ive only really had fish but ther enothing close to a buddy like, something like a dog or a cat. pets are also pricey and im allergic to cats and dogs plus my home is kinda messy. i do wish i could get something besides a fish but you know it is what it is.
so what type of pet do you have or what is the best type of pet to have?
You should work on taking care of yourself/your home before moving to another life that relies fully on you.
With that said, I think that a companion pet can often help one make those changes. Since it sounds like money and allergies are a bit of an issue, I would suggest looking at rats. They are incredibly loyal and affectionate, clean, intelligent. They only live about 2-3 years, which sucks, but if you find that pet ownership isn’t for you (and it’s okay if it isn’t), you aren’t beholden to an animal that will live 4-5 times as long.
Rats are ace.
As I type this, there’s one scuttling about in his cage next to me. It pains me that he’s alone, but his brothers have all passed away now, and we aren’t planning on getting any more once Wilbur’s shuffled along. He’s getting old now, so it wouldn’t be fair to rehome him. So he’s a grumpy old bachelor boy who still loves his Cheerios and stealing my toast in the morning.
I guess taking care of a handful of plants is always a good first step in getting your life back together.
Cats and dogs are surprisingly some of the least labor intensive pets. Things like rabbits, reptiles, birds, etc are all effectively exotic pets. Not all veterinaries can or will treat them. They have highly specialized diets, and social structures. They tend to have pens or cages that need regular deep cleaning. So on and so forth.
There’s also a personal preference at play. Personally, I’m a cat person. Dogs are adorable, when they are someone else’s.
Obviously, if you’re allergic to dogs/cats, that probably rules them out (I’m allergic to cats and have 2 but my allergy is relatively mild).
Based on the 4 sentences you provided a fish might be your best bet.
The other thing with rabbits (and prey animals in general) is they don’t always form a good bond with a human; it can take a long time if they are fussy. Even if they do take to liking you, prey animals tend to only show subtle signs of illness until they are critically unwell by which point it might be too late. That’s before we get to whether there’s a vet nearby who has a special interest in “exotic pets” and who knows how to help.
Edit to add: the signs of illness are subtle because they actively hide it - key to survival is to avoid looking like easy prey.
Agreed.
Iirc their diets are highly specialized too. It’s not what everyone thinks. You can just give them lettuce and the occasional fruit.
I’d say most animals mask their illness/injuries well, unfortunately. Pet owners really need to know their pet well and see the very subtle changes most of the time.
The main reason I’m not interested in practicing on exotics, even though I love them, is because they hide their illnesses so well. It feels like by the they’re sick enough for an owner to notice and bring them in, 9/10 the prognosis is so grave they’re euthanized on presentation or die a few days later.
I think it depends. I have three snakes, and I feel that combined they’re less work than a single cat or dog. They’re all in bioactive enclosures with an automatic misting system, so other than changing out the water, care just involves feeding them once a week to once every other week, reading the temps and humidity whenever I walk into the room, and occasionally handling the to inspect for potential issues
Rats are actually very good pets. You’ll need 2 because they are super social. They are very clean and smart, and it’s possible to train them. We had some when my kids were small and one would ride around on my shoulder. Super cute.
Also, they’re cheap. But they don’t live very long. They aren’t hypo allergenic but they’re so small it isn’t a problem, my wife is allergic to cats and regular dogs and she didn’t have an issue.
Or, get a non-allergy dog. There’s lots of doodles and shitzu mixes out there now.
This is a highly subjective question. For me personally, it has been cats. Some people prefer reptiles. It very much depends upon the individual person.
