Pet Rat Guide

Urbanization has caused the pet rat to be the perfect pet perhaps. When space or locale eliminates the possibility of a dog or cat, the rat can be ideal. Pet rats are very inexpensive to keep and require no vaccinations. Very little living space is needed to house a rat. Rats as pets have been domesticated for over 100 years. The domestic rat is unlike their wild relatives. They have sweet personalities and are very affectionate. However, they do have one small quirk: they are terrible little kleptomaniacs. They love to steal and stash!

Rarely let your rats run free. If you do allow your rat run free, supervise your pet 100% of the time. Many calamities that can strike a rat can be found in a typical household. Some of these dangers include being trapped under reclining chairs and rocking chairs. They can escape out of the smallest of places. The rat will find holes they must investigate. You have to consider if the people that lived in your house previous to you had hidden rat poison in an out of the way place, like behind the stove. When you do let them down on the floor, supervise their play very carefully.

Picking out Your Pet Rat

In the wild rats belong to colonies and are very social. They like to play together and cuddle up and sleep together. It is a good idea to purchase two rats instead of one. It should be two rats of the same sex for obvious reasons.

Make sure you pick out a healthy and happy rat. Check to be sure that the rat is friendly. A friendly rat will be curious. Rats rarely bite, though baby rats will nibble your fingers. Nipping is very reasonable and is not biting. If a rat comes up and licks your hand, you have found a lovely rat.

Check out the rat's coat, is it glossy and healthy looking? Make sure there is no discharge coming from the nose, mouth, or eyes. Is the rat listless or hunched up with a ruffled looking coat; this is an unhealthy rat. Go to another pet store. Male rats are bigger than the female rat. The rat's lifespan is from 2-3 years.

Always supervise young children around the rat. They may hold the rat too tight and injure the rat, resulting in a severe bite to the child. All pets and children visits should be supervised. The cage should have a lid that locks if you have young children, children that visit your home or have an animal that may attack the rat, for example, a cat. In my opinion, rats are the best pets for kids. Pets for kids have to be sweet, friendly, not nippy, just a good pet! You, however, have to determine the maturity of your child so that the rat nor the child is injured.

Housing and Accessories

Housing your rattie is an important consideration. Over the years often aquariums were used. Back then the wire cages were awful, rusted, could break the little limbs off our beloved rats. Because rats are so susceptible to breathing problems because of their sensitive respiratory systems – even with a mesh top, ammonia can build-up quickly. The rat can become overwhelmed and succumb to death quickly. Many rodents get upper respiratory infections (URI) because of aquariums. Aquariums should never be used.

There are new wire cages made especially for rats and other rodents. The pens should have multiple layers and provide more space for the rat and their belongings. These cages are also easier to clean and sanitize. Do make sure the cage is big enough for a rat they need room to exercise and to relieve boredom. The bar spacing should be no more than .5- inch. Here is an example.

They need room for their little sleeping house, a running wheel, feed dishes, and a water bottle and, plenty of additional room to run around. Remember that the rat is intelligent and needs toys and exciting things to do. There should be plenty of air-flow through the cage.

Bedding material has to be non-toxic. Never use cedar or pine as it will cause damage to the rat’s respiratory system and can cause severe damage to his vital organs. Some great hardwood shavings are safe for the rat’s use. Aspen is one of these hardwood shavings. They also like to take an old cloth to make into bedding.

The food dish needs to be heavy enough so that it does not tip over. The water bottle should have a chew guard designed for a rat. An excellent bed for your pet is a Quaker Oats box. Be prepared to change it periodically since the oats box can be magically transformed into bedding.

Rats like to chew. Rats have to chew; chewing will wear down their teeth. Their teeth incisors never stop growing. If the teeth get too long, they will be unable to eat. A very painful result of teeth not being worn down would be that the teeth would grow through the top of their mouths. Rat gnawing blocks are great to grind down teeth. You can also use dog biscuits, rawhide bones, and cooked soup bones.

