I think videos like this are so important because so many people get pets that don't really work for their lifestyles. They get something that needs a ton of interaction to be happy and then ignore them, or get ones that are better as watch and enjoy pets and want to handle them until they die of stress. They get animals that require a ton of space, but don't have the space or don't want to invest in a proper habitat. You have to balance a pet and your lifestyle or you just do both you and the animal a disservice, but the animal can't escape it.
This video has such good info, bcz they're adorable, but just bcz they're cute doesn't mean they're great pets, or snuggly little animals.... it's best to do what's best for the animal to be happy. Sometimes that means letting them be. ❤
Mine Can be handled but only because I’ve raised him and held him every single day since they were born however I do have a male and female pair that I cannot handle so it really depends on how much time you put into them and how long you’ve had to put into them😊
My husband has a small colony of these. None of them mind being handled and have never bit. They cling to our fingers. Totally cute. Have had two litters of babies. Completely mature and still have no problems being held. Both parents and juvies.
Jade I love you so much. Love the advice and care guides you give. You're so honest and natural which I love. I feel like you give such honest experience care giving for animals that helps me slot. You everything we need in an animal card educator and giver on CZcams. You help me in an educational way, and you are so relaxing to watch. You have such a natural and warming video approach which is so inviting and easy to watch and learn from. Thankyou for all that you do. Much love🥰
I wish more animal lovers took a holistic approach to animal adoption such as yourself. Even most animal lovers I know are mostly self-proclaimed, and don't really delve into the deeper issues in taking care of animals on the whole.
4:00 So far I haven't heard anything that puts me off them...I don't mind feeding them bugs. I don't mind giving them extra heat. I'll keep watching. I probably can't find any anyway Sounds like trying to catch a mourning gecko! Lol 😂 It's hard!
They very cute and tiny. I wanted one at first but I like to be able to handle my pets even when they are grown. I hear her saying that her babies let her handle them since she bred them, but as adults they wouldn't let her do it. Without being able to sex them you can have a serious inbreeding problem. She even said that she ended up with pups coming from two siblings mating I don't need a dormouse infestation in my house. Having their live insects in my house is the least of my problem. I used to have fire belly toads and I fed them live crickets and mealworms. Sometimes the crickets escaped and I could hear a lot of chirping in my apartment. Sometimes I could even see the crickets on the floor.
I wish this video was up a month ago, I got a group of 3 males and 3 females in Dec, I am used to raising rats and mice but this was my first time with these and there was basically not information about them on CZcams. I ended up having to give up 4 of them and kept the 2 who were the calmest with me, though I don't handle them really. I just let them keep to themselves. I had roof rats once and they escaped and were impossible to catch so don't want them to escape as well.
They just aren’t domesticated yet. The reason mice and hamsters aren’t feral and can be handled is because they are domesticated and biters are culled Breeding these guys for the best temperament is the only way to create eventual “cuddly” dormice. In Asia, they seem to have progressed a lot farther and have high white piebalds! In the US, there’s a few people with piebalds and pretty tame ones. I think they’re farther along than spiny mice and Pygmy mice.
I got my dormice from a seller who trains them to be handled and anytime I handle my dormice they r so sensible and don’t try to runaway they r definitely tamed. I have one white dormice and one gray dormice
Listening to this just makes me think they are the reptiles of the mammal world, lol. (Specialty heating, limited handling, exotic vet, live feeders, ect) I think I'd like a pair or small group if I can find a rescue situation when I'm in a position to take on more animals. I'd definitely spoil them if I did ever get any.
