Confused!!!! please help!!!!?

Question

well...im sooo confused..-.- i got 2 gerbils and one for me and one for my sister, but the one for me is constantly biting me not making blood come out but he bites and nibbles and pees on me and i think we are returnin both for hamsters do u think thats a good choice?

Answer 1

hamsters are great pets but if you want two pets DO NOT GET HAMSTERS the are solitary and will eat each other. dwarf hamsters will not they love living in groups or pairs. but gerbils nip at each other, tasting each others saliva is their way of greeting others. maybe hes just greeting you. gerbils can and will draw blood if they want to. sounds like hes not trying to hurt you.

Answer 2

NO. Hamsters are not any better.

If you are looking for a small pet that is social and lives in a cage, get a rat.

Seriously they are very lovable animals and they rarely ever bite.

They are smart animals and can sit with you and watch TV. They need a little more room than gerbils but are MUCH better pets.

Answer 3

You've barely given them a chance. Why in the world would you return them for a new pet? When you got them you made a commitment to care for them for their entire LIFE. They depend on YOU. I find it very irresponsible of you to even consider returning them before you've worked with them.

Most gerbils go through a mouthy stage, especially young ones. They just like to see if you're edible or not. If it's not making you bleed, it's not a big problem. It can be fixed. First, wash your hands thoroughly before handling your gerbil to make sure you don't smell or taste like food. When your gerbil nips you, firmly say no, and blow a puff of air in its face. Gerbils, generally, don't like this and it doesn't harm them. They'll start to associate the unpleasant puff of air with them biting and will stop.

Peeing is a sign of nervousness. When I first got my gerbils, they peed on me every single time I took them out. Now that they're used to me, they only pee on me of I forget to let them pee before I take them out to play after a nap.

It'll take time for your gerbils to get used to you. How long have you had them? I'm guessing under 2 months, right? I've had my gerbils for a little over 6 months. When I first got them, they peed and pooped on me all the time. They nibbled on me. One bit me so hard I bled. Did I return them? No, I didn't. I worked with them. I stuck to it because *I* am responsible for caring for them. *I* made a commitment to them when I bought them. It was like a promise to care for them for the rest of their lives. Now, they rarely urinate on me. They rarely, if ever nibble on me. It takes TIME, PATIENCE, and actual EFFORT to make things work.

It's up to you to tame them and work with them. What happens if you return them for hamsters and the hamsters bite you? What happens if the hamsters pee on you? Are you going to return those for new pets? Syrian hamsters can't be kept together, so you'd have to get each their own cage. If you get dwarf hamsters, they must be litter mates and bought at the same time. Even then, there's still a slight chance they'll fight.

I'm really sorry, but this angers me. It sounds like you've barely tried before giving up. Why would you get them if you weren't going to work with them? Did you think that they'd come already tamed to not bite and urinate on you? You need to take responsibility for the pets YOU chose to buy. If you want hamsters, why didn't you get them in the first place? Be a good pet owner and KEEP them. Work with them. They'll get used to you with time. Don't give them up because of your mistake and lack of concern or effort.

Answer 4

shana stop hatein on da hamsters just because rats aren't *** cute as hamsters dosen't give u da right 2 hate anyway u should get a hamster as small as possible cause u will get 2 no u longer first leave it alone 4 2 3 days N start 2 talk 2 it pick it with gloves for a week or 2 then see if it eats from ur hands still were gloves if it does keep doin 4 a copule of more days then take the gloves off n try it o yeah when u get it put somethin with ur scent in da cage so it no's u ur hamster will nerver bite u if u tame it unless u surprize it or wake it up

Answer 5

I totally agree with Liveyourlife. She has some very good points, and I really urge you to take her advice.

And to Kamal - Firstly, I just wanted to tell you to TAKE AND ENGLISH CLASS and learn how use our language correctly. I can barely understand you.

Secondly, rats are extremely cute, and many people think this as well. It's all in the eye of the beholder. Rats make great pets, and whether you like it or not, they actually *are* better pets than hamsters. Some may disagree, but if you boil it all down, rats have better qualities and personality all around. I am in no way saying I don't like hamsters and think they are bad pets, but now that I have owned rats, I've seen how amazing they are compared to when I owned hamsters.

People also think rats are "dirty" or "gross," when in reality, they associate domesticated rats with their wild counterparts. Rats are very clean animals. My friend's hamster smells, and my rats do not smell.

Sorry about that. Kamal's comment just really got be wound up and angry. People can be very judgmental about rats.

But, like everything Liveyourlife said, just keep working with them. They will come around eventually, and learn to not bite. It just takes time, but the results will be well worth it. =)

Answer 6

Well, it all depends on your personality and what you tend to like. I LOVE hamsters but that is just me. Hamsters can be just as snappy as gerbils can be though. All of my hamsters p**p on me every time. Twice they peed on someone else. But hamsters are a lot more handleable than gerbils. Gerbils tend to like to explore and have fun. Hamsters will stay calm and collected (unless mistreated). Hamsters can watch TV with you as well. My hamster just sat on my lap for about 15 min before I decided she should do something else. So I roused her up and she explored and stuff. Hamsters can bite too. Dwarf hamsters tend to bite more than Syrians (the "big" hamsters) but it all depends on their personality. If you want to watch a pet more than handle it, gerbils are great. But if you want to handle a pet more than watch it, hamsters are for you. ^_^ But how long have you had the gerbils? Perhaps it is better for you to keep them for a couple more days and see how things turn out. Thats what I did with one of my hamsters. =] But since you are thinking about getting a hamster, here are some tips that might get ya started.

- Syrian hamsters (the big hamsters) are solitary. Only keep one in each cage or they will fight each other to death.

- Dwarf hamsters (small hamsters) like to live in pairs. Roborovskiis like to live in groups. Anyways, dwarfs are more fun to look at. They tend to be more active than Syrians but aren't as cuddly hence their size.

- Hamsters require little cleaning. Clean cage every week.

Answer 7

If they aren't the right choice for you, then you should probably change.  If you aren't happy they won't be either.  I've had a few hamsters and they have all been very sweet. But they varied in temperment with diffrent family members.  A freind of mine who worked in a pet store said all the rats she dealt with were not nice and bit all the time.  But I suppose that varies too.