I have collated information that I received from a survey of people with pet Richardson's ground squirrels (RGS).
Based on responses for which the owner had reasonably accurate information on the age at which the pet RGS died or was euthanized due to health problems:
- average age was 4 years 5 months for 31 females
- average age was 3 years 6 months for 27 males
Of these 58 pets, 1 female and 1 male lived to their 7th year.
Causes of death/terminal illness were very varied, but the largest grouping (nearly 40%) involved tumours, many of which were cancerous and commonly involved various parts of the face or throat.
Including all 114 reported RGS (deceased pets, still living pets, and deceased pets of uncertain age), 54 were rescued/rehomed or otherwise not wanted by their original owner or had spent lengthy periods unsold in pet stores.
Aside from one owner who had a pair of pet RGS produce a litter, most respondants who had been told that their pet was captive born (rather than wild caught) were uncertain whether the birth was the result of captive breeding or of a pregnant female being removed from the wild into captivity. Indeed it remains unclear whether there are any exotic breeders who have overcome the complexity of getting these hibernating animals to breed reliably in captivity.
My personal interest is the behaviour and ecology of wild free-living RGS, so learning about pet RGS from responsible owners has been interesting. Thanks to everyone who sent me information.
Gail
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Nasetto e
Anacleto
sono sempre con noi, sotto l'ortensia bianca, il piccolo Burrasca, la coniglietta Trudi, il cdp Otto e i cicci Nasetto Rosa e Nasetto Nero