Your rat will need an exercise wheel, make sure it is big enough for a rat, about 14 inches in diameter. Don’t use the old wire wheel. Many rodents have been injured getting their little feet and tails caught. Make sure the cage is not in direct sunlight or too hot of a location. Mainly if the rat is housed in a glass container, it gets hot, quick, very much like a car with the windows closed.

Sanitize the cage once a week. Clean and sanitize the food and water containers once a day. The rat's bedding should be changed every couple of days if your rat wants you to or not. If he has a stash of essential stuff, you can sort it out for him and return it to the cage. Do not use pine cleaner or any cleaner that can injure your pet’s respiratory system. Ask the pet store or the pharmacy what would be a safe sanitizer to clean your rat's cage and accessories. Some people use peroxide and vinegar combinations; this combination works great in the kitchen too.

Toys are essential to your rat; they are much more complex and intelligent than some people give them credit. Toy’s such as ladders, PVC tubes, wooden bird toys, and boxes are great toys. My rats just loved the bird toys that had a treat hidden inside. It takes them a while to figure the puzzle out, but they will get it. Small balls, ping pong ball size, are great fun to push around.

Feeding your Rat

There are plenty of specialty foods formulated with the health of the rat in mind. The formulated food is the correct nutritional requirement for the rat and should be available for him all the time. You should supplement the rodent food with fresh fruits, vegetables, and greens. Make sure you wash all fresh fruits and vegetables. You can also give your rat whole grain bread. If in a pinch you do not have access to rodent food you can feed a portion of very high-quality dog food, make sure the fat percentage is not over 8%. Cat food is too high in fat and protein for a rat. Make sure he has plenty of fresh water. Change it daily.

Bonding and Training

The first couple of days leave the rat in his cage but spend small amounts of time talking to him. After he adjusts to his new home start, begin offering him treats with your hand; treats like banana or cheerios. It may take a little time before he will take the food from you. Speak his name when offering him food. He will get to know his and will come to you when called. After a while, you can begin training him to come when called. Put him down on your bed or floor, a short distance away. Take a treat and hold it out to him, calling him by name. Soon you can substitute some of the treats with hugs and kisses, and he will be every bit as delighted.

Summary

Rats are sweet natured and intelligent. They are easy and inexpensive to keep as pets. Pet rats are perfect for the urban home since they require very little space. Rats make sensational pets for children. Especially the 8-12-year-olds that really need a trusted companion to share his life. A rat is a good pet to teach your kids responsibility. Treat the rat with love and you will have a wonderful little companion. Above all, enjoy your pet rat!

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You are Utterly Alone - Animal Cruelty

I would like for you to play a role. I want you to get into this role with all your heart. I want you to imagine that you have been kidnapped and are being held captive in a cage; a cage just big enough to allow the slightest bit of motion.

However, it is not big enough to stretch your legs or arms, or to move your body into a comfortable position; not even to perform natural bodily functions. You sit in your own waste. You are fed and provided water but the food is the same thing every day and the water is old and nasty.

The area around the cage does not differ in the least from day to day. You can't tell if it is night or day. There is no window to see the outside world.

You never see another human being like yourself. You are completely and utterly alone.

After a very short while, you become very lonely. How would you feel in a week? How about a month? A year? Would you feel fear, depression, and anger? Would you act out by screaming, clawing or pulling at the cage? Would you even perhaps pull your hair?

How would you react or behave if you were in this situation for a length of time? How would you react Be honest with yourself? Would you scream, cry, or tear your hair out? WHAT would you do?

Humans are very social beings and so are many animals including birds, ferrets, skunks, and many many other animals, pets and exotic pets. How do you think these caged animals would feel in the same predicament? You are alone, in a cage not big enough to move around in, sitting in our own excrement. You only have stinky foul water to drink. There is nothing different to see, to touch, or to feel. No one at all to talk to, to laugh with, to hug, no interaction with no one. Some species of animal that is non-human comes in and puts food in the cage but never interacts with you.

