U.A.P.P.E.A.L Rodent Facts

Historically, rodents have held a negative connotation. The few species responsible for the spread of plague and disease gave the nearly 2000 species of rodents a bad reputation. That’s unfortunate, as many rodents make great, easy to care for pets.

Fancy Mice and Rats were some of the first rodents kept as pets. Kept sporadically for centuries, fancy mice really became popular in the late 1700s. The first official mouse show took place in England in 1895 at The National Mouse Club. The Fancy Rats started as naturally occurring color morphs of the Brown Rat. They became popular as pets in the mid 1800s. If fact, they were so popular that in 1913 The National Mouse Club changed its name to The National Mouse and Rat Club. Both were easy to care for and had appealing traits. The mice were small and cute; the rats were intelligent and even capable of devotion. Those of you who are in the rat and mouse fan club are lucky. They’ve been around long enough as pets that they were already established before the multitude of pet laws were passed across the country. They are legal nearly everywhere and there is no real threat to that status.

Guinea Pigs have played an important role with humans for hundreds of years. They were a major source of food for the South American Incas, and even held a spiritual status throughout much of their range. After that, their history dims a bit until they arrive in England and one winds up as a pet of Queen Elizabeth I. Even considering that, though, they didn’t become really popular as pets until the early 1900s

Mongolian Gerbil

The next rodents to be introduced to the pet trade were Golden Hamsters and Mongolian Gerbils in the mid 20th century. These were originally used mainly as lab animals. The soft cuddly Golden Hamster and the friendly, odor-free Mongolian Gerbil were instant hits. Golden Hamsters are accepted nearly everywhere, but even the 50+ years of history doesn’t seem to help the Mongolian Gerbil. Both California and Alaska have made it against the law to keep Mongolian Gerbils as pets.

Over the last 20 years the popularity of exotic “alternative” rodents has taken off. These include other less common varieties of gerbils, hamsters, and mice. They also include jirds, cavies, degus and squirrels. Because the legal status of these animals is questioned in many states, these (along with Mongolian Gerbils) will be the main focus of the UAPPEAL Rodent Element. There are many different species, far too many to name, and none more important than another. Some examples of them are as follows.

Bushy-Tailed Jird

Duprasi (commonly called the Fat-Tailed Gerbil)

Degu

Spiny Mice

Pygmy Mice

Carraig Stanwyck

Rodent Element Representative