Pocket Pet Breeds, Uses,
Management, and Feeding
Evan Faison
Heritage High School
Animal Science 2: Small Animals
Breeds-Hamster
• Golden Hamster: Adults reach 5”-6” long and weigh about 4 ounces.
Has rich mahogany or orange color on the back with white or creamy
colored underside and legs.
• Dwarf/Small Desert Hamster: Light gray with a dark stripe down the
back, smaller than the Golden, 4-4 ½ inches long. These are active,
friendly pets, but because of their smaller size, they are more difficult
for children to handle.
Breeds-Gerbil
• Adult gerbils reach 6-8 inches long nose to tail and weigh 3-4 ounces
• Mongolian Gerbil: reddish brown to dark brown
Breeds-Rat
• Black: tail is longer than the head and body, and the ears are about
half as long as the head. Color is usually black or dark gray with brown
or gray-white underside
• Brown: larger than the black rat and the tail is always shorter than
the head and body. Thicker and more robust with short and more
rounded ears and fur is dark to gray brown on the back with lighter
colors on the underside.
Breeds-Mice
• Self-Colors: One Color
• Tans: any color with tan belly
• Piebald or pied marked mice: mice with spots, patches or broken
patterns
• Satins: any color or markings with satin coat
Breeds-Guinea Pig
• Adult guinea pig reach 8-14” in length and may weigh from 1 to 4
pounds.
• Guinea pigs have very sensitive hearing and can detect frequencies
beyond the human ear
• Self-defense for guinea pigs is to stand on hind legs and chatter with
their teeth
Breeds-Guinea Pigs Cont.
• Abyssinian: rough, wiry hair coat. The hair is made up of swirls or
cowlicks called rosettes
• American: hair is short, very glossy and fine in texture
• Peruvian: longhaired variety that may reach 20” in length. Since
guinea pigs do not have a tail it is difficult to distinguish the front
from the back of the Peruvian. It looks like an animated mop
• Satin: coat is fine, dense and soft, and has a sheen
Breeds-Chinchilla
• Adults range in length from 9-15 inches with a tail of 3-10 inches and
weigh 1-2 pounds
• Standard: blue-gray that is the most popular
• White: Mutation with black eyes
• Beige: pearl colored to pastel colored
• Black: has a black undercoat, very narrow gray-white band, jet black
veil (tips of fur) and high density
Breeds-Ferrets
• Common Sable: ranges from light to dark, depending on the shade of
both the under fur and guard hairs, the under fur ranges from white
to beige
• White: red-eyed is referred to as a true albino and there are a few
black-eyed white
• Silver Mitt: under fur of white or off-white and guard hairs or black
and white, which gives a silvery appearance
Breeds-Ferrets Cont.
• Sterling Silver: similar to Silver Mitt but with more white guard hairs
• Butterscotch: under fur is same as sable but the guard hairs, mask,
and hood colorings are butterscotch instead of black
• Cinnamon: under fur is white or off-white and guard hairs that are
rich red-brown or cinnamon color
Uses-Hamster
• Used in medical research in 1931, but found that they could be tamed and
made into a pet.
• Golden Hamster is the most abundant hamster used for research and pets
• Dwarf/Small Desert Hamsters make good pets, but because of their
smaller size, children have more problems handling them.
Uses-Gerbil
• Japanese scientists were the first to breed in captivity because they
were easy to work with. They are gentle, active during the day, have
no special food or housing requirements, drink little water, virtually
odorless and would seldom bite.
• These qualities also led to their popularity as pets.
Uses-Rats
• The white albino rats have been a major importance in medical,
biological and psychological research.
• Used in developing drugs, studying diseases, nutrition, aging, and
other topics.
• They are intelligent and have the ability to learn so have been used in
behavioral studies.
• Colored rats especially have been accepted as pets.
Uses-Mice
• Used for medical and biological research, especially with hereditary
studies
• Pet mice are relatively free of disease, and when handled frequently,
show little tendency to bite or escape
Uses-Guinea Pig
• Bred originally for meat production and still used by the native people
of Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia as a food source
• Used in laboratories for research on pathology, nutrition, genetics,
toxicology, and serum development
• Used also as a pet
Uses-Chinchilla
• Used as a source of fur for thousands of years.
• Brought to California from South America to breed for their fur
• Requires 120 to 150 pelts to make a full-length coat
• Used as pets since the 1950’s
Uses-Ferrets
• Recently been found to be wonderful pets, but have a musky smell
and need to be de-scented. Males also need to be castrated
• Used to help wire airplanes in hard to reach places
• Used in scientific research because they catch the same colds as
humans.
Management-Hamsters
• Cage size for a single hamster is 10”x16”x10” tall
• Cages must be gnaw-proof. Commercial cages have stainless steel
tops and bottoms. Plastic floors are designed so the animal can’t
gnaw with their teeth
• Water bottle needs to hand outside the cage to prevent damage from
the animal gnawing or be protected with a metal cover.
• Aquariums make good cages. They allow the animal to see out and
are easy to clean
Management-Hamsters Cont.