Do you realize how many animals are sitting in cages, right now, going through exactly what I described? Animals have pretty much the same needs that we as human beings do. We need the basics, food, water, cleanliness, and socialization. If it is socialization with an animal of its own kind, or you as its caregiver, that animal needs socialization.

The results would be no different if it were a dog on a short leash stuck in a corner of a shed or yard somewhere.

Thankfully the decent and good pet owners far outweigh the bad pet owners. But please don't turn a blind eye when you see these acts of cruelty. Don't put yourself in danger, contact the proper authorities.

However, some people don’t realize they are being cruel. They don’t understand the social needs of the pet they have housed in their home. Each and every animal has different needs but we all need some form of socialization. If these pets lived among their own kind they would have the same ideals and understood social roles two simple examples would be a pack of wolves or a flock of birds.

There is more to keeping a pet than keeping a cage clean and giving the animal food and water, much more. It is up to you to learn what this animal’s social needs are and for you to provide this animal those needs.

For that matter, should the animal even be caged? Caging is detrimental to many animals. One example of such an animal would be a domestic skunk.

Wild animals have a lot to do each day that keeps them busy. Think of the boredom of being stuck in a cage day and night. Please make sure your pet is healthy and happy. Unhappiness directly affects the health of any human or animal.

Please be aware of the animals around you.

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Earth Day - How Have Humans Impacted the Earth?

How can I have an impact on bringing awareness; encourage appreciation, and help preserve our beautiful planet? We as humans have destroyed so much and have given back so little. To make this worst many people are denying that there even is a problem. At least in their own minds, I believe they know better, it is only because of their agenda, and knowing that things like ignoring climate change would benefit them. If they deny that it exists, people would be less inclined to remedy the situation. We can discuss this a bit later.

Let’s look at how the subject of exotic pets impacts the earth. First and foremost are all the compassionate and considerate people that are aware of the near extinction of many animals, just one example; the tiger. Because of political agendas, I doubt there will be a reversal in the extinction of the wild tiger. Thankfully, there are many live tigers in the hands of exotic pet owners to preserve the very species of this animal.

This is true of many endangered and near extinct animals. The species will survive the money grubbing, power hungry politicians that have brought about their near demise. It isn’t just one country, it is many. There would not be poaching if these officials didn’t sanction poaching or turn a blind eye to poaching for their own gain. Do your part, find exotic pets for sale from exotic pet breeders, which are home-grown or captive bred. Of the three top black market trades, exotic pets are number three, drugs and weapons are one and two.

Wong Keng Liang of Malaysia, family, and cohorts are perhaps the most notorious animal smugglers that ever existed. To this day his home country sanctions his illegal activities, I am sure the country (politicians) are benefiting greatly. There are many more smugglers and countries, but if you want to find out how easy it is for criminals such as Liang to get away with what he has done, do some research. Then realize how many other people and governments sanction the black market exotic pet trade.

Another reason for the extinction or near extinction of many animals is another biggie, habitat loss. We know what that is; we drained millions of acres of wetlands to build houses and shopping centers. Many countries, most countries are just as destructive. All countries strip trees, wetlands, grasslands, and more for more money. Money brings power, power brings more corruption.

When I think of all the plants and animals that are extinct or near extinct it makes me think of the movie Medicine Man (1992). I wonder of all the life that is lost forever if we have lost the opportunity to find a cure for cancer or even the common cold and many other illnesses that afflict us.

Now back to the first paragraph. Why would people deny climate change exists, how could it possibly benefit them? They want to keep using and selling oil and oil byproducts until there is no more. Be darned the consequences.