They sound like a fluffy lizard (anole or gecko) or finch. Watch not handle live feeders and heat. Also cage looks set up like a ferret cage Like all that in 1. I find it amusing. Saw some for rehoming and not looking for pets atm but I kind of like the Idea of them. Get a glass display case like stores use for displaying stuff like jewelry, like in pawn shops (some people tun them into beaded dragon cages) It would be a nice size enclosed well maybe change the glass doors out for plexiglass ones with small holes or like hardware cloth. I saw one of the display cases around 80x60x80cm for like $50-70 at a 2nd hand store before, Also saw stores closing giving them away. Maybe something to revisit in a few years. Thank you for the video and I would Agree most people would definitely go in to them expecting a mammal not a hands of lizard. I breed dubia and other roaches so the like feeders for me wouldn't be a bad thing. I started breeding roaches about 2 years before getting a bearded dragon so I'd have enough for him and as adult beardies are more veggies then insects I always have extra (over 1000 breeders of just dubia) lol
I'm still thinking about getting me two of them, since they do well in groups, also I should mention this, I read an article, they do require a temperature of 70F, also they're also very sensitive to bright lights as well, according to the article I read.
Saying an animal “can’t ever be handled” just isn’t true. If You as an Owner and Caretaker are willing to put in the time and effort to bond with them it is entirely possible. It may not be easy, or it might because it depends on the animal and the person specifically
I never said they couldn't be handled full stop, I even said that I had handled them actually. I said they didn't like it, they were very quick so it would be risky, that it wasn't unusual that they wouldn't tame down and people have to be prepared for this. It's not realistic to say they'll tame down if you put in lots of love and time because they may not. You can put all the time in the world into a nervous animal and the most you'll be able to get from them is a gentle pet or them accepting some food like mine have. I'm no stranger to taming nervous animals and was quite happy with the way mine interacted with me. Some people would not be, they want them to come to them and cuddle, sleep, snuggle, enjoy their time together, which isn't ever going to be achievable. It's something to consider before getting one of these animals.
This will sound pretty gruesome, but would the babies be suitable feeders for other pets? Sounds mean, but if they're really that prolific and no one wants em, it's better than getting neglected or overrun.
I suppose any rodent can be used as feeders! Its slightly more complicated in the UK where live feeding is illegal under animal welfare laws, so you'd have to have a proper euthanasia setup where you could prove the animals didn't suffer and have suitable methods of storage for them all. They'd also only be allowed to be used for your own personal animals, otherwise you need extra paperwork for animal feed legislations etc. to sell. I doubt the people getting over run will have this as their backup for excess offspring unless they're super prepared and it was their intent to have food 😅 Might be able to find someone who breeds their own live food and hand them off tho, which I assume is where some might go to anyway when they're listed on selling sites for free 😬
I have rather wild acting sugar gliders I got as rescues. So I actually don’t think their wildness would be a problem for me. Nor their diet. It can’t even compare to a sugar gliders diet lol. Not to mention half the hamsters I’ve owned couldn’t be handled. Half of them could and would literally sleep in my lap. But some of them would never let me handle them much. They sound kinda like hamsters to me where it’s a luck of the draw. And you just have to be willing to accept you may get ones that always act wild. (Also again as a glider owner their “hard” care doesn’t phase me at all 😂) Edit: omg the breeding problem seems like the dealbreaker for me! That sounds like a nightmarish situation!
They are very different from hamsters if your micro squirrels don’t like to be handled they are quick like one blink and they are gone so if they try to get away from you bc they don’t like you then they can gladly escape in 2 seconds which is very dangerous for them 😅their care and behaviour is different from hamsters lol I’ve had both species (I still have micro squirrels rn and my sisters hammie)😊 and a skittish hamster and a skittish micro squirrel are very different and I mean different a skittish hamster will never be able to compare to a skittish micro squirrel… and a skittish hamster is not able to climb very easily and isn’t as fast I let my micro squirrels run around my room (all potential dangerous places are blocked off or covered) anything they can climb up they will 😭
I also have had African pygmy hedgehogs who don’t like to be handled, rescued skittish guinea pigs or rabbits that will not tolerate you attempting to approach them etc, the behaviour of these squirrels are completely different to even sugar gliders who aren’t too bad even if they hate people. These are a blink and they’re gone and you won’t ever get them back kind of animal 🙂 it’s going to be lost on someone who doesn’t like tarantulas but I compare these to old world tarantulas who can bolt for hours but are small enough to be lost in your home compared to a new world that won’t like handling but you can still manage them in their tanks 😂
@@jadesjungleseems like they're very similar to the anoles I keep. Quick af, insectavores, capable of yeeting themselves out of the smallest holes, and need a heat lamp
The absolute best animal from the rodent family that we have ever had as pets are chipmunks. Why? Because they DON'T STINK. They do chew, however, so if you have any plastic in the cage, it will get destroyed. And they do require a larger (2-tier) cage. Because chipmunks tend to live largely on nuts and cereals, no live insects are needed. They are also, by nature, burrowing creatures, so they need to be able to create a nesting area that they can hide inside. Because wild chipmunks are considered a destructive pest (they burrow under concrete), they are largely exterminated in residential areas, so people often want them removed. I don't recommend handling them, but they are delightful pets and can be safely relocated to a nature park if you decide to release them.