• Exercise wheels may be plastic or metal. Plastic wheels will be
destroyed by the animal’s gnawing, but are quitter. This is important
because hamsters exercise all night long
• Hamsters need plenty of clean fresh bedding (paper confetti or strips,
wood chips or shavings, hay, straw, cotton) to absorb urine and give
hamsters something to chew on
Management-Gerbils
• Gerbils are more active and need more space than hamsters
• Multiple gerbils need 36 square inches of floor space for each gerbil
• Overcrowding can lead to cannibalism
• Gerbils can jump, so a wire mesh cover is essential
• Avoid cotton and wool for bedding. These materials can cause
blockage in the digestive system when the gerbil eats them.
Management-Gerbils Cont.
• Cardboard tubes from toilet tissue and paper towels make excellent
temporary tunnels and gerbils enjoy chewing them up
• Only use solid plastic exercise wheels. Wheels that have spokes may
snag the tail of the gerbil and cause injury
Management-Mice
• A pair of mice need a minimum of 72 square inches of floor space and
a height of 8 inches. An aquarium 6”x12”x8” will work for a pair.
• Wood shavings are ideal bedding and should be changed at least once
per week
• Mice urinate in the corners of their cages. Cat litter and baking soda
can help with the strong urine odor
• Water bowls will not work for mice as they quickly become
contaminated with feces and urine.
Management-Guinea Pigs
• Guinea pigs like to see what is going on and aquariums make
excellent cages, while wood cages should be avoided because of the
urine odor that builds up in the wood
• When multiple guinea pigs are being kept, each pig will need at least
180 square inches of floor space
• Keep outside after temperatures warm to 50 F
• Provide 3 square feet of run using chicken wire outside pens.
Management-Chinchillas
• Chinchillas are nocturnal and need a quiet location during the day
• Metal and wire cages 14”x24”x12” will work for a single chinchilla but
24”x24”x14” is better, any wood must be on the outside of the wire
mesh or it will be destroyed
• Need adequate ventilation and a location that is not too hot (over 90
F will cause heat prostration)
• Need small mesh wire less than 1” square to prevent loosing small
chinchillas
Management-Chinchillas Cont.
• Chinchillas must be kept in individual cages or they fight and inflict
serious injury.
• Polygamous breeding cages use a tunnel system for the male to go to
different locations. Females are fitted with a collar that keeps them
from using the tunnel.
Management-Chinchillas Cont.
• Chinchillas need a bah twice a week in finely ground powder to
remove excess moisture and oil (volcanic ash available from the pet
store). During hot weather, baths are needed daily in the powder
• Chinchillas are not bathed in water
Management-Ferrets
• Ferrets can be kept outside all year long if protected from inclement
weather, kept out of drafts, and shaded in the summer
• Need larger water bottles like those used by guinea pigs and rabbits (16
or 32 Ounce)
• Ferrets are escape artist and doors need to be locked
• Food bowls need to be heavy earthenware so they will not be turned
over
• Rubber balls, squeak toys, and plastic pipes provide ferrets with tunnel
and fun for hours.
Feeding-Hamsters
• Easiest to use commercially prepared hard, pellets
• Mixed rations should contain seed, lettuce, dried peas, beans and
nuts
• Avoid sudden changes in diet and don’t overfeed greens and fruits
that may cause diarrhea
• Don’t leave soft type foods in the cage to spoil and be cautious
because they feed may get stuck in hamster’s pouch
• Special treats include sunflower seeds, crickets, and grasshoppers
Feeding-Gerbils
• Same as hamsters except:
• Gerbils like bird seed which adds variety to their diet, but care must
be taken when feeding oilseed like sunflower, because it may lead to
obesity
• Gerbils do not drink much water, an 8 ounce drip type bottle is best
Feeding-Rats
• Same as previous except:
• Rats consume about 1 ounce of water per day and vitamins and
minerals can be added to the water
Feeding-Mice
• Same as previous except:
• Mice will NOT overeat
Feeding-Guinea Pigs
• Guinea Pigs are vegetarians
• GP’s cannot synthesize vitamin C in their body and need vitamin C
enhanced pellets to supplement their diet and prevent scurvy.
Vitamin C pellets must be used within 30 days of opening.
• Fresh greens, lettuce, fruits, herbs, green vegetables, root veggies,
potatoes, clover and dandelion greens are favorite foods.
Feeding-Guinea Pigs Cont.
• Guinea pigs drink with their mouth full of feed, so water bottle tubes
must be cleaned regular to prevent built up bacteria.
• GP’s consume a lot of water and need a 16 to 32 ounce water bottle
Feeding-Chinchillas
• Raisins are a favorite treat of chinchillas
• Best to use commercially prepared hard pellets for chinchillas
Feeding-Ferrets
• Ferrets need a feed containing at least 35% animal protein
• Best to use commercial dry food to maintain gum and teeth health,
but plenty of water needs to be available
• Young ferrets should be fed all they will eat twice a day
• Add ½ teaspoon of vegetable oil to older ferret’s diet to aid in
digestion, bowel movement, and help maintain a healthy coat
• Treats include meat scraps, cracklings, fruits, red licorice, and ice
cream in limited amounts.