BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Exotic Pets Springhaas

Hi all,
I just posted a question below and mentioned what exotic pets we have. One of them is a springhaas and everyone always asks "What is THAT!?". So, I'm going to TRY to attach a pic of Zippy. If you don't see it, that means I'm totally lame and didn't figure it out. In which case, advice would be more than welcome!
We've had Zippy for over a year. They originate (but are no longer imported so "new" ones need to be captive bred in the USA) from the deserts in Africa. They are about two feet high which varies a lot because they alternate between slouching and jumping. They hop like a kangaroo, but are not marsupials. They are rodents with beaver like teeth (we have to supply fresh wood for him to keep teeth worn), they rarely drink water and get most of their fluid from tubers (yams and sweet potatoes are his favs and he will do about anything for them). They are nocturnal but we still have plenty of time together as I stay up late. He is VERY sweet. Not an agressive bone in his body, but aloof to strangers and takes him a long, long time to bond to a person. His small arms are used to hold food, while the long back legs to hop. Hope this kind of explains Zippy. Now lets see if I can attach the photo....
Carol

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He is adorable!! What a cutie!
I think I remember hearing about these guys a loong time ago, but I've never seen one before!
Does he get to roam around your house, or does he have a cage of some sort and gets to come out and play?

Thanks Mashi,
He hops about the house quite a lot...from late afternoon until I go to bed which is usually after midnight. Then he is let out again in the morning, but he usually only hops for about an hour in the morning (it is his choice when he goes back in his cage and in the morning, he is nearly ready to sleep all day). He has a large cage that has a wooden box for a burrow. When he is tired, he goes into the burrow and then I know he's had enough. He is quite the wire cord snipper so we've learned to close off certain rooms and make sure no cords are within reach in the main rooms. Other than that, he is such a good boy! I read where another person who had two had a problem with them damaging the wall. They need to have wood to chew on to keep their teeth from growing too long, and may be that is why hers did that. We make sure Zippy has fresh branches (yes, he knows the difference between fresh and not fresh, the little rascal), and we've never had any problems with him trying to chew wood in the house that are not his branches. He can convert a medium sized branch to chips in one night. His incisors are similar to a beaver's. But, he has never tried to bite us or hurt us in anyway. He is very gentle. When he wants something, he will resort to antics to get it, such as nudging my hand, stretching tall and wiggling his hands, or with my husband, he will stomp his feet. He doesn't stomp his feet with me because I have never rewarded him for that because stomping is usually associated with anger or fear and I think it is negative. But he has used it to manipulate my husband, then he has figured out that he must use a sweeter approach with me to get rewards.

Love your beta avatar. Do you raise fish?
Carol

Looks like a cross between a chinchilla and wallaby or kangaroo. Cute little guy. I have never heard of them. Are they litter box trainable? That is usually one of the first questions I get. After that, where do you buy them. Are they legal in my state. Enlighten us with as much has you know <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
Diana

Hi Diana,
LOL, everyone says how much of mix of animals zippy looks like! I've heard deer's head, fox tail, kangaroo body, beaver teeth, it goes on and on. They are great pets but they are so uncommon that even though they are known to breed in captivity, there aren't many pairs around in the USA, especially in private hands to supply many pets.

Zippy is not really litter box trained, but it isn't a big problem for several reasons. First, they are adapted to desert life and their bodies recycle urine. They don't drink water, but get fluid from tubers. Hence, they rarely urinate and when they do it is a very small amount. Zippy usually does about a spoonfull twice a week, and that is probably more than usual because we give him a lot of tubers. Plus he only does it after eating tubers, so I know about when it could possibly happen and prepare for it.
About the fecal matter, it is small and dry and very easy to clean up with a whisk broom and dustpan. He mostly does it in his cage which makes cleaning easy. We facilitate that by not feeding him until after he is finished hopping about and goes into his cage for the night. It is rare for us to find anything elsewhere in the house, but I think it is mostly due to timing the food after exercise rather than any training he has. Although everytime I underestimate his intelligence, he proves me wrong! He can even open his cage from the outside now, latch and all.
I don't know anything about CA exotic pet laws. From what little I've heard, they are stricter than most states? However, if they specify which animals are prohibited rather than which ones are allowed, then it is more likely springhaas would be ok because no one would think to include them on a list. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

He sounds like a wonderful companion friend! California is about the worst state for just about everything. Here you are allowed dogs under very strict circumstances, cats licensed of course, fish (if leashed, well, not that bad lol) few so-called exotics. Even ferrets are not allowed. I wrote to my state senator and received a reply talking about not knowing what he's talking about and he represents us, the people. I know of many people that have animals they shouldn't have and they certainly have not caused a problem. A simple solution would be to not allow ferrets or whatever that is not neutered or spayed. I am stuck in this awful state we moved out here in 2000 to take care of my parents. My brother who had their best interests in his heart I'm sure wanted to moved them to Kansas in a very rural area. My mother has had her life saved many times because the fire department is five minutes away. Where they would have been, it would be 45 minutes or more. Moreover, they have medical insurance and would have had to go as far as Kansas City for doctors. Prices for everything especially houses is awful. We paid cash for a house in Oklahoma, which we had to give up when we came here. The price for that house is not even a down payment for a house out here. In addition, the place in OK had acreage.

Well, I guess I got carried away here. I hate California. I wish someone would bring me a baby ferret for my 50th birthday <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I really miss not having a ferret or a skunk around. I love my parents but I sure hate this awful state.

Tell me more about their personalities, I would love to see one of these cuties in person.
Diana