3 weeks ago. It was a sickie, cost him loads in vet bills. I now has died and she still made him take it to the vet, £20 for check and disposal. 
Been there, done that. He'll be upset for a day or two, then he'll want another pet. Guinea Pigs are more fun and last longer (Get two, make sure they're the same sex)
EDIT - Avoid fancy rats. Brilliant and intelligent pets with great characters but they get all sorts of foul and expensive illnesses (cancer is common) and they eat everything. My daughter went through a phase of wanting rats, they eat through the bars on 3 cages until I bought something that looked like a Rotweiller would have trouble chewing through it (and then they ate that as well). They are without doubt, the most expensive pets we've had in the house. (and if you clean them out regularly, don't smell)
EDIT - Avoid fancy rats. Brilliant and intelligent pets with great characters but they get all sorts of foul and expensive illnesses (cancer is common) and they eat everything. My daughter went through a phase of wanting rats, they eat through the bars on 3 cages until I bought something that looked like a Rotweiller would have trouble chewing through it (and then they ate that as well). They are without doubt, the most expensive pets we've had in the house. (and if you clean them out regularly, don't smell)
Gargybloke said:My friend at work was ranting about buying a hamster for his daughter 3 weeks ago. It was a sickie, cost him loads in vet bills. I now has died and she still made him take it to the vet, £20 for check and disposal.
This happened with our rabbits - one of them cost an absolute fortune in vets fees, only to die three weeks later. I had to dig holes in the garden though, as I I'll later toay :roll:
Stuart Truman said:
We'll have a pet rest for a while... He's been muttering about a pair of Degu's, which is NOT happening. My parents made the different sex guinea pig mistake when I was a kid and we ended up with 15 !!
andysat said:
Unfortunately he actually IS 12 Andy, so that won't wash
Taz x said:
Thanks Taz
andysat said:
Doesn't work. They can tell the difference. Dont ask how, but they can. My younger sis used to keep them. One escaped one night, and one of its pals decided to gnaw its feet off (they're nasty b@stards, hamsters). My dad was beating the door of the pet shop down at 9am. Bought an identical hamster. Disposed of all evidence of wrong-doing and felt very proud of himself. As soon as she saw the cage, she knew!!
mrlozzer said:andysat said:
Doesn't work. They can tell the difference. Dont ask how, but they can. My younger sis used to keep them. One escaped one night, and one of its pals decided to gnaw its feet off (they're nasty b@stards, hamsters). My dad was beating the door of the pet shop down at 9am. Bought an identical hamster. Disposed of all evidence of wrong-doing and felt very proud of himself. As soon as she saw the cage, she knew!!
-cant you explain to them that hamsters moult overnight and change fur colour?We had to take our old hamster to the vet to be put down a couple of years ago, he's up the garden now with a rabbit, we got a new one, Ninja Norman 
, he built like a brick sh*those and does monkey swings to get across the roof of his cage, funny , he's just over two now so I suspect he'll have a spot up the garden soon 
, he built like a brick sh*those and does monkey swings to get across the roof of his cage, funny , he's just over two now so I suspect he'll have a spot up the garden soon aquazi said:a cat lives longer... but then it would prob sit on your roof, so you'd kill it within 2 years
Very true!
On a serious note though, our eldest dog is 14 now and very doddery. I dread every morning in case I find that he's passed during the night.... Pets, eh?
He's surprisingly fine about it - he's not even inspected the body yet !
In fairness, she was at the vet two weeks ago, had wet-tail - basically the runs, but very bad in a hamster and almost always terminal. Got given antibiotics but the vet didn't hold out much hope. So he's had a chance to get used to the idea and just looked after her loads for the last 2 weeks.
No more pets for a while. Though it is possible I will cave again...
In fairness, she was at the vet two weeks ago, had wet-tail - basically the runs, but very bad in a hamster and almost always terminal. Got given antibiotics but the vet didn't hold out much hope. So he's had a chance to get used to the idea and just looked after her loads for the last 2 weeks.
No more pets for a while. Though it is possible I will cave again...
Awww! It's sad when a pet dies, no matter what it is, the kids become close to them.
We lost our Dalmatian a few months ago and I cried and cried for weeks
No more pets, I can't take them dying any more.
Hope wee Bingis ok (my iPad stuck that together and I kinda liked it so left it!)
We lost our Dalmatian a few months ago and I cried and cried for weeks
No more pets, I can't take them dying any more.
Hope wee Bingis ok (my iPad stuck that together and I kinda liked it so left it!)
mrlozzer said:On a serious note though, our eldest dog is 14 now and very doddery. I dread every morning in case I find that he's passed during the night.... Pets, eh?
Trust me, that would be a far better outcome than having to take them to the vet and have them put to sleep. I know I've had to do it twice and it's not nice. :thumbsdown:
1066 Country
Find him a nice house spider (UK variety ONLY) & then get him to feed it with all sorts of flies...
Used to have one in my M&D's shed, trained it well & got massive... Easy to replace, no vet bills & ecologically friendly...
All the best Bing
Used to have one in my M&D's shed, trained it well & got massive... Easy to replace, no vet bills & ecologically friendly...
All the best Bing
Dav the wheel nut said:mrlozzer said:On a serious note though, our eldest dog is 14 now and very doddery. I dread every morning in case I find that he's passed during the night.... Pets, eh?
Trust me, that would be a far better outcome than having to take them to the vet and have them put to sleep. I know I've had to do it twice and it's not nice. :thumbsdown:
Been there too before now... it does kind of make you wonder why we put ourselves through this
Bing, I'm sure wee Bing will be fine in a couple of weeks... I'm not so sure about you though! We'll all help you through this
Dav the wheel nut said:mrlozzer said:On a serious note though, our eldest dog is 14 now and very doddery. I dread every morning in case I find that he's passed during the night.... Pets, eh?
Trust me, that would be a far better outcome than having to take them to the vet and have them put to sleep. I know I've had to do it twice and it's not nice. :thumbsdown:
Yeah, both our dogs we had when I was a kid had to be pit down whether back ends when... Devastating. Flo was 'only' a hamster, but you get attached to them. Not sure I could face having a dog simply because they become so much more than just a pet.
Sorry to hear that mate......if its any consolation if got 4 (formerly 5) of these little bastards who have cost us over 5 grand over 4 years including all the clobber you need.
I asked the vet to add up all the bills - £850 of which 1 wasa responsible for £450....that one is currently being hand fed mushed up food through a little pipette thing because she's had most of her teeth out!
I asked the vet to add up all the bills - £850 of which 1 wasa responsible for £450....that one is currently being hand fed mushed up food through a little pipette thing because she's had most of her teeth out!