Product Description
Discusses guinea pig breeds and breeding, care and feeding, anatomy, behavior, and diseases. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Best book for the guinea pig owner
This is the best single book for the guinea pig owner.If you own a guinea pig, you owe it to yourself and the pig to get this book!.Well written, with good advice and adorable photographs.

Best Guinea Pig Book Ever!!
I've bought a few books on guinea pigs to learn about my pets.If I gotthis one first, I would not have bought any others!

This book is AWESOME! It has everything!
I've read many different pet books, mainly on dogs and rats. But I've also read a few on guinea pigs because 'm planing to purchase a few as pets pretty soon. I can tell you easily that this is the best pet book I've ever seen! It thoroughly explains all matters of guinea pig care and even includes a table for feeding amounts! That's one of the best things! You should definitly get this book! It's AWESOME! Bye!

A great book for new owners of all ages!
This book is filled with all kinds of interesting and useful inforomation on guinea pigs.If you are a new owner and are interested in learning more about your pet this is the book to buy! ... Read more

Product Description
Find out how to care for these endearing and entertaining characters, including advice on proper housing, nutrition, and health. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good Information,but you have to read a lot!!
This book is a good Hamster Care Guide,but I suguest getting a picture Hamster Care guide instead of this.Why?This book has paragraphs and more paragraphs,not a lot of pictures or small details.So much reading!!Ah!!!If you hate to read so much,get another Hamster Care guide.Cause this one has....a lot of words.Other than that,the information are great! ... Read more

Product Description
This book answers all of the questions ever asked about owning a guinea pig. From housing to feeding, handling to health concerns, this book is an excellent resource to learn how to properly care for . 64 Pages, Soft Cover ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

I wish I had read the other reviews first!
I just got two piggies, and needed a book to guide me through caring for them. I found this one at my local pet store, and since it was the only one there, I bought it.

This book has a lot of good pictures, but the information is lacking, and I felt it didn't have enough information for me. I had to buy another book that has far more information and has helped me with caring for my pigs.

"EMI"
This book is not a good book it gives wrong info and needs to be updated.

Dangerous info
It is hard to sum up everything wrong in this book. I would give it zero stars if I could have.
Most of the advice is not only wrong but dangerous to the health and well being of cavies.
Here are a few of the many points that are wrong, misleading or dangerous:
1. The nutritional advice will produce a very sick pig.Please don't feed your pigs eggs, cheese, cakes, cookies and seeds. They can choke on seeds, nuts are too fattening and refined sweets will make them ill. The book somewhat puts down pellets (and suggests a couple of aforementioned odd homemade concoctions) and yet good quality Guinea pig pellets, along with fresh veggies, are the best way to insure you pig has a balanced diet with Vitamin C, essential for GP's.Hay is also essential and yet there is almost nothing mentioned and no discussion of the various types.
2. Shows a pig in a wire bottom cage.Piggies get thier legs caught and broken in wire bottom cages PLUS the cages shown are way too small.Go to www.Cavycages.com and make you own cheaper and better than you can buy premade!
3. States pigs should be housed separately.This is not true.Pigs are very social animals and need to be with thier own kind.While two adult boars MAY fight, most sows and many boars get along just fine.Of course, house the boars and sows separately unless you want LOTS of little piggies!
2. Shows a rabbit and guinea pig together and says they "get along". It is doubtful they would fight, that is true, but rabbits have powerful back legs and one jump could kill or injure a piggie.They should not be housed together at the very least.
3.Calling a photo of a Guinea Pig a "hamster" just proves that no proof reading by a knowledgable person was done.That is just sloppy and unprofessional.
4. The breeding section never mentions that a sow must be bred before she is 10 months old (IF she is ever going to be bred)because her pelvic bones will fuse at about 12 months, resulting in dead mother and babies in a first pregnancy after that time.This book implies that pigs are not fully mature until 12 months and not at full weight until 18 months, leaving a novice to think it best to wait until then.Very dangerous.Hopefully, no decent person would attempt to breed any animal solely on the information in one chapter in one small book anyway, but this advice will kill your pigs.
There is more but I simply do not have room to correct all the misleading and dangerous info.Suffice to say, with this much hazardous advice, this book should not even be on the market.SHAME on the ASPCA for giving it a seal of approval.
Read "The Proper Care Of Guinea Pigs" by Peter Gurney and/or "Guinea Pig Handbook " by Dr. Sharon Vanderlip or check Internet sites for safe, appropriate care of cavies.

Waist of Time & Money
I bought this book thinking that I'd learn something new, but was very disapointed.The author gives you some info about the topics he's interested in, but fails to give you info about other things.For example, he goes on and on about building your own cages ect., but tells you very little about guinea pig breeding in the chapter he titled "Practical Breeding".Like someone else mentioned, he did right "hamster" instead of guinea pig at one part, which realy bothered me!He also has a lot of unrelated pictures and sometimes put the same picture twice!There are very nice pictures but most of them were of the same breeds (or same guinea pigs), which isn't helpful for those who want to learn about the many different guinea pig breeds. I think this is a very incomplete book.I'm new to guinea pigs, but this book told me very little I hadn't or couldn't have found out about online.I recommend basic reaserch or buying a different book if you want to find out about all aspects of cavies [guinea pigs].If you still want to buy this book, you can buy mine because I'm going to sell it.

