Message board topic:

3 years and 2 days, Piggy's been with us.  He's been such a sweet little guy.  He goes through an amazing amount of hay, drinks shockingly little water, and because he's a fresh vegetable eater, is surprisingly expensive to feed.  I feed him vegetables twice a day, spinach, celery and carrots.  He often gets a couple of grapes, a strawberry now and then and on rare occasion, a little watermelon.  He used to eat pineapple but suddenly lost interest in that.  He goes through maybe $8 of hay a month, and once a month I change his litter, for about $7.  No matter what I give him, spinach seems to be his favorite.  I put everything in a bowl and spinach is always the first thing he goes for.

I've looked at pictures of him from day one, and it's really hard to tell how much he's grown, but he's in a much larger cage than he started out in.  I wish we had room for a bigger one.  I'd love to let him roam the house more, but I think it's better to keep him and the cat apart.  I don't think the cat would hurt him because they're used to each other, but kitty plays a little too rough.  Piggy never blinks so I worry about him getting an eye scratched.

Being a rodent, Piggy needs something like wood to chew on to keep his teeth back, but he simply ignores it.  I think he gnaws so much on the metal bars of his cage, that must be taking care of the problem.  His teeth look fine.

He's not the least bit afraid of anybody.  (Not even the vacuum cleaner!)  And he doesn't mind being held, but he really hates to be picked up.  If you pet him, he has this kind of purr that lets you know he's content.  He has a small house that he sometimes likes to sleep in or hide in, and he loves to stick his head out, lift one end of it up, and drag it around like a turtle.  He's amazing to watch.  John

Sounds like he's living the good life with you guys. And a little spoiled too, as it should be. 

 

Peggy, Laila and Angel Minchie

 

cat-a-holic.blogspot.com

Thanks Peggy.  He really should be in a 4 by 8 foot cage but there's really not room for anything that big.  In fact, I really wish he could roam the house but with the cat, I'm thinking that might not be the best idea.  We have a small cage outside where we can take him out and let him play in the grass, but I'm terrified of hawks.  I know if one suddenly came out of nowhere I wouldn't have a split second to catch him up, so trips to the yard are very rare.

It really astounds me how little water he drinks.  Probably less than an ounce in a month.  He eats a lot of hay but it's bone dry, so he gets almost all his water from vegetables.  I make sure he has 40 times as much water as he would ever drink but he's not worried about it.  He would embarrass a camel.  John

I saw a show the other day that showed rats are ticklish and like it. Does piggy like it?

 

David and the CoolCyberCats

Forever in my heart





Cats Nap. Only Humans Put Them "To Sleep": Sterilize, Don't Euthanize!

 

Oh, yes I know he is not a rat!

 

David and the CoolCyberCats

Forever in my heart





Cats Nap. Only Humans Put Them "To Sleep": Sterilize, Don't Euthanize!

 

  I had no idea rats were ticklish.  I've never tried tickling Piggy but he loves scratches on his head and around his neck.  He makes a strange, almost purring sound when you do.  He does not like it when you get around his tummy, so while he likes being held, he does not like being picked up.  He makes a surprisingly loud squeaking sound when you walk by if he doesn't have any food. He's unexpectedly affectionate.  He may nibble a bit at your finger but he's not a meat eater so he won't bite very hard.  When we hold him we always have a carrot or celery for him to chew on.  15 minutes is about as long as you want to hold him though.  He's not what you'd call "house trained".  John