We welcomed a few new members to the family on Monday :)
Snap and Crackle (Pop wouldn’t come out)
These kids are gerbils and we’ve had them before for many years.
We got three little (hopefully) girls and they are living quite happily in an aquarium tank. We will replace this in a few weeks with a larger tank, as the girls grow (though they won’t get very big) up.
Snap
They are actually three different colors. Snap is silver (and by far the boldest and most inquisitive). Crackle is a medium sort of grey/gold and Pop is a darker grey. Pop decided to sleep in this morning so I don’t have a picture of her :)
Crackle
We feed them Kaytee Fiesta seeds/grains which we have used for our gerbils for a long time. It seems to go over well and is a pretty reasonable approximation of what their diet would be in the wild. For snacks, Cheerios (or a similar grain based and not-too-heavily-sugared cereal) are much enjoyed. Puffed rice and puffed wheat (the plain type, not the glazed type) also go over pretty well.
The little house, we lucked into at WalMart and they immediately named it the “nest” and set up housekeeping. As they’re still tiny, there’s room for all of them inside. We’ll probably have to get something a bit bigger when we replace their tank but for now, they think it’s perfect. Throw in a water bottle and the cardboard tube from a roll of toilet paper and they’re happy as clams :)
On the knitting front (yes, there actually is some knitting content!), I have been working on the prototype Chinese waves shawl. I had started with a 5 garter stitch border but after several rows decided that wasn’t what I really wanted. So I ripped it and started over. This time I worked in garter stitch until I had a 20 stitch border on either side before starting the waves pattern.
Waves shawl
I apologize because the pattern doesn’t show up awfully well. I attribute that to the heathery tone of the yarn. This is Woolease sport weight (though it’s really more like a DK weight) and is being worked on a size 10 US (6 mm) circular needle. Not that it’s being worked in the round, but I’ll need the length as the shawl expands in width. The target (at least for now, according to the figures I’m getting) is somewhere between 275 and 300 stitches for a width of somewhere between 60 and 68”. Depending on how that looks and how much yarn I have, I may work it larger than that. I also have, in the same sport weight, a deep rose red that I’m planning on using for a lace edging (yes, picking up the stitches and everything!). It will have to be garter lace but I haven’t settled on a pattern yet. Because the body of the shawl is so simple, I’d like the lace to be a bit elaborate - but I guess we’ll see when we get there!
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I love all small rodents :) Guinea pigs are awesome…I would love to have mice (ahem, as pets mind you) or gerbils.
Currently, too busy to care adeuately for them tho. :( Enjoyed seeing yours….
Lisa - We’ve have had mice and they are a pretty cantankerous lot - not to mention stinky :( We’ve also had rats but it was too hard to lose them after only a few years. Gerbils work out well because they have their own society and neither expect nor require your attention beyond feeding and cage cleaning. So much fun to watch :)
What do the cats think of the gerbils?
Charlotte - Goldie couldn’t care less, but Jade seems to feel that we’ve just installed the kitty equivalent of cable TV :)
Congrats on your new inhabitants. They’re so cute and in one of your pictures, appears tame. My daughter received a hamster for her birthday so we now have a rodent in our home also. Aren’t they just amusing to look at. I never thought I’d get so much joy out of such small animals. Gotta watch the cats though. My kitty sits watching the hamster, all the while licking his lips….
Cheryl - I’d never had small animals before about 10 years ago - started with gerbils and they’ve been the favorite ever since. You’re certainly right - they are great fun to watch!
Three little cuties :) When I was a child, I liked Pop best of the Rice Krispie characters.
Congrats - they are very cute.
From a distance. ;)
Pam - I loved Rice Krispies as a kid but actually always found the cartoon characters a bit annoying. All I can tell you is that when I was looking at them in the pet store (there were 7 or 8 all together), I immediately wanted these three and the names just popped out!
Bron - I take it you’re not a rodent fan? Fine - more for me, then :)
Actually these guys are very clean and quiet and their fur is soooooooooo soft! But it’d be way too short to spin!
I am in love with your new family members, especially Crackle!
I’ve had rodents in the past but I’m always so devastated when they die that we have a rule in the family: “No rodents.”
Please post many pictures!!
Ryan - The gerbils aren’t so bad because they have to exist in their own community (because of the cats) and while they’re great fun to observe (active little buggers) there isn’t a really personal connection since you can’t really play with them.
Now, we had a couple of rats some years back and boy, you want to talk about personality! I had to share everything I ate with them because they’d paste themselves to the side of their cage and stare at me with those big black eyes. When they went, I was a basket case. So, no more rats.
They are so cute, I remember having hampsters when I was little, but then the kitties came and I just wouldn’t trust any of them with small furry animals - even in a cage! I can’t wait to see the finished shawl…beautiful knitting!
Marie - Thanks so much. I’m still trying to track down an edging I think will work, but I’m on the trail :)
We’ve never had hamsters as they are strictly nocturnal and inclined to be ornery (that is, they bite). You put your hand in the gerbil tank and they just walk around on it :)
ah, kitty treats! how kind of you to think of the kitties so nicely-
at various times, we’ve had and enjoyed rats, gerbils, and hamsters here- delightful little creatures they all are too-
knitting? what’s knitting?
stay happy-
Barb - Indeed they are. I’m glad to have them back as part of the household. Everybody, humans and felines alike seem to greatly enjoy watching them :)
Love the new additions to the family. I imagine they keep Goldie and Jade quite entertained.
maureen - We thought that would be the case too but Goldie seems completely indifferent. Jade is, periodically, very interested and keeps batting at the walls of the tank :)