Do you have any idea how close we are to our own destruction? We may survive, at least the people willing to work extremely hard, don’t mind extreme discomfort, because we won’t be surviving with oil, or the automobile, tractors, and the zillion of other things that come from oil and petroleum products. Not just creature comforts would be gone, but we would be back to living with extreme hardships. The seven billion people on earth won’t all survive, in fact only a very small percentage.

Go to your kitchen and open just one cupboard. I will do the same. I opened the cupboard that has rice, wheat, cereals, and other like products. Let’s think about the simple product wheat, how much oil did it take to get that wheat into our cupboard? Also, what is the product in cardboard or plastic? Cardboard is made from trees and uses oil, plastic is made from oil.

First of all, the farmer gets up in the morning, puts on his or her clothing (takes oil to make and transport clothing), he or she eats breakfast (takes oil to produce and transport his breakfast). He then heads to his pickup truck, which is filled with petroleum. Each tire is made from oil; a car tire takes seven gallons, more for a pickup truck. Then you add the fossil fuel it takes to transport the tires, transport all the other materials that go into a tire. Each tire ends up using a barrel of oil; how many gallons of oil in a barrel - 42 gallons. Look at plastic parts, all plastic parts are made from fossil fuels. He stops at the barn to get his tractor. Look at those huge tires! How much petroleum product could be in those massive tires? Again, many other components on the tractor made from oil. He stops and fills up the tank with fuel, obviously from oil. Now he heads to the field to plow. It takes a long time to plow a field for wheat. A lot of petroleum spent. Now he has to fertilize the field, usually before and after seeding. Now he plants the field so that the wheat will grow. He irrigates the field of wheat, more oil/energy (all energy produced uses massive amounts of oil in some way – even wind power). The wheat grows, more oil is used to cut the wheat then harvest the wheat. Trucks use oil to transport the wheat to companies that produce wheat products such as the cereal in your cupboard. It takes more oil to transport it to the store, yet more oil for you to go to the store and buy the wheat. For one product that is a lot of oil.

What happens to humans when the oil is gone? Don’t kid yourself it is sooner than you think. In the year 2005 eighty-four million barrels were used in a day worldwide a lot more now. Oil is not a renewable resource unless they really get good at extending life, it takes about 10-million years for a dinosaur to turn into oil, and darn we're out of dinosaurs. We are definitely on the downswing of the climax of oil. Yes, there is new technology, we find new reserves but is bringing the planet to its knees.

Now, what does this have to do with exotic pets, to animals, to vegetation, to our children? Oil is a huge dependency, the use of oil and oil byproducts have caused a tremendous amount of pollution. There have been oil disasters, some of which have made the news, many have not. Pipelines are going in today, with political influence; the one coming from Canada going through South Dakota was approved using substandard materials.

Earth Day is just one day of the year, people jump on the bandwagon, at least some people, and then they forget about the trouble we are in - for the rest of the year. Does this mess we have made of our earth affect our children, our pets, our exotic pets, you bet it does? Every day needs to be earth day.

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Guide to Patagonian Cavies

A Patagonian cavy is a gently natured rodent from South American from the family Cavidae. They are a relative of the guinea pig which is also a rodent from the Cavidae family.

Its appearance is very hare-like giving them another common name of Patagonian Hare. They are also called a Mara.

Patagonian cavies are active in the daytime (diurnal). Though they will feed and socialize in the evening/twilight hours. Especially in a captive group.

They are a very social animal something that should be given considerable thought before acquiring a Patagonian Cavy. In the wild, they live in small groups of 15 - 35 often forming a lifetime bond with a single mate (monogamous pairs).

It is imperative that you spend daily, quality time with your cavy. Cavies are very social, and they will not make the sweet and loving pet they are capable of if you do not spend a lot of time with them. They will rarely if ever bite, and I doubt if I have ever said this of any exotic pets.

