Small mammals as pets

The domestication of small mammals to keep as pets is a relatively recent development, arising only after large-scale industrialization. Historically, Western society was more agrarian than today, with rodents as a whole seen as vermin that were carriers for disease and a threat to crops. Animals that hunted such pests, such as terriers, ferrets and cats, were prized.

Many small animals kept as household pets are rodents, including: fancy mice, fancy rats, hamsters (golden hamsters and dwarf hamsters), gerbils (Mongolian jirds and duprasi gerbils), common degus, common chinchillas, and guinea pigs (cavies). Non-rodents, including rabbits, hedgehogs and sugar gliders, are also kept.

Some of these small mammals are prohibited from being kept as pets in certain jurisdictions for being invasive; California, Hawaii, Alberta and New Zealand have strict regulations to protect their native environments and agricultural operations. Gerbils, degus, and domesticated rats have various prohibitions on their ownership.