5 Small Animals Home Owners can Keep

Keeping a pet while living in a small space can be a big problem. You can have a pet that needs to stretch out its legs or run around since space is limited, but you can make do with smaller animals which are easy to take care of and won’t really mind the small space of your home.

Below are 5 small animals that you can keep as pets.

Guinea Pig

Also known as cavies, these animals are actually not pigs. There are around 13 different types of guinea pig breeds which come in a range of colors, patters and fur length. They can reach a weight of 3 pounds and have a life span of 5 to 10 years. Guinea pigs are a great choice as starter pets for kids who are still learning how to take care of animals. Make sure they get fresh water and a good amount of vegetables. You can also give them prairie hay and commercial pellets that you can get form any pet shop.

Hamsters

These adorable little animals are commonly called pocket pets since they’re small enough that you can carry them around with you in your pockets. They’re furry, cute, friendly and super easy to take care of. They can grow to around 17 centimeters or 7 inches in length. However, there are also smaller breeds, like the Roborovski dwarf hamster, which are usually just around 7 centimeters or 2 inches in length. Life span is from two to three years and they feed on commercial pellets, fresh vegetables and fruits. Clean water is needed every day.

Geckos

For a more exotic pet, you can keep a gecko. There’s something unique and appealing about keeping a lizard as a pet. Geckos come in a variety of colors, but the most common one would be the leopard gecko. They’re naturally shy and they’ll need some time to warm up to you. But once they trust you, they’ll happily let you pick them up. Their life span is up to 20 years and they live off crickets and worms.

Rabbits

These are probably the biggest animals on the list. Rabbits can be taught tricks, come when they’re called and poo and pee in a litter box. It’s sounds like an odd mix of dog-like and cat-like qualities. There are a number of breeds which come in a variety of ear lengths, fur, color and sizes. Rabbits can live for up to 10 years and they do need a little exercise. You can take them outdoors with a leash and collar and let them walk and hop around. Feed them fresh vegetables and commercial pellets.

Hermit crab

It sounds odd, but you can keep hermit crabs as a pet. Some pet shops sell them with all the supplies you need to keep them happy and satisfied. They’re active, interesting little creatures and are definitely the usual pet. Contrary to their name, they can be active and social, especially during night. They can live up to 30 years and eat commercial pellets and occasional fruit. They also need dechlorinated salt water and fresh water.

5 Bizarre and Amazing Hybrid Animals

People have always been curious about cross breeding and what could happen if your mix one animal with another that’s similar to it. When certain breed of animals are cross bred with another, the results can be quit surprising.

Here are 5 Hybrid Animals that are both bizarre and amazing.

Zebroid

Also called a zebrule, zebra mule or zedonk, this animal is the result of breeding a zebra with a different equine, creating a zebra hybrid. Zebroid is used as a generic name for different types of zebra hybrids. Most of the time, the breeders use a zebra stallion as a sire. There’s no distinct species of zebra being used to create a hybrid and most do successfully mate and produce offspring. These animals commonly retain the trademark stripes of zebras.

Liger

This is a cross between a lion, which is often times the male specimen of the pair, and a tiger. Lions and tigers do share the same genus but are different species. Ligers are known to be huge, bigger than the average male lion, even when they’re female. They enjoy swimming, a trait they got from tigers, but are sociable and live well with others like lions. They only exist in captivity since their parental species don’t share the same habitat in the wild.

Wolphin

Wolphin or wholphins are rare hybrids. They’re born from mating a bottlenose dolphin with a false killer whale. Their names imply a mix between a dolphin and a whale, although taxonomically, they’re both within the same family under the same suborder. There have been reports of these animals actually existing in the wild, but there are currently two specimen in captivity found in Hawaii’s Sea Life Park. Fishermen and seafaring lore call these animals “The Great Gray Beast.”

Grolar Bear

An ursid hybrid that has exsisted both in the wild and captivity, this is a mixture between a polar bear and a grizzly bear. One confirmed wild specimen was found in 2006 when DNA testing on a strange looking bear seen near the Canadian Arctic was done. They look more like polar bears only their fur has a brown tint to it and they also have the grizzly bear’s hump.

Beefalo

These are a known hybrid between domestic cattle and an American bison or buffalo. They were created to create a domesticated animal that shared the features of both animals to boost up beef production. Beefalo are mainly cattle in appearance and genetics.  A downside of the creation of this breed is that it has caused a setback in the conservation of wild American bison since the herds are partly crossbred and genetically polluted with cattle.

Tucuxi Dolphin

The tucuxi dolphins is a freshwater dolphins found in the rivers of amazon basin. This dolphins have a light colored to bluish grey on its back and its side.

Northern Right Whale Dolphin

Northern Right Whale Dolphin has a small, curved, narrow and pointed flippers, the body is mostly black while its underside is partly lighter in color. This dolphins usually travels in group of 5 - 200 and as they travel they like making low leaps together reaching as far as 7meters in one leap. This dolphins usually avoid boats

Common Bottlenose Dolphin

Common Bottlenose Dolphin is grey in color. The Bottlenose Dolphin has more flexible neck than any other dolphins due to five of their seven vertebrae not being fused together as is seen in other dolphin species.

Long-Beaked Common Dolphin

Long Beaked Dolphin has a dark back color and white on its belly. This dolphins live in shallow, warmer temperature waters near the coast. They also live in the tropical and subtropical regions.

Oxynotus

Oxynotus or commonly called caribbean roughsharks lives in deepwaters in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

Dromioidea

Dromioidea is a superfamily of crabs found in madagascar.

lubber grasshopper

A lubber grasshopper is known for its unique color and also for its size that will reach nearly almost 3inches

Bunyoro rabbit

Bunyoro rabbit has a greyish brown color body and its tail is yellowish above and white beneath it.

European rabbit

European rabbit is a smallish grey brown rabbit known for digging network of burrows.