Steampets

[steampunkgrrrl]

A ferret! Ferrets are cute....they can be mean tho. 

[Mr. Straenge]

Rats are definitely wonderful pets and there are great breeders. I haven't talked to many in years, but I am sure you could find a few reputable ones.

For myself, after my Nietzsche died, I was rather inconsolable for almost a week and I really don't think I could go through that again.

I am surprised nobody mentioned Sugar Gliders though. They are faintly exotic and they can glide. You can't get much more steampunk. And their average life spans are 4 times greater than the average fancy rats.

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-S

[steampunkgrrrl]

Ohmygosh! Like in Captain Nemo! *overwhelmed by the cuteness!!!* *gushing*

[rovingjack]

I would think a robot would be a decent steampunk pet.

Or the old invisible dog bit.

electric eel?

hmmm now I've got ideas...

[Utini420]

A buddy of mine kept two Sugar Gliders in his dorm room in college.  Cute little buggers.  He had one that was albino, which for them means black fur. 

[Nikola Tesla]

Triops, the three-eyed living anachronisms! 

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Oooh!  I so want!

Wish they got a bit bigger though, I could get a small colony and scare off...unwanted guests.  If I don't think of something soon, I'll have to place my unwanted guest in a cage and make do with that.  (Minus its "listings".  I don't want it to be happy, and I'm sure animal cruelty laws have a loophole in this case).

For a more practical suggestion, I see no one has mentioned iguanas.  As lizards go, iguanas are pretty easy - they're a lot easier to feed, eating mostly vegetables (they need crickets every few days when they're young).  But they still need the warm set-up.  Use a heat lamp not hot rocks.  Avoid cedar based substrate...it can carry mites that will affect your ig's skin/scales. They can sit on hot rocks too long and burn themselves.  Make sure the ig can't actually sit on the source of heat.  The can also rub their noses against the outsides of cages, not realizing they can't get out, until they rub the skin right off.  Make sure your ig can easily see the boundaries of its cage.

When shopping for an iguana, go up to the cage and choose the specimen who does not run away or get feisty.  The placid ones are the ones that with enough human interaction can get used to you enough to sit quietly on your shoulder. Without biting your ear. 

With any "exotic", get a book or talk to real experts (not pet store employees) first.  Check out your local herp society (they will also know applicable laws).  And needless to say, be especially cautious if you have any children at home.

[darkshines]

I've had many small pets over the years, but by far the best were either my fancy rats, or my leopard gecko, Godzilla. I adored her, she was easy to keep, and lived for a good ten years Rats are fab but they need SPACE, my best boys were well over two foot long at their biggest, so they need huge cages!

[Utini420]

Man, triops are great.  I used to keep some in my office at work.
On another occasion I dumped a bunch into my turtle tank.  I've never seen the regular inhabitants of that tank go quite so bonkers to eat something, so triops must be tasty.

[quantumcat]

I was getting around to mentioning pocket possums,honest!

A sugar glider is another  critter that requires thought and committment but it is good-natured,intelligent,and fun.

It 'll remind one to eat properly as one has to grow or procure fresh fruits and vegetables anyway for its diet.

You can't have one glider by itself,either but the more you have the better.

I have four (a mated pair and their son and daughter) with the lads now in one cage and the ladies in the other.

So far,they seem content to have their cages about six inches apart but we may be getting the boyz altered shortly so they can live as a colony.

They do seem to like "Space 1889" and "Crimson Skies" among other passtimes.

They are quite willing to critique our efforts to tinker,paint or make terrain and, (when they can acquire a polyhedral die) often
bark their rallying cry: "Roll for mealie!"

(I've not the heart to tell them that 'melee' is something else again.)

[cyberjacques]

Forgive me if someone has already mentioned this, since I haven't read all the way through the thread.  But the suggestion of the hermit crabs gave me an idea.  My nephew has one, and he decorated its current shell with some stickers and such.  The crab doesn't seem to mind, so I was thinking that it might be possible to give the crab a shell, artificial or natural, that is done up in a steampunk fashion.  I think one that looks like a cast iron boiler with a steam pipe sticking out of it might be entertaining.  Or maybe something with brass and leather...  The challenge, I think, would be making sure the shell wasn't too heavy, and that none of the items used to decorate it would be toxic or otherwise harmful to the crab.

