Most pet owners live in their own home or at least a rented property they have contracted to live in.  However, some students also like to keep pets, but what are the pets to have as a student? It can be a challenge depending on the living arrangements. They usually forbid keeping regular pets in dorm rooms and student rented accommodation so you have to think carefully if keeping a pet is important to you while you are studying.

Here are eight animals make the best pets especially for a willing student allowed to keep in a college dorm. Read on to learn more.

8 Animals Suitable for Students as Pets

To keep pets or not as a student

While it may be against the rules to keep pets in your dorm room there will be sound reasons for this. Hence, you have to consider whether it is worth getting a pet since studying takes up a lot of time. And it is right that studying should be the most important activity. You can find help with essay writing service Canada.

It is likely that you may not have enough time for your pet. Of course you could always consider using assignment writing help.

Leaning towards keeping a pet

If you think that for you keeping a pet is important while you are studying, and you are allowed to do so, then here is a list of pets a student might be allowed to keep in a college dorm for sure.

Most dorms forbid students to keep large and medium-sized pets like cats and dogs. That doesn’t stop students yearning to have a pet. And so the desire to have an animal friend at college remains remains strong for many.

A roommate I used to ask to do my assignment for me was allergic to furry creatures. Yours might be too.

Still, there is a solution. Consider smaller animals. Trust me, small animals can make you feel happy and loved. Moreover, they are easier to keep in terms of health, exercise and care compared to “larger” domestic pets.

Top 8 pets for students

Here are my top 8 pets for a student living in a dorm room:

• Gecko;
• Agama;
• Turtle;
• Goldfish;
• Cockroach (no, not the one from your kitchen);
• Spider (better pick a non-venomous one);
• Python (or any other snake);
• Snail.

And here is a quick guide to the four different “classes” of pets. Check them all, and decide which one you would like to keep in a dorm.

Reptiles

Reptiles, like turtles, snakes, and lizards, can become great companions for the right people and good pets to have. They maybe less pleasant to touch compared to cats or dogs, but they can be very entertaining.

Before you get a reptile as a pet, you need to understand that they require an appropriate level of responsibility from you. Otherwise, your pet may not survive too long. You’ll need to prepare.

Study its natural living conditions, and then find out how to create that environment for them in a college dorm. Reptiles can have some other peculiarities as pets that you should know about before you decide to buy one. For instance, feeding snakes (especially large ones) means doing some unpleasant things connected with their food.

So think ahead. It is not as easy as finding an assignment geek to help you write your essay or assignments while you are at college.

Turtles

Speaking of turtles, the majority of them are able to live a really long life and they make good pets for kids. Keeping that in mind, you should be ready to take a lifetime (or even longer) responsibility for your pet. That’s not rare for a turtle to live decades longer than their first keepers.

Lizards

Lizards don’t live as long as turtles do. However, they are much faster and can be more difficult to control. It’s quite possible to accidentally lose them while holding them in your hands, so perhaps they are more difficult pets to have in college.

Fish

Fish are arguably the most popular animal for students in college and really great pets to have. What is more some fish are the easiest pets to keep.

For instance, a Goldfish requires a minimum care and can live in a small aquarium (must be cleaned regularly). Some aquarium fish species require feeding once in 2-3 days or even less. Fish don’t need communication with humans, but they’ll be happy with an unaggressive fish neighbour.

What you need to keep fish

The main requirement to keeping fish is a clean aquarium and routine feeding times. And you need to try to make an interesting environment for them to have space to swim. The challenge with keeping fish as pets is the lack of contact. It’s impossible to hug or hold them, etc.

You should also understand the challenges to keeping an aquarium. the larger it is the harder it is and less likely you can keep it in your dorm room. Some fish require particular temperatures and need artificial environmental aeration. Still, fish are among the simplest pets to keep regardless of all the requirements mentioned above.

Insects and Spiders

Just like fish, a lot of spiders and insects can be easy to keep. These include: tarantulas, cockroaches, scorpions, crickets, millipedes and many other creatures most people prefer to avoid. Still, they can become excellent pets if you like originality and unusual pets.

Tarantulas and scorpions

Tarantulas and scorpions are not recommended for newbies due to their fragility and ability to sting or bite. There are particular tarantula subspecies, however, that are calm and simple to keep. The only requirement is that you have the appropriate skills to prevent hurting your spider. Insects and spiders are not always dangerous to keep them as pets, so worth considering.

You do need to keep in mind that you’ll have to accommodate your new pets the right way, no matter how small. Lots of people tend to shop for tarantula enclosures here to find the right place and amenities for their pets. For example, spiders need a humid atmosphere, so you’ll need to buy the appropriate enclosure for them.

Making sure your pet has the right environment is essential if you want them to stay healthy.

Invertebrates

Giant African snails became quite popular pets in recent times. There are all kinds of varieties with different colors of bodies and shells which makes them interesting to watch and great pets to have.

Snails are quite quick to mature.  A little snail child will grow to a 6 to 8-inch creature in a year if you care for it as you should. Additionally, snails are very communicative.

It’s extremely easy to keep them. A snail needs a terrarium or an aquarium. Pick a small snail home because they grow according to the size of their “house”. There also should be a bedding of peat, moss or soil, some water, and food. Snails hibernate in case their environment is unfriendly, so you can leave your pet in a dorm for a week or two without worrying about its life.

Pets to have in college in summary 

As you can see, there are many creatures for students to keep in dorm rooms. Read the information above, and then decide which pet will suit you the most. As for me, I’ve already found a pro to write my essay online, and now I’m going to use that additional free time to go and buy my agama.

Have fun with your dorm pets! And don’t leave them without your attention.

Further reading about pet care, housesitting and home maintenance

At Housesitmatch.com we like to share useful blogs and practical advice about the best pets to have, pet minding, housesitters, housesitting and pet sitting. We hope you find this small selection of our blogs on house sitters useful.

Create a student workspace at home

Maintain a fish tank with these 6 Top tip

The Affordable Alternative to Dog Kennels

Top 10 tips for cat sitting

Top dogsitting tips for beginners