Thread 5057349

I live alone, work 9-5 and have to commute over an hour each way. I miss having a dog like when I was a kid but I can't justify it because they are social and would spend most time alone as I don't have the family to actually give them the love they need.
I also can't do cats because I live in an area with lots of traffic/cars outside and I despise the concept of "housecats" it's less humane than prison but the cats only crime is existing.

What are some pets I could look into? I'm thinking maybe rats or ferrets as they are social but small so I could buy a few of them to keep one another company. Birds don't seem doable either given how ovens kill them, air fryers kill them, all the cookware I see in stores is teflon, etc.

How the fuck does /an/ balance work life requirements with pet ownership? Bonus points if single, not living with parents or children and not WFH. Is it just housecats, rodents, reptiles and fish?

>>5057349 (OP)
you shouldnt have any pets. end

>>5057349 (OP)

A small pet could work for sure. Get two social animals to chill. Two rats or something would work well. They're smart and usually are chill with being handled, too, so you'll be ok with them being alone but also they'd be cuddleable

>>5057349 (OP)
Get dwarf hams. They are solitary enough so you can't really socially neglect them. Not very intelligent either but entertaining to watch. They sleep when you're gone but wake up after our dinner time. Terrascaping is pretty cool to keep yourself busy, making little villages for your hams to run through. I've had Campbells so i could keep a pair of the same gender in one environment. They live about 2,5 years max so it's not a long term commitment.
I wish i could have them again but my asshole country banned many pets including these guys.

>>5057349 (OP)
You could do two parrots. By the time yout back home just let them out of the cage to spread their wings for an hour or two and chill with them on your shoulder or lap. You could even do vidya and have them on a perch next to your couch or desk. Budgies would be the easiest option but they are parrots in the same way a slow worm is a lizard, but they are low maintence.

The next leg up is Pionus parrots. They are quiet and just like being fussed and being around you so they are pretty easy to handle. Very good option as a starting bird, but they can be expensive depending on where you are based. If you're lucky you could even get a Bronze Winged Pionus that look like mini-Falcons.

Cockatiels and Parrotlets are also good cheap picks, but they are far more high energy. You will need to interact with them beyond just having them in your presence but they are again fairly easy and low maintence to have.

Ring Necks are another option and are very good talkers, but you will need to make sure again you interact with them when you're not working.

There's a bunch of others but it will take too long to go through them all. But parrots are an option for you OP and honestly they are fairly easy when compared to the level of commitment with dogs. A lot of people don't seem to realize that.

>>5058255
>>5057349 (OP)
As for cookware, just don't use non-stick pans or self-clean mode on your oven. Easy.

>>5058255
>There's a bunch of others but it will take too long to go through them all. But parrots are an option for you OP and honestly they are fairly easy when compared to the level of commitment with dogs. A lot of people don't seem to realize that.
Dogs are much easier to be social with. You can pet them and touch them more, where birds are more fragile. Dogs you walk outside for exercise and stimulation, they can then meet other dogs.
Meanwhile shit like parrots and hamsters spend most time indoors and just have a few things in a cage to keep them company, this is worse for parrots as they are actually quite smart. I imagine it would be a depressing life to be a smart creature capable of flight, confined to a small cage, maybe the room when your owner is present.

Obviously cats are the best pets for all these things and it's why cats are so common.

Save up money and start a farm in the midwest. Than you can have a dog.

>>5058838
>Dogs are much easier to be social with
If you understand dog body language, the same with birds.
>You can pet them and touch them more, where birds are more fragile
You wouldn't rough and tumble a pug like you would a corso, the same applies to parrots. You can be rough with larger parrots like macaws.
>Dogs you walk outside for exercise and stimulation
You can walk with a bird, but you will be hard pressed to find a parrot who will actually want to be walked everyday. Most are fine with stimulation inside of a house if you give them toys for as well as your time when you can, doubly so if you have two parrots as they are flock animals and will keep eachother occupied. With a dog you NEED to walk them, birds can be taken out for a walk but they don't NEED to.
>I imagine it would be a depressing life to be a smart creature capable of flight, confined to a small cage, maybe the room when your owner is present.
That same argument can apply to dogs who naturally have large territory boundries in the wild when not domesticated, besides, aviaries exist. Whatever applies to dogs can apply to parrots, but the difference is that a dog is far more demanding physically for their physical requirements to be met while most parrots are just happy if you let them out of the cage for a few hours and let them hang out around you. If you can look after a dog you can look after a parrot, but most retards can't even do either and while dogs will die young when damaged parrots don't and will live decades with the neuroticism for decades.

However, if intelligence is not a requirement I do agree cats are a good option too.

>>5057349 (OP)
If you miss dogs maybe I could suggest you a musk turtle. They are cute, hardy and smart and playful and have a lot of energy. My brother owns one and they don't need much maintenance, maybe a few water changes per month, a heater and uvb lamp for basking, but yeah so your research. Pic rel is the breed he has I think, a razorback musk turtle.

>>5057349 (OP)
>I despise the concept of "housecats" it's less humane than prison but the cats only crime is existing
ngmi