# New too Mammels



## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

I've been really interest in getting into rare/exotic mammels for a while. I just dont know which one to start with.

I like larger mammels so wouldn't be looking at mice etc anything from a rabbit up. Also no DWA animals for the time being but i will be applying in the next few years. I do like to interact with my animals dont mind if it takes ages just wouldn't like a display animal.

Can anyone help me pick one out?


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

What about a hedgehog ?


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## gecko-kus (Aug 15, 2007)

definately hedgehogs!!!


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

No offense but they dont 'do it' for me i was looking at armadillios/meerkats etc


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## Emmaj (Dec 3, 2007)

Meerkats require alot of space and you need to keep more than one from what i have read on here


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## gecko-kus (Aug 15, 2007)

plus i've read that meerkats are a hell of a lot of work, especially keeping top of the pack.


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## PendleHog (Dec 21, 2005)

You have a few options if you are truly up to doing some homework!

Firstly are you looking for a strictly indoor pet, or perhaps something tha5t lives outdoors some/all of the time? Caged or free roaming?

Would this be a single animal, or would a pair be acceptable?

Presuming you want a single animal and are planning to keep indoors (this seems more common nowadays) you could look at:

skunks
coatis
civets
armadillos
meercats
..plenty more to choose from IF you can source them, cant think of anything else Ive seen recently though.

I suspect you will find hedgehogs a little small and not interactive enough considering your requirements.

RWhen considering the list above remember that skunk kits cannot be legally descented anymore. Meercats may also pose a problem in that they do better in groups (and outdoors IMO).

Most of the animals listed are destructive to some degree also, be it by digging or just generally exploring ANYTHING they can get their hands on :roll:


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

im definatly up for homework (i think most people on this website have had to) 

Thanks for the list pendlehog, i'm gonna rule out meerkats now as they maybe to advanced at the moment, skunks im sorry cute as a button but couldnt deal with the smell and think descenting is crule anyway so thank god its illegal.

Going to look at coatis civets armadillos a bit more


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## gecko-kus (Aug 15, 2007)

can you keep tapir's? would love one of those.


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## PendleHog (Dec 21, 2005)

A word on coatis, they are seriously clever and have little "hands" rather than paws so will get into EVERYTHING. Make sure you baby proof the place 10 times over if you get one :lol2:

I love 'dillos but my OH thinks they are one of the ugliest things that ever walked the earth


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## Nerys (Apr 18, 2005)

blimey... where do you start!!!!

this is our current stock list, it might give you some things to google for..

TSKA - Rainbow Market Management -- Exotic Species Consultancy Services

bigger than a rabbit.. umm... hedgies and gliders might not interest you then...

what about things like gambain pouched rats?

a lot depends on budget and available space too...

i delivered a stunning baby kinkajou to her new home yesterday, she is awesome, hand reared after rejection by the parents, she was sat on her new owners shoulder eating a pear within hours of him taking her on!!

not all kinks are that nice, but you can get them..

going up in budget, there is a corking pair of aboreal anteaters for sale at the moment, pics on the site from when we went to meet them the other week, they are really a specialised animal, but this pair have the bonus of being totally hand tame and handleable

we did have a gorgeous armadillo on too, a 6 banded, he is being looked at by a client at the moment, but as of yet, no money has changed hands, so he is still available.. he is a cracker too, and another one that would be here if only i had the money!!

the prices you see on the site, are set, in the main, by our clients, we manage sales on behalf of private owners, who are charged a fee by us yes, which covers us acting as "agents" on their behalf as to find suitable homes for the exotics. for some species we vet heavily, for instance only 2 in every 10 applications for primates we get, are ever passed as being "suitable" homes.

we do get accused of being over priced, but most of the time, this is sour grapes from bitter quarters lol, some people seem unable to cope with the idea that we do not set the price, the owner of the animal does, we then advertise what they ask us to!! this is why, for instance, you will see sugar gliders at several different prices on the lists, one client asks more than the others.. their choice, not ours

have you kept anything before, is there anything you have in mind specifically? what sort of animals do you like? rodents? marsupials? carnivores?

personally, from our lists right now.. 

personally i would have, if i could, 

the Dillo, the bush baby, the Genet (my GOD is that beautiful - i met it at the weekend) the Tamandua - tho the diet is extreme... and after this weekends time with one.. i would have the young hand reared kink too.. christ she was stunning!

thinking about it, we have just had tenrecs come back on the lists, now they are pretty pukka too 

we did have coatis on the books until recently, but have withdrawn them at the moment for various reasons which i am not going into on here! all i will say, is be careful if you do get into talks with someone selling a load..

we trying to source tapir for another client at the moment actually, you can keep them, but they are bloody hard to come by..

there is a quad of Mara available at the moment tho.. not quite the same i know.. 

hth, get in contact with myself or Rory (TSKA Rory Matier on here) if you want to chat more

Nerys


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

nah dillos are amazing there one of the reasons i wanted to start keeping mammels

Demand one from you OH

I'd quite like to know on tapir's i'm 99% sure their DWA as their quite rare if not endangered i think


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## gecko-kus (Aug 15, 2007)

skimsa said:


> I'd quite like to know on tapir's i'm 99% sure their DWA as their quite rare if not endangered i think


I REALLY want one!!!


