ABCs of Animal World: Unique Pets

Showing posts with label Unique Pets. Show all posts

Showing posts with label Unique Pets. Show all posts

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Wonderful Mice and Unique Rodents for Pet

People purchase Mice as companion pets because these creatures are playful and loving. They can grow used to being handled. Like pet rats, pet mice should not be left unsupervised outside as they have many natural predators like cats, birds, lizards and dogs.

Here are some of the best mice pets in the world.

Fancy Mouse Pet

The best known Mouse species is the common House Mouse or Mus musculus. It is also a popular pet. Fancy Mice pets originated from House Mouse. They are available in different colors and markings.

Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus)

Deer Mouse is a cool-looking mouse species endemic to South America. Although mice make good pets, it should be noted that they are carrier of emerging diseases such as hantavirus and lyme disease. They can live up to 8 years.

Knock Out Mice

Knockout Mice are genetically engineered mice in which researchers have inactivated, or "knocked out," an existing gene by replacing it or disrupting it with an artificial piece of DNA. The loss of gene activity often causes changes in a mouse's phenotype, which includes appearance, behavior and other observable physical and biochemical characteristics.

A laboratory mouse in which a gene affecting hair growth has been knocked out (left), is shown next to a normal lab mouse.

Knockout Mice are important animal models for studying the role of genes which have been sequenced but whose functions have not been determined. By causing a specific gene to be inactive in the mouse, and observing any differences from normal behavior or physiology, researchers can infer its probable function.

White-footed Mouse (Peromyscus leucopus)

White-footed Mouse is rodent endemic to North America. This mouse species is also known as the Woodmouse, particularly in Texas. It has a maximum lifespan of 8 years. It can attain a length of 19.7 cm including its tail.

Unique Rodent for Pet

Although these two animals were named rat they are not true rats.

Gambian Pouched Rat (Cricetomys gambianus)

Gambian Pouched Rats are unusual rat species for having pouch on their cheeks. The Gambian Pouched Rat is a nocturnal animal and is one of the largest muroids in the world, growing up to 3 feet long including their tail which makes up half their length. The Gambian Pouched Rat can weigh as much as 6.8 kg. This omnivore that feeds on vegetables, insects, crabs, snails and many others is also commonly known as the African Giant Pouched Rat.

Giant Pouched Rat (Crycetomis emini)

The Giant Pouched Rats of Africa is a large muroid rodent that can attain weight of up to 1.5 kg. This rat is becoming useful in some areas for detecting land mines. Although they have poor sight, these creatures have exceptional acute sense of smell which is very effective in detecting explosives. In addition, they are small enough to not detonate any of the mines.

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Unique Breeds of Fancy Rats for Pet

Rats are becoming popular pets any where in the world. Go to a pet shop and you will surely encounter a rat for sale as pet. Fancy Rats are domesticated brown rats which are the most common type of pet rats. The name Fancy Rat derives from the idea of animal fancy or the phrase, "to fancy" which means to like, or appreciate.

1.) Dumbo Rat

Dumbo Rats are unique fancy Rats because of their unusual appearance. These variety of rat have ears located lower than their head. They were named for their resemblance to “Dumbo” the Elephant.

2.) Zucker Rat

Oversized or overweight pets look amazing. One of them is the Zucker Rat which was bred to be a genetic model for research on obesity and hypertension. These fancy rats are capable of weighing up to 1 kilogram which is more than twice the average weight.

3.) Hooded Fancy Rat

This variety of fancy rat is called Hooded Fancy Fat which is name for its appearance.

4.) Himalayan Rat

Like Himalayan Cats and Guinea Pigs, Himalayan Rats are cute-looking animals for pet. These tiny mammals have a unique color and marking variation.

5.) Black Rat

Black Rat or Rattus rattus is a common long-tailed rodent that originated Asia and became widely distributed in Europe in Roman Times. It can grow to a length of up to 46.4 cm and a weight of up to 340 g. Despite its name, the Black Rat exhibits several color forms. It is usually black to light brown in color with a lighter underside. There is also an unusual green tinted variety.

6.) Sprague Dawley Rat

The Sprague Dawley Rat is a popular fancy rat pet. It is an out-bred multipurpose breed of albino rat used extensively in medical research. They are well-like for their calmness and ease of handling. It can attain a weight of up to 520 g and a length of up to 10.5 cm. Sprague Dawley Rat can live up to 31/2 years.

7.) Albino Lab Rat

The Albino Laboratory Rat is a breed of rat with red eyes and white fur. It is an iconic model organism for scientific research in a variety of fields.

8.) Wistar Rat

Another awesome-looking albino breed of fancy rat is the active Wistar Rat. It was developed at the Wistar Institute in 1906 for use in biological and medical research. This breed of rat is presently one of the most popular rat strains used for laboratory research. It is characterized by its wide head, long ears, and having a tail length that is always less than its body length. The Long-Evans and Sprague Dawley Rat strains were developed from Wistar Rats.

9.) American Blue

This fancy rat is a cool-looking fancy rat. The American Blue is one of several standardized coat colors.

