The Most Low Maintenance Pet?

I concur about birds. I have a greeen cheek conure and just got a nanday conure from resuce. I NEVER intend to get a cockatoo - they require way too much stimulation. No wonder rescue is full of them. Conures are work enough - they're like dogs. And they're not cheap. Tomorrow I have to go to the petstore and buy some floor perches for the nanday. I'll link the petfinder profile of Arthur - of the Nanday I just got.

http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=5080154

Paula

[linkhttp://www.3d-screensaver-downloads.com/free-aquarium-screensaver.php]http://www.3d-screensaver-downloads.com/free-aquarium-screensaver.php[/link]

I will have to say that if you HAVE to have a bird, finches and canaries are pretty low maintenance. The biggest hassle would be mess. They don't need the stimulation that parrots do. They can be kept in a simpler cage and do make good pets for older people. My grandma gets a lot of joy from her canaries.

I don't think there is a such thing as a low maintenance pet. I own fish and I recently took down my 10 gallon tank because I could not control the algae in there. All the fish are now in the 55 gallon tank and I can honestly admit that the 55 is easier to maintain then the 10. Even with that said, I still have to chemically monitor the levels in the tank and do bi-weekly partial water changes to keep my fish healthy. Another thing to note is that supposedly low maintenance fish aren't really low maintenance if you want them to thrive. It disturbs me when pet stores perpetuate the myth that goldfish do fine in bowls and that Bettas do fine in those "betta bowls/vases". This is totally untrue and while these fish can survive, and it's usually not for long, in such habitats they usually do not thrive.
 
I own quite a few pets. I own dogs, cockatiel, southern flying squirrel, terrarium(fiddler crabs, anole, newt, firebelly toad, tree frog and snail) and the 55 gallon tank(gourami's, platies, guppies, dwarf clawed frog, snail) and in all honesty, I can't tell you which ones I'd consider to be low maintenance. They all have unique needs, some require quite a bit of time to meet those needs and some of those needs aren't cheap. I guess the best way to look at it is not so much which animal would be low maintenance but what critter who has needs you can definitely afford and who has needs you can definitely meet.

ORIGINAL: Kydafett

Fresh water fish are the easiest to take care of. Betas can live for weeks wihtout you even feeding them or cleaning out their tank. Tho you should probably change their water every week or so.

Birds need exercise and affection not to mention a special diet made just for them. They also need grooming, vet care, and lots of toys to play with so if you want a low matience pet, get a gold fish or Beta.


If fish are not your thing then reptiles are pretty easy keepers.

Actually, the less you clean a fish tank the better.  You can scrub the algea off the side until it gets too bad, then you should clean it.  When you clean the tank you mess up the Ph and Nitrates, which can kill the fish.  Only clean the tank out completly (meaning rocks and every thing dumped out and scrubbed)  when it is beyond scrubing algea off the glass and half water changes.  You can take out half of the water and replace it with fresh, chemically treated water in between complete changes.

Bettas are the easiest.  They don't even need an aeration stystem such as a filter or air pump.  All other fish do.  I clean my betta bowl out completly about every other month,  but I don't time it.  I just wait until the water is really dirty, then I know it's time to change it. 

ORIGINAL: Xebby

I don't know if you like reptiles but I always found that snakes where the easiest pets to care for. Many you only need to be feed once a month and the cleaning was simple. Lizards are really easy also but require slightly more care then a snake. Amphibians (frogs, salamanders) can be a bit tricky but they are not so bad once you get the set up right.

Or what about a box turtle? Those are real easy to care for and are fairly clean animals. Plus in the winter they can go into hibernation (if thats what you want) and you would not have to worry about them for a few months, almost like having a pet rock[]

I've always stayed away from birds because they always seem to be so messy. They throw their food out of their cage, splash water everywhere and the cage lining seemed like it had to be changed very often. Just not my preference for a pet.

All reptiles need UV lights and heat emmiting lights or pads.  You also have to watch how cold or hot it is in the tank to keep them healthy.  Box turtles would be the easiest out of the reptiles to care for. Uromastics Lizards (sorry about spelling) are also fairly easy and they do not get too big, but they do require a very hot living environment.  Both box turtles and uromastic lizards are vegitarians, which means you don't have to go out everyweek for more crickets, worms, mice, or fish to feed it.  Iguanas are vegitarians too, but they get big.

I love birds.  I have a cockatiel and 2 budgies.  If you are looking for a "very low maintenance, all you have to do is feed it and clean the cage" bird - I would go for a finch, canary, or even an untamed budgie.  Budgies can be great companions when they are hand tamed, but if you don't hand tame them as babies, as most pet store/Meyer's, Walmart budgies are not, they don't want anything to do with you.  But they are fun to watch just the same.  Just get 2, so they can have a companion. 

check out a "dogz" dog . very cute video games, interactive but forgiving []
http://www.ubi.com/US/Games/Info.aspx?pId=3977

All reptiles need UV lights and heat emmiting lights or pads. You also have to watch how cold or hot it is in the tank to keep them healthy. Box turtles would be the easiest out of the reptiles to care for. Uromastics Lizards (sorry about spelling) are also fairly easy and they do not get too big, but they do require a very hot living environment. Both box turtles and uromastic lizards are vegitarians, which means you don't have to go out everyweek for more crickets, worms, mice, or fish to feed it. Iguanas are vegitarians too, but they get big.

