How do you convince your parents you are responsible enough to get a hamster?

My mom said I couldn't get a hamster, these were her reasons:


-My room was always messy


-We already had a dog and 2 cats


-We have to take care of the responsibilities we already have


What can I do to change her mind?How do you convince your parents you are responsible enough to get a hamster?
You sound a lot like my own daughter, she bugged me for months before I let her get a hamster. This is what she did to get me to change my mind, maybe it will work for you: (this is going to be a really long answer but I'm trying to give you as much information as I can)


She cleaned her room and kept it that way because that is where she planned to keep her hamster. She made a list of what she needed to do to take care of the pets we already had (2 dogs, 4 cats and a fish), and showed me that she could be responsible by taking care of them consistently. Then she researched hamsters online and by getting books out of the library. This helped her decide what type of hamster to get and how to take care of it, and make a list of everything it would need so we would know beforehand how much it was going to cost initially and on a regular basis.


You need to decide first whether you are going to pay for the hamster and everything it needs or whether your Mom is going to. My daughter used money from Christmas and her birthday, then I chipped in the rest. The initial outlay can be quite a bit of money depending on what you get. Besides the hamster itself, you will need a cage of some type, which can be an aquarium with a mesh cover or a wire and plastic habitat, bedding, food and food dish, water bottle (don't use a water dish, the hamster will just climb in it and tip it over), things for the hamster to chew on like treats or chew sticks to keep their teeth from getting overgrown, someplace for them to sleep and hide within the cage, and an exercise wheel. I would also recommend a small safe container to keep the hamster in while you clean the habitat, a hamster ball or small animal playpen so they can get more exercise, cardboard tubes or tunnels for it to climb in and on, cage liners to keep the smell down, and disinfecting/cleaner spray.


You will need to change the food and water daily, clean the habitat and change the bedding at least once a week, including all tunnels, tubes, the exercise wheel, bed and hiding places and the food dish. This can be pretty time consuming depending on the size of the habitat, and quite messy. Hamsters are messy little creatures, so also be prepared to have bedding and food on the surface outside the habitat unless you use an aquarium. You can get prices for pretty much all you will need at your local pet store, or online at a site like PetSmart. I think our initial purchase was around $75 (one hamster, a wire and plastic habitat, hamster ball, food and bedding), but then we added 2 more habitats because they like a lot of space to run around in, the connecting tubes, a small travel cage so my daughter could take them to school, things for them to hide in and climb on, a loft lookout, 5 more hamsters and a totally separate habitat for one hamster. Well over $200 so far. Ongoing expenses are pretty much limited to food and bedding, but hamsters can require vet care just like dogs and cats if they get hurt or sick. They can also be very sensitive to their environment, both heat and cold (they should be kept someplace out of the sun in temperatures between 60 and 90 degrees). They are also very very sensitive to strong cleaning agents like carpet shampoo and household cleaners and should always be kept away from these. We lost 3 hamsters to respiratory failure in a matter of hours after shampooing the carpet in the room next to where they were kept because we didn't realize how much it could affect them.


If none of this deters you, then here are a couple things to consider when deciding what type of hamster to get. Syrians are generally more recommended for first time owners, because they are larger, usually more placid, easier to hand tame and once they are tame they stay that way even if not handled often. They also chew on anything and everything in their habitat, which can be annoying, and expensive if you have to keep replacing items or habitats. They must be kept separated, they are loners and will fight with other hamsters. Dwarfs are smaller, much faster, more active, and more timid. They can be harder to tame and need to be handled regularly to keep them that way. Dwarfs also require a habitat designed for their small size so they can't crawl through the bars. They can be kept more than one to a habitat if they are from the same litter or gotten together when very young, but you need to increase the habitat size with every one you get. Oddly enough, dwarfs seem to need more space than Syrians because they are more active. Both kinds can nip, but Syrians have larger teeth so they bite harder. Because of their size dwarfs are also more fragile and can be more easily injured if held too tightly or if they fall, which is definitely a risk because they are so fast and they love to climb. Dwarfs are usually the least expensive followed by Chinese and Syrian. We've had a dwarf, a black bear syrian (cute but a definite biter) but my personal favoHow do you convince your parents you are responsible enough to get a hamster?
Okay. Clean your room.





STUDY up on hamsters.


Like, let her know that you've checked a few hamster books out from the library, and you're learning everything you'd need to know to take care of them. Through her a few casual snippets of hamster related information ( and make sure it's appealing. Don't tell her about how hamsters can target their urine to spray 20 feet out of their cage at any passerby)





Also. If there's any of those dogs or cats that you don't like...


They could have an accident.





FINALLY: Be patient.



here is a tip.


1. clean your room every day.


2. take care of your pets.


3. do more chores.


4. start massaging your mom or dad. then slowly ask for a hamster.


5. if it does not work. act like a baby and beg 24 hours a day.


6. start crying till your mom or dad get stressed.


7. i am so sorry! you have %1 of getting a hamster.


8. beg.


9. run out of your house and buy one.
do what the other two people said but make sure your dog and cats can't get to your hamster. even if they don't want to kill him it could hurt him badly if the dog fell down on top of them.
um what about cleaning your room with out being asked.do all your chores with out being asked.and do good at school.


and then maybe your mom will change her mind.
clean your room(at least try)


Promise her you'll care for your hamster really well and you


won't forget the dog and cat!