Disappointing
For a book with an ASPCA seal of approval, I was very disappointed. The pictures showed guinea pigs on wire bottom cages (very back for their little feet), recommended cedar shavings (another no no) and on pg38 captioned a picture of a guinea pig "The more unique the color variety of your hamster..." It advised housing mutliple cavies in separate cages (this is a herd animal...please) Returned the book in 24 hours. Baron's is a better choice any day. ... Read more

Product Description
Two new titles in this popular series of essential guides introducing young children to responsible pet ownership. Adorable photographs and light-hearted illustrations complement the informative straightforward text. Topics covered include: choosing a pet, feeding your pet and playing with your pet. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Usborne First Pets Guinea Pigs
There are great photos and cartoons which give a lot of personality to this book. Passages are short and to the point which make it great for kids. There are some odd bits of information which I have not read in any other piggie books or been told by small animal vets; most books have some contrasting information though. All in all, a great choice! The only thing that really bugged me was the advertising of Internet links, but there was only the same one repeatedly. ... Read more

Product Description
Ages 6 to 12 years. Hamsters sleep all day long and when they wake up in the evening they are looking for fun! This book prepares young pet owners for what to expect from these nocturnal rodents. This book includes: which cage is best;nutritious hamster food; great toys for play time; handling hamsters; sleeping habits; keeping hamsters healthy. ... Read more

Product Description
Learn how to prepare your hamster's cage, and playing with your hamster, in and out of its home. Find out what to feed your hamster, and when, and how to keep your hamster happy and healthy. Hamster is one of an exciting series of pet care books designed to help young animal owners learn about and care for their pets. Illustrated on every page with full-color photography, Hamster is packed with practical information on every aspect of hamster care. Published in association with the ASPCA, this series will engage and inform readers ages seven and up. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Freddy is well cared for!
We bought this book as a present for our younger cousin since she greatly desired getting a hamster and had borrowed this book from the library many times.She got a hamster for Christmas as well, and with this book she is able to take good care of Freddy.

Very good owner's book for children and a good basic book
Reviews of this book seem to be all over the map. Well, I raised about 20+ hamsters (I lost count) since I was a child and I had a small library of books on them. I suppose I can claim to be experienced and well-read at the very least. Mark Evans's book covers a broad range of owner-breeder topics at a level of reading which is excellent for young pet owners. The book is well-illustrated and reasonably thorough for its targeted audience. It focuses mostly on the care of hamsters than on the breeding of them. It is probably the best hamster book for new and young pet owners and it is endorsed by the ASPCA. If you're getting a hamster as a pet for your child, buy this book for your child; but to round-out your knowledge as a responsible supervising parent, buy yourself a copy of "Hamsters" by Otto Von Frisch (if you're getting a Syrian) or "Dwarf Hamsters" by Sharon Vanderlip (if you're getting a dwarf). Incidentally, I gave the book four stars because its advice sometimes gets too demanding and a reasonable amount of common sense needs to be applied for moderation.

UGH
I hate this book. Sure, the pictures are nice, but most of the info is out dated. Honestly, the first time I read this book I gagged. I am an expert on hamsters, and books like these drive me NUTS. Following thi book could actually kill your hamster.

cool book
this book is cool.it showed a lot about hamsters.i gave it to my sister to look at for a while because she has a hamster and she didnt know very much about it and it looked like it was sufficating.but after she read the book it looked much better. i only gave this book four stars because i already new everything in it but its still a good book.

AWSOME, JUST GREAT!!!!!
This is a hamster owners must-have!!!!It is awsome with great pictures and good facts.If you ever have a question about a hamster, this is the book to have!!! ... Read more

Product Description
Filled with fascinating historical facts and up-to-date information on how to care for your pet, Complete Care Made Easy: Hamsters addresses all the major concerns about owning a hamster. This book offers practical advice, emergency first-aid tips, fun activities, and more! ... Read more

Product Description
These popular pocket pets require specific care to ensure their health and happiness.This book details proper handling techniques and all necessary care information required for any owner who wants to make these tiny creatures part of their family. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Best overall book about hamsters
This was the best book I had seen about Hamsters.What made this book so good was the many color pictures and kid friendly style.In my local pet store the book was priced much higher than what I ended up paying.

A must have for new hamster owners.
I used to own a dwarf hamster as an adult, but I didn`t raise him by any book.Now that I have children, I wanted to get some for them.At first, I was going to get the robo dwarf hamsters.They are so cute.Then, I read the book and watched the pet store clerk handle the dwarf hamsters.The book was right, those things were too quick for little children to handle.We went with the winter white hamsters, instead.Great choice.They are much tamer and slower than the robo dwarf.Thanks to the book, it helped us make our first important decision.