They’re not legal in the U.K. sadly (they used to be a few years ago). But super cute! I’d also not recommend releasing any domesticated animal for a variety of reasons, including not having the knowledge on how to survive in the wild, or to know to avoid predators if they are conditioned to be around them (humans for example) and they can spread diseases to native populations 🙂
Most of my pets are fish, amphibs, and reptiles, so a no-touch insectivore that needs heat is hardly a dealbreaker. I doubt I'd actually be able to even see the little things though, they look nocturnal.
I got them for the same reason you're interested in them (never kept mice, rats or whatever of the kind, and I wanted to experience a "reptile with fur" basically) and I'm very glad I did. I see mine every evening, they're incredibly active and interesting to watch before going to bed.
@@jadesjungle I meant if I want something that I don't have to handle but I can put in a large vivarium and it be like an arboreal hamster , would dormouse be good ?
I think they make good animals for captivity given their small size and social nature. It's easier to build something that is large in comparison to them and they can get lots of good enrichment and enjoyment from their friends. I think they were very happy, I just don't think they make good pets for the majority of people, particularly those like me who prefer interaction 🙂
I haven't seen my girl squirrels in like a week they have a hide that I can't open to get in to see what's going on , if they are having babys how long does it take before they would come out ?????
This question seems like something you should have figured out before you decided to become a breeder 😅 but sadly I can’t really advise either as I haven’t bred them myself, maybe around 2-8 weeks after their born but that’s just based off other animals I have experience with! 🙂
do they tend to hide? i have 4 but i've noticed tonight that i havent seen all 4 of them? its freaking me out a bit, but im new to owning them. i've been staying up worried until dawn to make sure all of them get up to eat, tonight i've only seen 2 at a time and dont know if im seeing the same one every time.
Yes they're very shy so they probably come out but only at night and not when you are around 🙂 Best way to watch in this case is a camera left in the room as you watch somewhere else
its me again, my local pet store gave me 4 "male" dormice... he was in fact wrong lol... i now have a little baby dormouse in my enclosure!! do you have any advice on what to do from here?
I think videos like this are so important because so many people get pets that don't really work for their lifestyles.
They get something that needs a ton of interaction to be happy and then ignore them, or get ones that are better as watch and enjoy pets and want to handle them until they die of stress.
They get animals that require a ton of space, but don't have the space or don't want to invest in a proper habitat.
You have to balance a pet and your lifestyle or you just do both you and the animal a disservice, but the animal can't escape it.
This video has such good info, bcz they're adorable, but just bcz they're cute doesn't mean they're great pets, or snuggly little animals.... it's best to do what's best for the animal to be happy. Sometimes that means letting them be. ❤
Mine Can be handled but only because I’ve raised him and held him every single day since they were born however I do have a male and female pair that I cannot handle so it really depends on how much time you put into them and how long you’ve had to put into them😊
Should I get one❤
My husband has a small colony of these. None of them mind being handled and have never bit. They cling to our fingers. Totally cute. Have had two litters of babies. Completely mature and still have no problems being held. Both parents and juvies.