They are considered the second largest to third largest rodent and weight between 15-30 pounds and reach 2 feet tall 2 1/2 if you include the tail. To me, they look much like the Jackrabbit I use to frequently see in the central valley of California. Though the Jackrabbit is much smaller. The cavy can jump quite high, run very fast, and burrow which makes housing the cavy interesting. The navigate on all fours during a hopping

As with many exotic pets, it is best to obtain Patagonian cavies while young and bottle feed making for a pet that is bonded to you. It makes it much easier to leash train and halter train, toilet train (the use of papers is usually recommended) and on to advanced training obeying some commands.

The tendency of voiding near their food makes for easy training. Put the cavies toilet area near their food dishes. Watch to see where they go concerning the food dishes and place the litter box where they have voided.

As with all animals never use cedar or pine as a litter box material or bedding material it is toxic. Use paper litter or just ripped up newspapers. You can use one of the dog potty mats with newspapers works exceptional well or a litter box that has had the sides removed.

They are a herbivore. The diet should include free range (available at all times) Timothy hay and high-quality food such as guinea pig pellets. Also, you can offer an alfalfa blend (alfalfa, clover, sweet oats). They will also require some fruits, and vegetables added to their diet. Do clean up fresh fruits and vegetables daily. You don't want your exotic pet to get ill from spoiled food. Always keep fresh, filtered water on hand.

As I mentioned housing, a Patagonian cavy is probably going to be the hardest thing to do. The cavy can run, jump, and burrow. You will need to supply warm, protected housing like a large insulated hard sided dog house inside a tall fenced parameter. They need a lot of space, it isn't healthy to keep them in a small confined space. They can also dig or burrow under the fenced so you will need to dig down a couple of feet and pour a cement foundation for the fence, or pour a cement slab, or use a heavy cage wire buried under the fenced area expanding to the outside of the perimeter.

Though the Patagonian in South America experience extreme temperatures be sure, you know that shade is provided at all times. If there are cold, sub-zero temperatures, make sure you are providing a safe heat source. Keep all cords and the heat source away from the cavy. They may chew the cord or get burned on the heater. Make sure the heat source is nowhere near the hay or other flammable objects.

Of course, they can be housed indoors with their human family. They love to be close to you. Except, while in the house they will have to be supervised or have an interior kennel. They chew, like all rodents they have ever-growing teeth and will gnaw on whatever there is to chomp on. Make sure you supply non-chemically treated, or non- toxic wooden objects for them to keep their teeth worn down.

If you want to take them out in public make sure you halter and leash train the cavy; they do startle easily. They are naturally a prey species of animal and are quite alert for predicators. You don't want to startle them and have it run in front of a car or become lost and afraid.

How long does a Patagonian cavy live? Their lifespan is longer in captivity than in the wild. With proper nutrition and veterinarian care 7-10 years with a few living beyond.

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Guide to the Pet Mongoose

The mongoose looks like a weasel or ferret but is not related to these species of the mustelid family. Nor are mongooses part of the mustelid family. The meerkat is part of the mongoose family. The mongoose family is Herpestidae. Herpestidae is divided into two subclasses Herpestinae and Galidiinae.

The mongooses from Madagascar are from the subfamily Galidiinae. The rest of the mongoose genus are of the subclass Herpestinae and are from Southern Europe to Asia and many places in-between.

All the mammals as mentioned earlier are from the order Carnivora meaning they eat meat. The mongoose diet includes snakes, eggs, insects, rodents, crustaceans, and worms. They have incredibly high metabolisms much like the ferret and require a high protein diet. They cannot live on dog food or cat food. Feed cooked chicken necks, other cooked meats, worms, insects, eggs; it is essential to stay as close to an animal's natural diet as possible. They do occasionally eat some fruit and seeds. It is interesting that many carnivores eat food other than meat, sometimes. Could it be medicinal?

They are mainly known for their ability to kill snakes. This ability became widely known through the short story Rikki-Tikki-Tavi from the Jungle Book written by British Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling in 1894. The story was also made into a short television cartoon show for children and made into a movie. The gray mongoose was the subject behind the Rikki-Tikki-Tavi story.

