Unfortunately, my kids did not agree. They decided they wanted a pet of their own. They vacillated between buying a tarantula, a lizard, parakeets, or rats. They started saving their money and hatching plans to buy their very own pet. They looked on Craigslist and at Zamzows. They started comparing animals and costs. In a hazy moment I said that they could buy a pet if they paid for it themselves, it stayed in a cage, and they did all of the animal care. Why did I say that? I could have just said no. But I didn't.
After a trip to Zamzows the kids had narrowed their choices down to rats. They are sociable, don't bite, can be handled and petted, and can even learn tricks. These reasons combined convinced the kids rats were the way to go. I was just relieved to see their average life span is only 2-4 years. The birds could live twenty years and the turtle I loved could live upwards of 80 years. I'm not going to let the kids adopt a pet that will still be around when they go to college. That cute turtle was probably going to outlive me. I may not want rats but at least they won't come with me into retirement.
The rats were about $15 each and even buying a used cage and supplies it was going to cost the kids about $50. They had $15 saved up. I figured I was safe for awhile. Secretly I hoped they would get bored with saving their money, blow it on candy, and I would never have to welcome rats into my home.
Their dad (who loves rats and has supremely fond memories of his childhood rats) helped the kids do some Craigslist searching. While I was out grocery shopping he found someone selling two well mannered rats, with cage, accessories, and food for $10. The posting was a month old so the kids called with trepidation in their hearts. They quickly found out the critters were still available and amazingly enough the family wanted them gone bad enough to offer them for free. I came home from grocery shopping to kids waiting on the front lawn. I barely had time to turn off the car before the kids announced the fantastic news. We were getting rats today! I could barely contain my glee.
So with no further ado, may I present the newest (and definitely last addition to our household):
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| Excuse the blurry picture. Fast moving, light colored rats are exceedingly difficult to photograph. |
I believe their names are Bolt and Clever. The names have been much debated all day today.
They are kind of cute, as long as you don't acknowledge the long, scaly, disgusting tail trailing behind each one.
1 comment:
I had a pet rat once, then I was given a horse and the rat died.... I really was not a caged animal person. I fear them for some reason. Good luck!
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