Jade I love you so much. Love the advice and care guides you give. You're
so honest and natural which I love. I feel like you give such honest experience care giving for animals that helps me slot. You everything we need in an animal card educator and giver on CZcams. You help me in an educational way, and you are so relaxing to watch. You have such a natural and warming video approach which is so inviting and easy to watch and learn from. Thankyou for all that you do. Much love🥰
I wish more animal lovers took a holistic approach to animal adoption such as yourself. Even most animal lovers I know are mostly self-proclaimed, and don't really delve into the deeper issues in taking care of animals on the whole.
I just built a habitat for them outside in the garden, it's fun watching them when they show up.
2:14 hamsters also need dried insects to eat,they aren’t herbivores,they also need protein
Hamsters are omnivores. They eat a lot of nuts and seeds but they do need some kind of animal protein such as mealworms.
@@Aisha-721 bro that’s my point
4:00 So far I haven't heard anything that puts me off them...I don't mind feeding them bugs. I don't mind giving them extra heat.
I'll keep watching. I probably can't find any anyway
Sounds like trying to catch a mourning gecko! Lol 😂 It's hard!
They very cute and tiny. I wanted one at first but I like to be able to handle my pets even when they are grown.
I hear her saying that her babies let her handle them since she bred them, but as adults they wouldn't let her do it.
Without being able to sex them you can have a serious inbreeding problem. She even said that she ended up with pups coming from two siblings mating
I don't need a dormouse infestation in my house. Having their live insects in my house is the least of my problem. I used to have fire belly toads and I fed them live crickets and mealworms.
Sometimes the crickets escaped and I could hear a lot of chirping in my apartment.
Sometimes I could even see the crickets on the floor.
They're so cute, can see why people would want them! defo not for me 🤣 Can't deal with scurrying small mammals!
your description of their smell hahah
I wish this video was up a month ago, I got a group of 3 males and 3 females in Dec, I am used to raising rats and mice but this was my first time with these and there was basically not information about them on CZcams. I ended up having to give up 4 of them and kept the 2 who were the calmest with me, though I don't handle them really. I just let them keep to themselves. I had roof rats once and they escaped and were impossible to catch so don't want them to escape as well.
They just aren’t domesticated yet. The reason mice and hamsters aren’t feral and can be handled is because they are domesticated and biters are culled
Breeding these guys for the best temperament is the only way to create eventual “cuddly” dormice. In Asia, they seem to have progressed a lot farther and have high white piebalds! In the US, there’s a few people with piebalds and pretty tame ones. I think they’re farther along than spiny mice and Pygmy mice.
V informative!!!
I got my dormice from a seller who trains them to be handled and anytime I handle my dormice they r so sensible and don’t try to runaway they r definitely tamed. I have one white dormice and one gray dormice
Listening to this just makes me think they are the reptiles of the mammal world, lol. (Specialty heating, limited handling, exotic vet, live feeders, ect) I think I'd like a pair or small group if I can find a rescue situation when I'm in a position to take on more animals. I'd definitely spoil them if I did ever get any.
They sound like a fluffy lizard (anole or gecko) or finch. Watch not handle live feeders and heat. Also cage looks set up like a ferret cage Like all that in 1. I find it amusing. Saw some for rehoming and not looking for pets atm but I kind of like the Idea of them. Get a glass display case like stores use for displaying stuff like jewelry, like in pawn shops (some people tun them into beaded dragon cages) It would be a nice size enclosed well maybe change the glass doors out for plexiglass ones with small holes or like hardware cloth. I saw one of the display cases around 80x60x80cm for like $50-70 at a 2nd hand store before, Also saw stores closing giving them away. Maybe something to revisit in a few years. Thank you for the video and I would Agree most people would definitely go in to them expecting a mammal not a hands of lizard. I breed dubia and other roaches so the like feeders for me wouldn't be a bad thing. I started breeding roaches about 2 years before getting a bearded dragon so I'd have enough for him and as adult beardies are more veggies then insects I always have extra (over 1000 breeders of just dubia) lol
I'm still thinking about getting me two of them, since they do well in groups, also I should mention this, I read an article, they do require a temperature of 70F, also they're also very sensitive to bright lights as well, according to the article I read.
they're adorable but this helps because I'd like to be able to hold one :3 soo.. yeah
if anyone is here and still wants a microsquirrel, they jumped over my 40cm enclosure and bit me, I bled. for quite awhile. it does hurt.