They are fast, have a thick coat and have receptors chemical compound acetylcholine shaped like a snake making it impossible for the snake's Neurotoxins to attach. Along with their powerful jaws and sharp teeth they can kill a snake very quickly. They are not entirely immune to a snake's toxin, usually, a cobra is portrayed in accounts about snakes and mongooses, but they do have a high tolerance, mongoose vs. cobra or cobra vs. mongoose the mongoose will win. They do not fare as well against snakes considered as vipers; one example is the rattlesnake. The ability to kill many different types of snakes depends mainly on their quickness, agility, and thick coats.

All species of mongooses are unable to retract their claws like a cat. Their claws are sharp. Some species of mongoose can fold their ears to keep dirt out of their ears while digging.

The mongoose has been bred in captivity, and you can find mongooses for sale and mongoose breeders in the United States (US). Though it is probably illegal to own one. If not completely banned in all states it is illegal to import. Some countries do allow mongooses as pets. I know a few people in the United States that do have mongooses. It is relatively common to have a mongoose as a pet in some other countries. They may be illegal to own if you take them out of the wild as it is most often unlawful to capture animals from the wild to have as pets. You may be able to own a mongoose in your country if they are bought from a breeder that breeds mongooses or what is known as captive bred.

The mongoose is classified as an exotic pest species and cannot be imported into the United States. Importation is limited to research purposes only.

Mongooses had been introduced into many places for rodent and snake control, causing extreme adverse effects on the local wildlife populations. One example is the Indian mongoose brought into Hawaii for rodent control, which caused the extinction of some species of wildlife. The loss and destruction of wildlife create a domino effect which in turn ruins anything from crops producing the ecosystem to come tumbling down, at least drastically changed from what it was. As it turned out, using mongooses to rid the islands of rats was a failure, rats are nocturnal (active at night) and mongooses diurnal (active during the day). Go figure. A lot of thought went into that plan...not!

The mongoose classification is a wild animal, dangerous animals, or an invasive animal, so research the laws carefully before buying a mongoose. You may need an exclusive license to own one legally.

It is difficult to find veterinarians that deal with mongooses. Be sure to find a veterinarian before you acquire a mongoose.

Mongooses can make good pets and can be very loveable. They are portrayed as being ferocious but, if domesticated or more accurately socialized, can learn to play with toys, and use a litter box. They are brilliant animals.

Having other pets could be very risky especially since a mongoose kills other animals to eat, they are a predator. Having been socialize and living in a household will not control the desire to kill for food. No other animal would be safe including a cat. It may be a different story if they had been raised domestically over thousands of years, one example the ferret, but that is not the case. It would be a real fiasco if you had another predator type species of animal as a pet. No child should be left with a mongoose or any other pet unsupervised.

Certain species of mongooses don't make good pets; and are in fact, very difficult to domesticate or socialize. Be sure to do your research. There are 36 to 40 different varieties of mongoose.

They are a mammal, and most mammals can contract rabies. Check with a veterinarian familiar with mongooses to find out what vaccinations are necessary for a mongoose. Many mongoose owners suggest the mongoose needs many of the same immunities as cats.

Most Mongooses have anal scent glands like a dog or a skunk. It is used to mark their territory and also broadcasts readiness to breed.

They are inclined to be loners not forming strong bonded communities like the meerkats. The female and kits are as close to a bonded group as they are going to get.

Please do considerable research before considering a mongoose as a pet. The laws concerning mongooses are quite severe. After learning of the devastation, the mongoose caused in Hawaii I can at least understand to some degree why some places are reluctant to allow the importation of predator species of animals.

After the television show about the meerkat on Animal Planet, there was a surge of people wanting meerkats as pets and another bunch of people that wanted to get rid of the meerkat as a pet because Animal Planet told them they didn't make good pets. (Go figure). They had to be told their choice of pet wasn't right? Learn all you can about a pet. Don't get a pet because it is cute, it is on television, or your friend has one. If you can't gain experience working with a real animal of your choice before buying one, don't get one.

