Dear ones,
Despite my best attempts to smuggle American wildcats onto the English canals over the summer, it looks like I am petless. My husband is allergic to cats, but that particular cat was an unusual creature that he was willing to make an exception for. Now I am desperate for a small friend to live on my boat.
A lovely animal that I enjoy very much is the ferret, and I am pleased to see that they appear to be cheaper, healthier and better-understood here than in the States (possibly because they're still working animals here.) I would enjoy one/two as a pet very much, and believe that I could give them a good life, but a lot of the best and most appropriate cages won't fit on the boat!
Caging is an interesting issue, and I'd be very interested in hearing from boaters who keep caged pets on their boats. As floorspace is always going to be at a premium, I'm expecting there might be some interesting modifications and self-build ideas from handy pet lovers who found clever solutions. And I'm interested to hear about how non-standard pets do on boats. There are some that I wouldn't consider (rabbits, for example) because I feel like they wouldn't be able to play or exercise properly when taken out of the cage - am I right or am I wrong?
Does anyone keep pets on boats other than the old traditional cat/dog/small child trifecta? What animals do well on boats? What solutions have you found for them?
And would I be really better off by raising my own swan?
Thoughts warmly welcomed.