I live in a small apartment and small spaces, could u give me some recommend what pet that suit me and my small size room?
Saying an animal “can’t ever be handled” just isn’t true. If You as an Owner and Caretaker are willing to put in the time and effort to bond with them it is entirely possible. It may not be easy, or it might because it depends on the animal and the person specifically
I never said they couldn't be handled full stop, I even said that I had handled them actually. I said they didn't like it, they were very quick so it would be risky, that it wasn't unusual that they wouldn't tame down and people have to be prepared for this. It's not realistic to say they'll tame down if you put in lots of love and time because they may not. You can put all the time in the world into a nervous animal and the most you'll be able to get from them is a gentle pet or them accepting some food like mine have. I'm no stranger to taming nervous animals and was quite happy with the way mine interacted with me. Some people would not be, they want them to come to them and cuddle, sleep, snuggle, enjoy their time together, which isn't ever going to be achievable. It's something to consider before getting one of these animals.
So informative! Thank youu (:
I just got a male and female. 2 days ago. The male bit me but out of fear. They both like to sit in my hand with my hand closed like a little house.
Great video
I like your honesty! Ty
This will sound pretty gruesome, but would the babies be suitable feeders for other pets? Sounds mean, but if they're really that prolific and no one wants em, it's better than getting neglected or overrun.
I suppose any rodent can be used as feeders! Its slightly more complicated in the UK where live feeding is illegal under animal welfare laws, so you'd have to have a proper euthanasia setup where you could prove the animals didn't suffer and have suitable methods of storage for them all. They'd also only be allowed to be used for your own personal animals, otherwise you need extra paperwork for animal feed legislations etc. to sell. I doubt the people getting over run will have this as their backup for excess offspring unless they're super prepared and it was their intent to have food 😅 Might be able to find someone who breeds their own live food and hand them off tho, which I assume is where some might go to anyway when they're listed on selling sites for free 😬
I have rather wild acting sugar gliders I got as rescues. So I actually don’t think their wildness would be a problem for me. Nor their diet. It can’t even compare to a sugar gliders diet lol. Not to mention half the hamsters I’ve owned couldn’t be handled. Half of them could and would literally sleep in my lap. But some of them would never let me handle them much. They sound kinda like hamsters to me where it’s a luck of the draw. And you just have to be willing to accept you may get ones that always act wild. (Also again as a glider owner their “hard” care doesn’t phase me at all 😂)
Edit: omg the breeding problem seems like the dealbreaker for me! That sounds like a nightmarish situation!
They are very different from hamsters if your micro squirrels don’t like to be handled they are quick like one blink and they are gone so if they try to get away from you bc they don’t like you then they can gladly escape in 2 seconds which is very dangerous for them 😅their care and behaviour is different from hamsters lol I’ve had both species (I still have micro squirrels rn and my sisters hammie)😊 and a skittish hamster and a skittish micro squirrel are very different and I mean different a skittish hamster will never be able to compare to a skittish micro squirrel… and a skittish hamster is not able to climb very easily and isn’t as fast I let my micro squirrels run around my room (all potential dangerous places are blocked off or covered) anything they can climb up they will 😭
I also have had African pygmy hedgehogs who don’t like to be handled, rescued skittish guinea pigs or rabbits that will not tolerate you attempting to approach them etc, the behaviour of these squirrels are completely different to even sugar gliders who aren’t too bad even if they hate people. These are a blink and they’re gone and you won’t ever get them back kind of animal 🙂 it’s going to be lost on someone who doesn’t like tarantulas but I compare these to old world tarantulas who can bolt for hours but are small enough to be lost in your home compared to a new world that won’t like handling but you can still manage them in their tanks 😂
@@jadesjungleseems like they're very similar to the anoles I keep. Quick af, insectavores, capable of yeeting themselves out of the smallest holes, and need a heat lamp
The absolute best animal from the rodent family that we have ever had as pets are chipmunks. Why? Because they DON'T STINK. They do chew, however, so if you have any plastic in the cage, it will get destroyed. And they do require a larger (2-tier) cage. Because chipmunks tend to live largely on nuts and cereals, no live insects are needed. They are also, by nature, burrowing creatures, so they need to be able to create a nesting area that they can hide inside. Because wild chipmunks are considered a destructive pest (they burrow under concrete), they are largely exterminated in residential areas, so people often want them removed. I don't recommend handling them, but they are delightful pets and can be safely relocated to a nature park if you decide to release them.
