0
You need to devote ample time and be patient when it comes to understanding your pocket pet. As you start spending time with your hamster, gerbil or rat, you will start recognizing their personality traits and preferences. Check out the following common characteristics and behaviors of small rodents as they would help you to understand your pocket pet in a better way. Here we go…
- Gerbils: These creatures are the ones who communicate by drumming their hind legs rapidly against the ground or in high pitched whistles. This thumping indicates either sexual excitement or warning. Gerbils, similar to different small desert creatures, are good at hearing and such warning systems help them foresee danger as well as flee for cover. At times you may notice that your gerbil digs in the edges of his cage constantly, particularly if the cage is a glass aquarium. This practice is pretty normal for your pocket pet as well as for his burrowing cousins.
- Hamsters: I agree that at first it may appear unusual when you find your hamsters hiding food into secret spots even after supplying plenty of chow to him on a routine basis. Hey! There’s nothing to worry…your pet is not neurotic…he is simply preparing for a hibernation, which may never take place in captivity. Wild hamsters hoard food (somewhere between 30-60 pounds) every winter. Your pocket pet may get into a hibernating state, if the room temperature is excessively chilled. You can come to know this, if you find your hamster curled in a ball and if he doesn’t respond to light or noise. His heart rate can drop down to as much as four beats each minute from a normal rate say 400 beats per minute. For waking him, you need to shift him to a warm room, say 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Next allow him a minimum of two days for adjusting to warmer temperatures. This pocket pet of yours detests to be awakened and can strike a squinty-eyed defensive pose if you keep on disturbing throughout the day. Remember that your pocket pet requires about fourteen hours of sleep each day.
- During a calm, quite moment with this pocket pet of yours you may hear him making a grating, raspy sound, as if it is grinding sand in between his teeth. Well, there’s nothing to worry as your pocket pet is grinding its teeth in contentment. This is known as bruxing is somewhat same as purring in cats. Some pocket pet owners complain about the bulging of their rats’ eyes or making a movement when they are bruxing. Well, this is pretty normal and is related to the movement of your pet’s jaw. You may also find your rats chattering their teeth…they do so when they are stressed or excited. Rats are extremely social creatures and love to be a part of communal living arrangements.
These are a couple of ideas that will help you understand the behavior of your pocket pet. Hope you enjoyed!
Related posts: