Rodents are favoured pets in Year of the Rat in Singapore

Sales of chinchillas, hamsters, guinea pigs are up by a third, say pet shops
Tay Yi Wen, Straits Times 20 Feb 08;

RATS, traditionally seen as filthy pests, rarely finish at the top of 'favourite pet' lists.

But the Year of the Rat is turning the spotlight on them and making cash registers ring at pet shops because people believe that having rodent-like pets - hamsters, guinea pigs and chinchillas - will bring them good luck.

Sales jumped by as much as a third in the run-up to the Chinese New Year, say pet centres, including Singapore's largest pet-store chain, the Pet Lovers Centre.

The centre's 17 branches have sold close to 3,500 rodents - mostly hamsters and guinea pigs - since the start of the year, up from the usual monthly average of 1,600, said its marketing manager William Lai.

Hamsters, which look most like rats, are the most popular, he added. The more expensive breeds can cost up to $55 each, while fancier guinea pig breeds can cost up to $200.

Both types of rodents are selling well at Pets Instinct in Jalan Bukit Ho Swee, said owner Alexdrina Chew.

And because this is the Year of the Earth Rat, brown-coated ones such as the Yellow Pudding hamster and the Syrian long-haired hamster, costing $18 and $30 respectively, seem to be the preferred breeds.

Customers are also buying these animals in pairs, in line with the Chinese belief that good things come in twos, or, as they say, shuang xi ling men, which means a double blessing arriving at the door.

Ms Ang Li Fan, 24, who runs Pet Republic in Telok Kurau, said at least half of her customers are buying two animals at one go.

But double blessings could quickly turn into double the trouble, pet shop owners warn.

Rodents are prolific breeders - some reports say female hamsters go into heat every four days.

This means a hamster duo that gets down to business soon could have litters of up to eight in half a month.

Guinea pigs have litters of up to four at a time.

Getting rid of the offspring is also a task in itself. Most pet centres will not buy them back or even take them on for free.

Buying in pairs presents other problems. Hamsters, for example, tend to fight when kept together and could hurt or even kill each other.

However, these potential pitfalls are not deterring people who want to improve their fortune by taking on pets whose year it is on the Chinese zodiac.

Auditor Lucy Cheng, 45, spent about $100 last month on a golden-brown Syrian hamster and an Abyssinian guinea pig and their paraphernalia as a gift for her 14-year-old son Marcus, to mark the Year of the Rat.

Two years ago, the family celebrated the Year of the Dog with a new Cavalier King Charles Spaniel costing over $1,600.

Princess, as it came to be called, promptly delivered on luck: Madam Cheng got promoted soon after.

Madam Cheng is already seeing dividends from her new investment. Instead of hanging out with his friends after school, Marcus now comes straight home to care for his pets.

Mother and son also have something new to talk about.

'It's not the 4-D kind of luck. But it has brought my son closer to me, and given him a sense of responsibility. So I guess the new pets must be working,'' she said.

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