The book is well-written for first time hamster owners.It goes over all aspects of care, including choosing the proper breed, housing, bedding, feeding and general care.It answered all my new owner questions, like how many hamsters can I put in a cage?What kind of treats can I feed it?And very importantly, what do I do when the hamster gets loose?I found it to be thorough and complete.It is filled with colorful photos and a list of some useful resources, like hamster societies and internet sites.

I had my 7 year old read some parts of the book so that he would know what to expect.It is written at a level he can read and understand, yet it's not too simplistic for an adult.

I highly recommend this book for anyone buying a new hamster.

An ideal introductory guide
I only wish I'd had an invaluable concise guide like this 20 years ago when I had a short-lived pet hamster (whom I found out years later had actually been two hamsters; my parents secretly bought me a second after the first died, but the second died even quicker).Probably the first mistake most otherwise well-intentioned people make with a pet is not doing their homework before getting the animal.Buying any pet, particularly a small one with such unique needs and traits as a hamster, should not be something done on impulse.This brief but information-packed book covers all of the bases, hopefully improving the odds that any potential hamster-owner will know what they're doing and won't contribute to the animal's early death.

Topics covered include scientific information about the hamster in general and specific domesticated breeds in particular, diet (it was news to me that hamsters are omnivores and not herbivores!), children and hamsters, finding a lost hamster, breeding, housing, toys, training, when to see a vet, grooming, common types of illness and injury, and handling.There are also adorable pictures of the little guys on nearly every page; like many people, my only experience with the animal had been the Syrian hamster, and hadn't known they come in nearly so many different colors and markings.The back of the book provides a list of resources, such as various hamster societies, rescue groups, and emergency services.Though a serious downside to the pet is that they only live between a year and a half to three years, otherwise they're really described as an ideal low-maintenance pet.The biggest chore associated with their care is regularly cleaning the cage and bedding; they ordinarily don't even need to see a vet, get vaccinated, have their coats brushed or trimmed, have their nails clipped, or even get bathed.Their short lifespan could even be seen as a positive, since they're not as long-lived as other pets such as rabbits, dogs, cats, ferrets, or salamanders, whom children often get bored of and dump on their parents, or who end up being cared for by the parents when their owner goes away to college.Overall, this book paints a picture of a fascinating little rodent, whom I wasn't old or mature enough to fully understand or appreciate when I originally had one in my care. ... Read more

Product Description
From basic care to fun games, this book shows rat owners the way out of a maze of questions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (23)

THE essential book on pet rats
I purchased this book before purchasing a rat as a pet and I'm so grateful that I did. This book gives the reader every essential detail that he or she will need to know about taking care of a rat and making sure it leads a happy, healthy, and long life. If you purchase this book, you're set. This is the only one you'll need-- it's all in there!

Book Review: Care Guide
This was a really great, informative book that I would recommend to anyone who owns, or is thinking about becoming the owner of a rat. They are stigmatized, but they make great companions, and this book will help you to make your rat sociable, and teach you how to keep them healthy. It's written by a major expert in the field so I trusted her advice and it has proved valuable. Rats: Complete Care Guide

Great Info
It's very informative and it answered all of my questions. I would recommend this for anyone interested in having rats as pets!

Excellent
Detailed. Accurate, excellent information. The author's extremely knowledgeable. If you have a rat, a good book to have.

Best book on rats!!
I am getting rats and wanted to make sure I did tons of research first.I looked online and was impressed with Debbie Ducommun's website so purchased this book.

This is the most complete collection of information I have found on rats.She covers all aspects of rat care and ownership.I am so glad I read this before getting my rats and will keep it as a reference.

A must read for any rat owner...or anyone thinking of getting rats! ... Read more

Product Description
Ages 6 to 12 years. Mice are one of the most undemanding pets for young children. There are, however, some very important responsibilities that owners should be aware of. The simple text and beautiful images in this book show: the various colours and varieties of mice; making a good home; socialising mice; properly picking up a mouse; keeping a mouse healthy; mouse safety. ... Read more

Product Description
A guide to the care and feeding of pet hamsters. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

I would recommend it for young readers....
I would recommend this book to children of young ages. It teaches the very basics on hamster care but does not go into depth about these things like I was hoping . : / If you have a child between the ages of 6 or 7 to 10 this would be a GREAT book for them to understand how to groom ,when to feed, what to feed,and how to set up there cages . : ) ... Read more

Product Description
Describes the housing, feeding, care, and handling of hamsters and gerbils. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Disappointed but my fault
I was buying this book for a 12 year old and thought from discription it would have alot of information in it.It was a good book for maybe a 6-7 year old.It was not technical enough and I would have realized that it I had seen it in person. ... Read more

Product Description
Hamsters can make delightful pets for all ages. This book discusses how to choose, tame, and care for these energetic, furry little animals. ... Read more

Product Description
This title is intended for ages 3 to 9. Text is in Spanish. Hamsters sleep all day long and when they wake up in the evening they're looking for fun! "Hamsters" prepares young pet owners for what to expect from these nocturnal rodents. ... Read more