10.) Hairless Fancy Rats

Some pet enthusiasts prefer hairless pets due to allergy reasons or for their unique appearance. Even though this rat is hairless, the markings on its skin indicate that it is a hooded rat.

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Friday, August 19, 2011

Awesomely Incredible Animal You May Want To Keep as Pets

Dogs, cats, parrots and species of fishes are among the most popular pets in the world. There are people who want snake and other exotic animals for pet. Would you like to have an incredibly awesome pet? Scroll down and pick your choice.

Ton Pig

Some breeds of domestic pig are becoming popular pet. One of the most famous is Ton Pig, a gigantic hog from China. This huge animal weighed in at 1,984 pounds or 900 kg. Ton died from lack of mobility due to obesity in 2004. His owner donated him to the Liaoning Agriculture Museum in Shenyang for display.

Meishan

Another breed of pig that can be considered as a pet is the unique-looking Meishan that originated in China. This animal is characterized by large drooping ears and wrinkled black skin. It s one of the most prolific breeds in the world and is best known for its large litters of up to 16 piglets.

Kunekune

Another peculiar-looking breed of domestic pig is the Kunekune of New Zealand. Because of its placid and friendly nature, it is now kept as pet. This small breed is hairy and has a dumpy build. It can have wattles hanging from its lower jaw. It comes in different colors such as black and white, ginger, cream, gold-tip, black, brown and tri-colored. Kunekune loves human company and it is intelligent and easy to train.

Pot-bellied Pig

The friendly and cute Pot-bellied Pig like the Kunekune is now a popular pet. This domestic pig breed originated in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese government has begun to subsidize local farmers that continue to raise the indigenous Pot-bellied Pigs because it realizes they are neither as prolific nor as large as other breeds

Miniature Pig

The Miniature Pig is now becoming popular pet because it can be house-trained. It can keep itself exceptionally clean, despite people believing that a pig is a dirty animal. It can grow to 90 kg. It is also known as Micro Pig.

Pygmy Goat

The handsome-looking Pygmy Goat is commonly kept as pet in urban and suburban backyards. Despite its small size, it produces a very large amount of milk and can be eaten. The Pygmy Goat is quite hardy and can adapt to virtually all climates.

Nigerian Dwarf Goat

Another tiny breed of goat that is usually kept as pet is the Nigerian Dwarf Goat. This miniature dairy goat breed originated in West Africa. It is popular as a hobby goat because it is easy to maintain and due to its small size.

Thumbelina

The smallest horse in the world is the 43 cm or 17 inches high Thumbelina of the United States. This tiny horse is owned by Paul and Kay Goessling. This dwarf miniature horse weighed 26 kg and is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the smallest horse.

Miniature Horse

Miniature Horses are often kept as family pet because they are friendly and interact well with people. They serve as companion animal and trained as service animals for people with disabilities. They can live up to 35 years of age

Shetland Pony

The Shetland Pony is one of the smallest pony breeds but is very strong. It originated in Shetland Isles and can attain a maximum height of 42 inches. This intelligent animal has heavy coats and short legs.

This very strong breed of pony is used for riding, driving and pack purposes.

Shire

Shire is one of the largest horse breeds in the world. It would be very interesting and exciting to have one as a pet. It is such a pleasure and pride to mount the tallest horse breed on the planet.

Najdi

The Najdi or Nejdi is one of the most beautiful breed of sheep in the world. It is also one of the most expensive with a price ranging up to $8,000 USD. This domestic sheep breed is endemic to the Najd region of the Arabian Peninsula. This breed has a distinctive appearance that has even been celebrated in Saudi "sheep beauty pageants". This very tall breed that can be as tall as 86 cm has long, Roman nosed faces with ears that droop.

Quessant

The Ouessant is a breed of sheep from Quessant Island in Brittany, France. It is one of the smallest breed of sheep in the world. Most Ouessant are black or dark brown in color, but white individuals do occur. The rams have relatively large horns. This rare breed is also called Ushant and occasionally, Breton Dwarf.

Castlemilk Moorit

Another rare breed of domestic sheep is the Castlemilk Moorit. This awesome breed originated in Dumfriesshire in Scotland, UK. It was created as a decorative breed in the 1900s to adorn the parkland of a lord's estate. The main use of this breed is hobby farming. It is also known as Moorit Shetland or Castlemilk Shetland.

Ankole-Watusi

The Ankole-Watusi is a unique cattle breed endemic to Africa. Its huge and distinctive horns can reach up to 2.4 m from tip to tip. The horns of the adults serve as formidable weapons against any intruders. This cattle can weigh up to 730 kg.

Caramel Burmese Python

Pythons are popular exotic pet due to their gentle nature such as the Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus). It is the largest subspecies of the Indian Python and one of the world’s 6 largest snakes. It can achieve a length of up to 5.8 meters or 19 ft.

Ball Python

The Ball Python (Python regius) is the smallest of the African pythons and is popular in the pet trade. It is also known as Royal Python. The name Ball Python refers to the animal's tendency to curl into a ball when stressed or frightened.

Tarantula

Tarantulas are among the giant species of spider. They are generally a group of hairy and large arachnids. This animal is often kept as pet by adventurous and courageous pet owners.

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