Is a hamster cage ok?

[Raylolo]

I really want an animal or animals to put in my hamster cage. It's empty and it's just sitting there and I deffinately have the time, the space, and the money for more pets.

Sooo...I was thinking about rats! I thought that a hamster cage might be too small for even just one rat.

What about mice? Could a mouse or two be housed in a hamster cage?

The hamster cage does not have tubs or anything. It's not like a habitat. It's just a small wire cage with a plastic bottom. I had housed a dwarf hamster in it, but unfortunately he passed. =(

[mulder]

oh gosh NO a rat won't fit in a hamster cage lol! silly, that's like us being locked in a bathroom. :p I assume you don't want a hamster? So mice are great! I have two girls, so crazy to watch them run around and play! Females are very social so you need at least two for them to be happy. Males I've heard go either way, some are social and some are solitary. But I've only owned girls so I can't say. But I can say that females are hilarious! I have two hamster cages connected with a short stubby tube. Full of safe wood branches, climbing things, wheel, toilet paper and little cardboard boxes to sleep in. AND you can watch them cover all that area in 5 seconds LOL. crazy critters

[Vanilla_Rat]

Heck no!
A rat needs a large cage.
And rats are highly social,meaning you need at least two,meaning an even bigger cage!


http://www.martinscages.com
There are some good rat cages there.


For your cage,I would reccommend either two female mice or one male.Male mice are very territorial and in many cages will fight to the death.In rare cases,male littermates raised up since birth can live together...but even then there may or may not be problems.


So a pair of female mice.

[pinkie1205]

What kind of cage is it and how big? Some of those wire cages are fairly small.

Honestly if you don't mind the smell a male mouse might be nice. IMO they can get very sociable and make good pets, but they DO have a mousey smell. If you clean the cage weekly it should be no problem. And when I say clean I mean more then just dumping the bedding. You'll have to scrub the ENTIRE cage (even with females). They like to pee wherever.

If you want 2 animals though then go for 2 females.

[Raylolo]

Ok thanks. I didn't think it would be big enough for even just one rat.

I think I may get 2 female mice.

I've just had so many hamsters and gerbils in the past that I want to try a new animal. I've never had mice or rats before. I do want a rat, but I figure since I've already got a hamster cage that will be fine for mice, they'll be fine. Mice are just miniture rats really. =P

I wasn't wanting to buy a whole new cage, because I don't know where'd I'd put that. So I'll probably get mice, if not then perhaps it will stay an empty cage. =P

[Vanilla_Rat]

Actually mice are not miniature rats!
They both have different diets (despite what many people think).They are both omnivores,but mice need more seeds in their diet then rats.Rats have diet requirements similar to us!


And while they are both greyt pets,rats and mice have different personalities!!! I prefer rats,they are like "mini dogs".But mice are awesome little pets too.Mice are more wary then rats,while rats LOVE human contact.Mice can too,but might still be more wary then a rat.I miss having mice personally.


I would go for the mice.
Personally I would go for female mice anyway,just cause I like them better then male mice (I like male rats better then females...hah).

Good luck!