Besides the fact that any animal living as a pet is virtually guaranteed to be fed, what animals do you think REALLY enjoy it, and which ones might prefer the wild?
A big dog would like the socialization of a family and the comfort of living in a home, but sometimes i imagine he wants to break free and go running through fields, which he may not be able to do every day.
Fish on the other hand seem barely conscious. I doubt they even realise they’re in a tank.
I ask because im thinking about getting a pet for my room, but i dont want to enslave anything that would suffer too greatly from it.
It all depends on how much space the animal would have, and how much time you have to give it, and what sorts of conditions it’d have. If you’re talking about one single room, you’re probably better off with a very small pet like a hamster or some fish or something. Even cats need a little more space than that, IMO. Plus, I wouldn’t wanna sleep in the same room as a litter box.
I think that if well treated, most pets are pretty happy, as long as you’re dealing with a domesticated animal. I know my cats seem pretty happy, especially when they can get all snuggled into a warm lap or when they’re curled up together.
Dogs and cats have been so thoroughly domesticated and bred to depend on people that I think, barring abuse, they’re probably happy where they are.
Birds, on the other hand, have not been domesticated (the types usually kept in indoor cages, anyway), and are kept confined to so much smaller a space than they would roam around in the wild, that I could not keep one as a pet without feeling guilty.
Try a tarantulla. They’re pretty brainless and given a big enough cage with ground cover appropriate to the species, they should be fine. Plus, they’re relatively easy to keep. Just make sure you do all your research first. Some of 'em can live to be past twenty years old, for instance, and some can be quite venomous. You also need to know about heat and light requirements and water preferance - bowl or sprayed on the cage. Feed is usually crickets or baby mice. For a first spider, I’d recommend a Mexican Red Kneed or a Chilean Rose Haired. They’re both very easy going and quite handlable. I pick up the two at work every day, have for over five years and never been bitten.
My previous dog, a Shiba Inu, was still wild at heart. I think he would have at best been happy if we’d lived someplace where he could range around on his own all day, and sneak back at night for a couple mouthfuls of food. He was a good dog, but he was never quite happy even with a big fenced yard to hang out in. He needed miles and miles of room to run in.
On the other hand, the pugs couldn’t be happier with their existance. Life without a couch wouldn’t be worth living to them. Outside?!? That icky no-couch place that sometimes is cold and sometimes is hot and sometimes there’s BUGS? No thanks.
It’s not JUST about the size of the room or being confined or being indoors.
Even an animal that was content in a small space might be a very bad pet for you IF it’s the type that requires a lot of socialization and attention. Are you going to be in the room with your pet a lot? Are you going to be able to give it a lot of time, attention, affection or stimulation? If the answer is no, even the least feral of dogs would be a bad choice.
If you want/need a pet that can be happy in a small cage without your presence for long periods of time, stick to cold-blooded critters. They won’t give YOU any affection, but they don’t require any from you, either.
Are you talking about a dorm room? If so, please follow the guidelines of the dormitory: no animal is going to like being confiscated and possibly euthanized.
I’ve had a lot of pets, but I find that my rats have seemed by far the happiest. I’ve read that domestic rats can actually get depressed and angry without human companionship.
I would have agreed with this until I won a betta fish at my company’s Christmas Party. He’s the most responsive fish I’ve ever seen. He begs when I come in the morning, he’ll try to get my attention by shifting the bowl gravel around, and he likes to play a hide and seek game with my finger. If you need a really low maitenence pet, betta fish are great.
I would have agreed with this until I won a betta fish at my company’s Christmas Party. He’s the most responsive fish I’ve ever seen. He begs when I come in the morning, he’ll try to get my attention by shifting the bowl gravel around, and he likes to play a hide and seek game with my finger. If you need a really low maitenence pet, betta fish are great.
But my vote for animals that are happiet as pets as cats. Cats loooove being with people. Yeah, yeah, everyone thinks they’re stand-offish, but they seem truly happiest when they’re snuggled up next to a human.
I dunno how to rate shedding - they do shed, no doubt about it. But all animals do. Pound for pound, I don’t notice any more or any less hair from them as any other dog. They’re small, so you don’t get as much hair as you would from a larger breed that sheds. But it’s not like it’s inconsequential, either. Vacuuming has to happen.
Snoring and snuffling doesn’t keep me up, but it keeps Mr. Athena up. He’s an incredibly light sleeper, though. Everything keeps him up.
Overall, they’re the best pet I’ve ever had, hands down. And I’ve had lots of cats and dogs and fish and birds who I thought were great. But nothing beats a pug.
Are large predators (like lions and tigers) happier in zoos? After all, in a zoo, they don’t have to hunt-they get fed, they don’t have to worry about getting killed by an alpha-wanna-be-male, and they are not prey to most dideases. Of course, being cooped up in a cage probably isn’t fun. But in a nice zoo 9like San Diego), life is easy for the big predators.
As for dogs, they like living with humans-so much so, that they THINK they are humans.
I agree with rats as well. My rats run to the door of their cage whenever I go in their room*, and love to climb on me more than they like to explore the whole room. It’s almost like having little dogs. For a small room, gerbils might be a good choice though. They’re really fun to watch, and basically odor free, unlike most other rodents. Get a pair or a trio, though. Like rats, they can get very lonely if they don’t have a companion.
*It’s cold now, so they live in the guest room where it’s warm. When the weather gets warmer, they’re coming back out to our front room off the living room. It gets really cold in there during winter.
Anybody ever have a pet lobster? I like the idea of having an animal as a pet, that when you get tired of it, you can toss it into boiling water, and have a delicious dinner?
I’m sorry to keep hijacking, but I’ve been doing a lot of research about them…have you had a lot of medical bills from them (I know they seem to have teeth and of course respiratory issues)? Are they stinky, and can you give them a bath in the kitchen sink (do they hate baths)? Are they really content to stay inside all day while I am at work? From your post I assume they like to couch potato like me so that’s a selling point!