Odd request
 

My Cousin Jenna is very allergic to cats and dogs. Her Daughter Sam (who they adopted a few years ago, and turns 13 next weekend) has asked about getting a pet. This is my cousin's Facebook status:

Does anyone have a pet guinea pig, hamster, skinny pig, mouse (any variety) or hedge hog that you'd be willing to let us babysit at our home for few days over the next week or so? I apparently have lost my mind because we are seriously considering adding to our menagerie a new pet for Sam. However I need to figure out if I'm allergic or not like I am to cats and dogs- hence this bizarre request!!

Just thought I'd share on here, on the off chance, someone in the Edmonton area was able to help.

How about a Lizard?

Sam (my cousin Jenna's daughter) likes lizards but my cousin said she didn't want one. I think they were looking for something more cute and cuddly, like a hamster.

did you suggest fish? they're cute and cuddly...

A lot of people are allergic to the bedding materials used for small animals, so that is something she will need to consider while pet sitting. Maybe looking for animals that can do without the wood shavings, or use an alternative (I know when I used to work at a pet store you could get this fluffy paper stuff instead). She should look at spiny mice, they are very social (in my experience, more social than hamsters). I used to have a hedghog, and I never used any shaving type bedding, he was ok with a towel and I put a small area rug with the rubberized backing on the floor of his cage.

Have they considered a hairless cat? Pretty cute, no?
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GvJpsPwuKL...phynx+Cat2.jpg

Or maybe you can make one of these
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3143/2...967_z.jpg?zz=1

Worst case, skinny pig
http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lu...io84o1_500.jpg

What on earth is that??????

She has a bunch of birds so she didn't want to try a hairless cat. She did say she was thinking of a skinny pig.

Excellent points I will mention them to her.

Not sure but my guess is it's the love child from kien & lastlight, it does have an uncanny resemblance.

Just an FYI, If she is allergic to dander or saliva rather than fur a hairless anything will put her in a bad way.
There have been people that are allergic to saliva or dander and have gone to a sphynx cat breeder and have left in an ambulance.
Rodent pets food is also hay based that can also be an allergen along with bedding.

It usually is the dander and not the fur. A vet recommended using better food to help reduce.

Good luck.

Mini Rex bunnies are more or less hypoallergenic (will still depend on the person). My wife is allergic to cats and even our dogs to some extent but was okay holding the mini rex, I do not own one so I have no long term experience with them. I have owned hedgehogs (get as babies only and handle them all the time) and guinea pigs and both made good pets with no complaints from the wife. I only had one guinea pig that I really loved, it always wanted to be held, the rest just never had the same personality. I still have a hamster but I don't think you want to borrow it, the thing is 4 years old and somehow still alive. At one point it went gray, then bald and now the fur is growing back. Last week it was cold and stiff and I thought it was finally dead, the I saw it breath a bit so I had the my daughter cuddle it in front of the fireplace and it came back to normal life. For the last year it snores all night so the daughter had to kick it out of her room. The hamster never bites and was very playful and doesn't mind strangers but I would still prefer a guinea pig over a hamster but it's not my pet.

:pound:

I think cat and dog dander is different from hamsters etc. but I'm not sure. That's why she's hoping to borrow one for a week to see if she has an allergic reaction to it or not before just getting one then finding out they can't keep it.

Not that I have one but conures (a small type of parrot) are hypoallergenic (they don't have dander) and can be quite affectionate.

And they can annoy the neighbors 5 houses away!

That depends entirely on how well you train them. Its like saying all dogs will bite you or bark incessantly.
Birds train just as easily as dogs. Just like dogs some species vary in how noisey they are (ie. Sun conures are known for being loud) but if you're diligent in your training most if not all will respond to it. Plus I don't think most conures can yell loud enough to be heard outside a house. A big Macaw or Cockatoo on the other hand probably can.
Birds rarely make noise once you put them to bed (sheet over cage) as well. Birds that make noise at night time become snacks in the wild. Captivity hasn't managed to breed that out of them yet.

Wanna bet? Our little Green Cheek can be a loud SOB when he wants to. Also has plenty of dander, an attitude and a bite that will almost bring tears to your eyes. He can be affectionate at times but he prefers my wife over me (just as our female lovebird thinks of me as her mate).

I am allergic to cats and dogs, along with a few other things, and I ended up buying a Havanese puppy two years ago.
They are non shedding, hypo allergenic, very people oriented, but very easy to steal because they love everybody and every living thing.
He even tries to get the rabbits that live under the back yard shed to play with him.
They ARE a small dog though, but from walking the dog when kids are going to school, he seems to be a BIG hit with them.
Here he is, 11 pounds at 17 months old.

http://www.angelfire.com/ab/rayjay/skylar17month.jpg

She has a parrot (as well as several other birds) but their parrot can be mean and does bite every now and then.

Good to know, and you're right I wouldn't want to borrow a hamster that might die when in their care. My cousin is a very caring and sensitive person and that would devastate her.

He's cute! She tried a few friends dogs out for a visit (that were considered non shedding and hypo allergenic) but she had an allergic reaction to each of them.

Most can and will. I've had Sun, Nanday, Patagonian, Cherry Headed, Blue Crowned, Sunjay, and they all screamed. The worst was a pet Nanday that lived in the house. Some of the smaller species (from the Pyrrhura family) can be quieter, but most rivaled my Umbrella Cockatoo for volume!

just when i think i don't need to read ALL of a thread i find this hidden treasure to confirm that thought. :lol:

Try a bearded dragon. The are low maintenance and are very, very interactive and snuggly.