If you love your pet, please don't let shows like Animal Planet tell you it isn't a good pet. You be the judge! You decided to learn all you could about the mongoose, acquired the pet, love it and care for it. Above all else enjoy your pet mongoose.

Fauna Classifieds has a considerable number of animals in many countries. If there is something special, you are looking for a look through the classifieds. They are quite interesting to read. Buyer beware, this is not a company, pet store, breeder, but individual people selling animals. Fauna Classifieds Fauna Classifieds

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Where do unwanted - un adoptable exotic pets go? Critter Camp

Where do the unwanted pets go? Discarded pets have a home where they are well cared for and loved. Maybe they no longer recognize the concept of love because of past abuse, neglect, and trauma. Who is the angel behind Critter Camp? Director Beth Randall, "They get to live the life they deserve; safe, happy, and loved."

That is, if they are the lucky few that are fortunate enough to find their way to Critter Camp. Find out more about this remarkable organization. I want to learn more about Critter Camp

Critter Camp is the only 501c3 non-kill rescue totally operated by volunteers in the United States.

Turtles as a Pet - Children's Pet House Series

Semi-aquatic pet turtles like the Red-eared slider have been popular pets for a very long time. My very first pet of my own was a pet red-eared slider. My turtle was a tiny baby and came with a plastic bowl with a little plastic palm tree on a bit of island in the plastic bowl. These are horrible conditions for a turtle.

I made several mistakes when I got that little red-eared slider as a pet. I was way too young for my pet. I was only three perhaps going on four. No one in my home knew how to take care of turtles.

Though, the memories of this turtle helped develop my calling to educate as many people as possible on how to care for a pet before acquiring a pet. Semi-aquatic turtles need a large tank, an excellent filtration system because they can be messy animals. They require special light, warm heat at a certain temperature otherwise they won't be able to eat, and they will die.

Turtles will need their tank cleaned often. Their eating habits can be messy, and they excrete a lot of waste.

You will need to wash everything that comes in contact with the turtle, because turtles like many pets, can have Salmonella which is a bacterium. You will also need to wash your hands every time you touch the turtle or anything that ever affects the turtle. Like for example, when you feed the turtle or clean the tank, you will want to wash your hands after you do these chores.

Children don't have to be a certain age before they can have a turtle. All children mature differently and understand animal's needs individually. Even some adults should never have a pet while some young children do fine. There is no firm rule for any situation. There is never any doubt that a young person needs to be supervised with any pet.

Turtles can bite pretty hard. If the turtle gets scared, they can bite, not release the bite, and stick their head in their shell. Never pull your finger out. Just hold real still until he releases your finger.

Another couple of things you need to be aware of before you decide you may want a turtle as a pet is that they can get quite big. A turtle like the red-eared slider can grow to twelve inches long. Turtles can also live a very long time. A decade is ten years; they can live for several decades. So you may still have your turtle after you graduate from college, get married, and have children of your own.

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Do Dragons Exist? The Crystalline Dragon

Standing on a vast continent, in the ring of fire, Mary Steward an archeologist from Australia looked over her dig site. She knew the dense hollow bone was of enormous significance but what was it? The DNA results were of unknown origin. She had expected an unidentified species of bird. She was perplexed yet excited.

Another rumble quaked beneath her feet. She stood between three volcanoes, one volcano as young as 200,000 years old. The ground had shaken frequently during the dig, but this time it grew in intensity. The rock began to slide beneath her feet. Lightning struck a short distance away.

A mountain about 100,000 meters away began to crack. Rocks tumbled, and thunder crashed. In a short while, the earth once again became still.

Mary looked around for a shelter to seek safety if the earthquakes should begin again. She noticed a sparkling substance scattered on the ground around the nearby mountain. A large crack had appeared behind some boulders in the hill.