I think with any animal you will need the proper set-up. for fish, reptiles and even small furry things the set-up will be the highest cost, not including the cost of the animal.

For reptiles once you get the UV light, like jojo suggested and the proper bedding and environment you are pretty much set for the animals life. I would not get an iguana, I've had a few of them that were rescues and they can get very mean and they do bite. I think small lizards or even geckos would be fine. A box turtle is very simple to care for and when you want it to go into hibernation you just turn off the heat and put it in a cool dark location or if you prefer you don't have to put it into hibernation.

Fish you have to change the filter often and clean the tank every few months or more depending on the fish. Goldfish are really messy and so you would have to clean them more often. What I always liked are the beta in a vase with a plant of the top. The beta feeds off the plant's roots so you hardly have to feed it and it's fairly easy to clean. My mom, who doesn't really care for pets, has a few of those in her house and they make lovely decorations and are easy to care for. I've even seen kits at wal-mart to put together your own beta-vase-plant.

ORIGINAL: Xebby

What I always liked are the beta in a vase with a plant of the top. The beta feeds off the plant's roots so you hardly have to feed it and it's fairly easy to clean. My mom, who doesn't really care for pets, has a few of those in her house and they make lovely decorations and are easy to care for. I've even seen kits at wal-mart to put together your own beta-vase-plant.

I'm sorry but those things are some of the cruelest things to keep a Betta in. A Betta is a carnivorous fish and the only reason they'll eat the roots is because they have no choice. It's either eat that or starve. Please check out [linkhttp://www.bettatalk.com/betta_in_a_vase.htm]this link[/link] for more info.

Edit: Sorry meilani I must have been posting at the same time as you, I didn't know that about a beta... How sad, and I always thought it was alright[&:] guess I'm wrong. I see those thing everywhere!



Here is the beta-vase-plant thing I'm talking about, I did a quick google search and found this:

Yeah, those vases aren't good with the plant on the top.  The plant blocks oxygen and Betta's breathe at the surface too.  Also, they don't prefer to eat those roots. 
 
I also wanted to add about finches.  They breed very easily.  So, something to keep in mind.

Well, there is still hope for those beta IF you follow what that sites says:

How you can make such a display betta safe

A betta in a vase display can work if it is done right. the betta will need to be fed and teh water will need to be changed. Here is what to do:


keep plant roots trimmed back and very clean
favor the betta over the plant. Make the betta happy and if the plant does not like it, move the plant to its own pot.
feed your betta daily the proper betta food (see betta food)
make the necessary weekly water changes (see betta water)
learn how to keep your betta alive by reading my betta basic care 101 section.
learn how to recognize any early signs of disease, how to heal him, etc...(read the betta health section). Be prepared!

Please take the necessary time to read the "betta care" section of my site so to know how to care for your betta the proper way.

Goodluck

I'm going to have to sent this to my mom so she know how to properly care for her fish[]

GREAT link about betas!!!!!  i have one that i now think may be too fat after reading that... who knew a fish could be too fat[]. 
 
i bought my beta from walmart and tried hard not to buy all the others as well[] they keep them so poorly, i think it should be a crime.  the puppymills of fish...  anyway, i SWEAR i noticed a dramatic increase in his activity when i took him out of a bowl and put him in an aerated tank with a fake plant.  i could swear he plays in the bubbles and sleeps on the plant and digs for snacks in the rocks.
 
having said that, they ARE low maintanence.....

I am now and will always be in love with cockatoos. If you're their MFP (most favorite person) they will cry if you don't talk or pay attention to them. And they are the quickest learning birds I've ever seen. Most of them though, are also the best escape artists. I've seen one destroy a masterlock before...talk about a strong beak!

 
We had a cockatoo for a few years, his name's Chrissy. We were told he was almost 50 years old and was captured from the wild. I have no idea if that's true, but pretty cool if it is. But I can vouch for everything you just said. I wasn't his favorite person, but he looooooved two of my sisters, hated the other, didn't like my Mom too much, and was kind of neutral about me. He sure was Mister Personality. But good gravy that boy had some LUNGS. He was ridiculously loud. And I swear he did it on purpose. He would scream, so I'd go over to give him a toy or something, and he'd look me in the eye and scream even louder. He also bit, REALLY REALLY hard. I still have scars from him. And he was quite destructive. He'd shred up anything he could get his beak on, and used to make the hugest mess around his cage.
 
Anyhow, when we moved across the country, we chose to give him to this couple who had many other birds, and tons of experience with cockatoos. The guy even had a chunk of his nose missing from a cockatoo bite, and still wanted Chrissy. I still feel guilty about giving him up, and still miss him, but last I heard he was doing extremely well, and who knows how he would have made the trip out here, not to mention the 2+ weeks in a motel once we got here (we'd've been kicked out for sure), and now we live way too close to other people to have an animal that loud. [&o]