They’re not legal in the U.K. sadly (they used to be a few years ago). But super cute! I’d also not recommend releasing any domesticated animal for a variety of reasons, including not having the knowledge on how to survive in the wild, or to know to avoid predators if they are conditioned to be around them (humans for example) and they can spread diseases to native populations 🙂
Thanks, you’ve probably helped to keep me from making an impulsive purchase.
Just subscribed! You’re really cute
Most of my pets are fish, amphibs, and reptiles, so a no-touch insectivore that needs heat is hardly a dealbreaker. I doubt I'd actually be able to even see the little things though, they look nocturnal.
I got them for the same reason you're interested in them (never kept mice, rats or whatever of the kind, and I wanted to experience a "reptile with fur" basically) and I'm very glad I did. I see mine every evening, they're incredibly active and interesting to watch before going to bed.
What if i dont want something that has be like a aboreal hamster that i can put in a large vivarium ?
@@okay__. If you don't want something, you probably shouldn't get them 😂
@@jadesjungle I meant if I want something that I don't have to handle but I can put in a large vivarium and it be like an arboreal hamster , would dormouse be good ?
Is there a preferred live insect? I already raise dubia roaches and have a colony of leopard geckos so these guys seem rather simple.
But, degus aren't the right pet for everyone either
Agreed.
Mine are superrrrr crazy they like me but I make sure to only hold them in my sisters room bc if they run down my leg then they are ok to run around
Hows hazel? And why Haven't you posted in a while? Please come back and update us! I want to see hazel!
I will do at some point 😁 but she's doing so well!
Omg, they remind me of if my degus had tails!!
may i know, did dormouse tail can grown back after break?😢
they don't. Have had them myself for 5 years
I love those squirrels but I don’t think I’d be able to keep them, and it doesn’t sound like they should even be pets.
I think they make good animals for captivity given their small size and social nature. It's easier to build something that is large in comparison to them and they can get lots of good enrichment and enjoyment from their friends. I think they were very happy, I just don't think they make good pets for the majority of people, particularly those like me who prefer interaction 🙂
I haven't seen my girl squirrels in like a week they have a hide that I can't open to get in to see what's going on , if they are having babys how long does it take before they would come out ?????
This question seems like something you should have figured out before you decided to become a breeder 😅 but sadly I can’t really advise either as I haven’t bred them myself, maybe around 2-8 weeks after their born but that’s just based off other animals I have experience with! 🙂
what is the minumum bar spacing for them?
There isn’t one as people recommend glass, but I went for ones that were less than 9mm and there was no way my full grown adults could get out 🙂
Um you know hamsters are omnivores
do they tend to hide? i have 4 but i've noticed tonight that i havent seen all 4 of them? its freaking me out a bit, but im new to owning them. i've been staying up worried until dawn to make sure all of them get up to eat, tonight i've only seen 2 at a time and dont know if im seeing the same one every time.
Yes they're very shy so they probably come out but only at night and not when you are around 🙂 Best way to watch in this case is a camera left in the room as you watch somewhere else
@@jadesjungle thank you :) im quite a worrier haha
its me again, my local pet store gave me 4 "male" dormice... he was in fact wrong lol... i now have a little baby dormouse in my enclosure!! do you have any advice on what to do from here?
Where are you located ?
@@mortalreptiles if you're wondering that because you wish to buy it, i wont be selling the baby unfortunately sorry