Curiosity got the best of her forgetting about all danger. She walked toward the sparkling substance on the ground seemingly coming from the new fracture — the land scattered with crystals of all colors, brilliant colors.

Mary was quite close to the fractured mountain. She thought she heard a hum. The crystals on the ground began changing colors. A prism of colors came from the cave causing the stones to change colors.

She made her way to the cave. There was just enough room to squeeze inside. She found herself in a small hollow space. The walls were full of crystals. She also noticed the brilliant green and red crystals suggesting they were rare gems.

Again she noticed a prism of color across from the opening where she stood. There was a small space just big enough to crawl through. She slung her backpack in front of her and pulled out a flashlight. She crawled through the hole dragging the pack behind her. She crawled for quite a distance before coming to another opening. This room much larger than the last. It was magnificent. The beauty mesmerized her for a short while. The crystals were huge.

She found the source of the humming and the prism of light. She certainly didn't need her flashlight. She had no idea what the light source was, but the room was brilliant. In the back of the room was a grand crystal rock. The rock was semi-clear. She moved closer. The prism and hum came from within this crystal rock.

She ran her hand over the rock; it was smooth but quite warm to the touch. She thought she saw something out the corner of her eye. She climbed up on the rock to get a closer look.

The persistent humming she'd been hearing grew more distinct. There were holes in the crystal. She counted five holes with small fractures. She gazed into the rock and knew her eyes were playing tricks on her. Something seemed to be staring back.

Mary was more fascinated than frightened. She noticed the prism of colors repeated a sequence. The humming transfixes her thoughts to the five holes. She looked around the cave and realized there was a crystal for every color in the prism. The first hole shined deep blue. She looked around for a blue gem. She found one in the cave wall, she pulled it, and the crystal broke away from the wall a lot easier than she had expected. She placed the blue gem in the first hole. The second hole was glowing red; again she found a red gem to place in the hole.

With each gem, she placed the humming became more intense. Finally, the last gem was in place. The rock she was kneeling on began to vibrate. A large squared area began to rise from the rock. It looked like a crystal container. This box held the blurry figure. She thought she saw things when she saw two little eyes staring back at her. Inside the rock was an oval crystal with something alive inside.

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She wasn't sure what to do. What could it be? Her field of expertise was things that had been dead for a very long time. This creature was alive. She carefully cradled the crystal oval. The oval object, was it an egg? It vibrated, hummed and it was quite warm.

She felt the profound clash of lightning outside the cave with the thunder following immediately. The crystal egg began to shatter. A thick liquid crystal splashed all over her chest. It was almost hot enough to burn her, but not entirely. She held a small animal, what kind of animal she wasn't sure. It looked somewhat like a newly hatched bird. It seems to have feathers, but they didn't look like feathers. The animal was wet; it was hard to tell what she was seeing.

She sat with the newly-hatched animal for quite some time. The youngster quietly hummed and watched Mary intently. As the feather-like objects dried, they felt extremely delicate - but firm. She ran her hand over one, it felt like crystal. The young animal stepped back out of her arms and stood on its hind legs. Great wings unfolded; the young animal flapped its wings to help dry them.

The shape of the animal's leg was comparable to the bone she had discovered a short distance from the cave so many months ago. It was a beautiful creature; it looked both bird and reptilian. The feathers a multitude of colors forever changing. What was this beautiful creature an angel or a dragon?

It jumped off the high rock they had been sitting on and pounced on a large quartz rock. She or he began chewing the rock. "A crystalline baby dragon that ate crystals," whispered Mary.

She started her venture so many months ago for recognition, but she knew she was being trusted with the most significant and most important confidence of all time. She could never let anyone know of the existence of this magnificent creature until the dragon told her the time was right. For it was apparent, this dragon was born for a reason.

Occasionally we need a vacation from reality. This story is my short trip to fantasyland.