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## Nerys (Apr 18, 2005)

the dwa does not take into account the animals rarity or endangered status

(tbh most of us are not sure what exactly it does cover.. when animals which CAN be a danger to the public like Racoons, are taken off..)

this is the link for animals on the list

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/gwd/animallist.pdf

Tapirs are indeed on the dwa at present according to the above list

they are not on the list of 33 animals removed last year, kinks and coatis have been removed however

N


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

nerys i love your site and think that your screening proceedure is excellent.

I'm looking at anything but not really rodents. your dillo does sound good as does the kink ive unfortunatly missed. Budget is unlimited by any means but i wont sacrifice quality of animal for a few pounds.

I will keep an eye on your site any advice or suggestions of breeds you can give is so gratefully recieved.


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## Nerys (Apr 18, 2005)

did you see the bush baby??? thats supposed to be hand tame one too, though i have not met that one..

the tamandua are very very neat, and quite rare too... they are owned by a private keeper, who was sold them by another seller (i.e not us).

he'd wanted them for years, managed to get a pair, and now due to unforseen circumstances, has to sell, poor guy.. they are flipping wicked i have to say, tho as said the diet is extreme!

we could arrange a viewing for dillo if you wanted? its based in buckinghamshire

N


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## emerald (Nov 15, 2007)

are you looking for nocturnal or diurnal animals


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

the tam's are gorgeous what creatures.

I am interested in the dillo, are they ok by themselves or do they need to be in pairs/groups.

What sort of price would he be? If you want to pm info ive cleared my box


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

hey emerald either to be honest i work 2/3 nights a week so not a prob to me


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## Nerys (Apr 18, 2005)

yeah i know, you should see the food tho lol, its liquidised into a grim brown gloop which they LOVE... 

the dillo, yes, he is kept solitary, they can be very hard to sex actually

i will pm you yes, mainly as emerald has a bee in his, or her, bonnet about the prices we charge, and i can't be arsed with him, or her, right now lol. 

as said, the prices are dictated to us by the people who own the animals, they are not set by us!!!

N


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## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

err reckon the maybe to much for me anyway. Any info on the dillo would be great i will pm you my email.


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## emerald (Nov 15, 2007)

genets are a nice animal to work with it would be worth advertising what you want you have to be careful these days with silly prices that are about if theres a zoo nearby visit them tell them your intrested in a paticular animal im SURE THEY will help you out or give you a number of a private breeder without having to pay admin fees if you decide what you want pm i have lot of contacts il give you some numbers


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## TSKA Rory Matier (May 27, 2007)

Emerald, 

Zoos have only recently come into our camp of pro keeping. But this is a political movement and not so much as a still supporting us action.

They are not particularily fond of 'selling animals' to the general private keeper.

They sometimes have a list of specialised keepers with which they prefer to deal with, for they in their eyes are classed as 'specialist' and 'professional'. But they have usually vetted the keepers they want their animals to go to.

Donations are usually the form of transaction from zoo to private keeper.

Our OP may have some luck here, but sadly this is not always the case, and my words to the OP would be. 


Decide upon a group of animals that you may want to possibly own. IE: Rodents, Marsupials, Carnivores etc.

Research your chosen animal thoroughly.

Review your expenditure and see if you can actually afford the animal long term.


Sometimes it does actually pay credit to looking at the local animal departments of colleges and Uni's. 

They too do not often sell, but sometimes they are looking for those who may be able to rehome for them.

But as said, l think your first step would be to truly identify what species it is that you are after.

R


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## PendleHog (Dec 21, 2005)

emerald said:


> genets are a nice animal to work


But almost impossible to find it seems.. we have been searching for them and been told finding one will be lucky indeed. The only example we have see would not really be suited to our setup. 
Our "second choice" (though I am loathe to use the term) seems somewhat more achievable though. Sometimes it pays to be flexible I guess..


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## TSKA Rory Matier (May 27, 2007)

Genets used to be really popular , but then they dropped from the limelight.

Now sadly only a few keepers actually have them, a few game parks keep them also.

Not far down the road from me now in an refuge, they have some elderly ones.

I saw one with Nerys yesterday and at 6-7 years of age, he is in extremely good form.

We will have photographs up on the website soon enough and then you can see what lovely animals they are.

R


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## emerald (Nov 15, 2007)

pendelhogg have worked with genets there a lovely animal to keep hope you can find some you wont be disapointed with them


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## PendleHog (Dec 21, 2005)

I hope I can find one that is suitable one day too Emerald, it will probably be a waiting game, as with all things!


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## Snakes r grreat (Aug 21, 2006)

Can this thread go back on track now please.


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## phil the drill (Dec 15, 2007)

i wos enjoying that


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