[Utini420]

I don't know why, but your post made me suddenly think about superglueing watch gears onto the back of a cockroach.

Trust me, your idea is much cuter than mine.

[Arceye]

I was thinking that it might be possible to give the crab a shell, artificial or natural, that is done up in a steampunk fashion.  I think one that looks like a cast iron boiler with a steam pipe sticking out of it might be entertaining.  Or maybe something with brass and leather...  The challenge, I think, would be making sure the shell wasn't too heavy, and that none of the items used to decorate it would be toxic or otherwise harmful to the crab.

                      Papier mache?

[cyberjacques]

I believe papier mache would get soggy very quickly, since a hermit crab must be kept in a moist environment.  Maybe a ceramic of some kind?

[Mr. Straenge]

I don't know why, but your post made me suddenly think about superglueing watch gears onto the back of a cockroach.

Trust me, your idea is much cuter than mine.

Where as it made me think of doing the same to a turtle, except possibly adding a working clock. However, I don't think I could bring myself to do it. Maybe a hard-shelled turtle. I know glue won't harm him (as long as he protected from the fumes a bit I suppose.)

-S

[Utini420]

Self preservation prevented me from picturing it done to a turtle.  In fact, I can't even see it now.

Do you know what my wife would do if I glued watch parts to her turtles?  Without her?

[cyberjacques]

I would suggest great care in attaching accessories to parts of the animal that are permanently connected to their anatomy.  If I remember correctly, a turtle's spine is attached to the inside of their shell, so I wouldn't use anything that risks puncturing or cracking it.  I would bet that glue probably won't hurt it, but something non-toxic would probably be a good idea anyway.

[akumabito]

Mr Whiskers is not amused..

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[Utini420]

Oh, I'd never really do anything that had even a decent chance of hurting my turtles.  They're my little water buddies.

Now, I do not make the same claim to the other inhabitants of that aquarium, 100% of which were added for the turtles own personal amusement and culinary delight.  We see a very high turn over rate in these other critters... the slow ones just don't last. :->

[Mr. Straenge]

I feel the same and I don't even own one yet. I know you can use superglue in an emergency on a turtle that breaks his shell and it won't harm him at all but I still couldn't bring myself to glue gears to one. What about a turtle shell cover? Like a shower cap but smaller and using a breathable fabric. Could be a new wave of dressing up turtles.

I couldn't bring myself to do that either. Its bad enough to see chihuahuas in sweaters..

-S

[Nikola Tesla]

Having seen hermit crabs dressed up, but never turtles, leads me to suspect there's probably a reason why not turtles; the aforementioned shell difficulties or perhaps social factors.  I guess I wouldn't try it.

Something about experimenting on one's own pets seems, well, wrong. 

[cyberjacques]

Personally, I would just stick to the hermit crabs, since their shell is disposable, and arthropods are kinda steamy anyway.  Plus, if anything does go wrong, they're not as high up in the food chain as something like a turtle, and they're pretty cheap.  But please, if anyone tries this, be nice to our crustacean friends.  Remember, the point of the exercise is to end up with a steamy home for a healthy and living crab.

[Utini420]

SuperGlue is actually 100% non-toxic, at least in humans and I suspect most animals.  It was developed for use as a surgical suture (that's why I keep it in 1st Aid kits.).

As to the turtle shells, I think the main problems would be behavioral.  I've got two in my aquarium, and they stroll about in there like little armored tanks with smooth shells.  They are not at all shy about brushing up against anything they bloody well please.  If you had stuff sticking out from the shell, I assure you they would find ways to get it caught on stuff.  Best case, they'd have plant matter, dead fish, and other gunk stuck to the decorations.  Worst case, they really get it stuck (or worse, try to rip it off each other) and in ripping the decorative bits off they could damage the shell, maybe even break it.  And that would suck.

[Honeybell]

If you can stand the noise, guinea pigs are great.  Kinda rat-like, but smarter.   

[steampunkgrrrl]

Mice are cute, but their cages reek if you don't change them on a regular basis.

[Countessa Lenora]

If you can stand the noise, guinea pigs are great.  Kinda rat-like, but smarter.   

We'll have to agree to disagree.  Our family has had guinea pigs and rats.  Rats are much smarter than guina pigs.