🤎 Small-pet glossary

Small-pet terms, in plain language

Every hobby has its jargon, and small-pet keeping is full of it — from “GI stasis” to “declanning” to “wet tail.” Here are the words you’ll meet, in plain language, with no gatekeeping and no assumed knowledge. 54 terms, each linked to the care guide that goes deeper.

Updated September 2026

🍽️ Diet & feeding

Caecotrophs caecotrophy · night droppings Caecotrophs are soft, nutrient-rich droppings that rabbits (and other hindgut fermenters) eat directly from their bottom to absorb vitamins and protein — a normal, essential behaviour, not a problem. Gut-loading Gut-loading means feeding feeder insects a nutritious, calcium-rich diet before offering them to an insect-eating pet (like a hedgehog or sugar glider), so the prey passes on those nutrients. Hay Hay is dried grass that forms the majority of the diet for grazing small pets (rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, degus) — it keeps the gut moving and wears down continuously-growing teeth. Insectivore An insectivore is an animal that eats mainly insects and other invertebrates — pet hedgehogs are largely insectivorous and do best on a commercial hedgehog/insectivore food plus gut-loaded live insects. Leadbeater's diet BML diet · nectar mix Leadbeater's (and similar BML-type) diets are formulated homemade nectar mixes that make up roughly half of a captive sugar glider’s diet, standing in for the sap and nectar they eat in the wild. Molasses Molasses is a sugary binder found in many cheap rodent foods and treats — a problem especially for degus, which are so prone to diabetes that their food must contain no molasses (or added sugar) at all. Muesli mix Muesli-style pet food is a colourful mix of flakes, seeds and pellets that small grazers can “selectively feed” from — a leading cause of dental disease, obesity and gut problems in rabbits and guinea pigs. Obligate carnivore An obligate carnivore must eat meat to survive — ferrets are the small-pet example, needing a high-protein, high-fat, very-low-carbohydrate meat-based diet, not rodent or rabbit food. Vitamin C (for guinea pigs) ascorbic acid Guinea pigs cannot make their own vitamin C and must get it from their diet every day — via fresh grass-based pellets and vitamin-C-rich vegetables — or they develop painful deficiency (scurvy).

🩺 Health

Adrenal gland disease hyperadrenocorticism Adrenal gland disease is the most common hormonal tumour in ferrets, caused by overproduction of sex hormones — its hallmark sign is symmetrical hair loss, often starting at the tail. Bumblefoot pododermatitis · sore hocks Bumblefoot is painful inflammation or ulceration of the soles of the feet, often caused by standing on wire-mesh floors or dirty, damp bedding — a reason small pets need solid floors. Dental disease Dental disease covers the overgrown, sharp or infected teeth common in small pets with continuously-growing teeth — usually from too little hay/gnawing, and a leading cause of a pet that stops eating. Diabetes (in degus) Degus are highly prone to type 2 diabetes and cannot process sugar — a sugary diet leads to diabetes, whose signs include cloudy eyes (cataracts), excessive drinking and urinating, and weight gain. Flystrike myiasis Flystrike is when flies lay eggs on a soiled or damp area (usually the rear) of a rabbit or guinea pig and the hatched maggots eat into the flesh — a rapidly fatal summer emergency. GI stasis (gut stasis) ileus GI stasis is when the gut of a rabbit, guinea pig, chinchilla or degu slows or stops moving — a genuine emergency, signalled by an animal that stops eating and passing droppings. Heatstroke Heatstroke is dangerous overheating — a particular risk for chinchillas, guinea pigs and rabbits, which cope badly with heat; signs include panting, lying flat and stretched out, and dullness. Insulinoma An insulinoma is a pancreatic tumour, very common in ferrets over about three years old, that overproduces insulin and drops blood sugar dangerously low — causing weakness, staring, drooling, collapse or seizures. Malocclusion Malocclusion is misalignment of the continuously-growing teeth, causing painful overgrowth, sharp spurs and difficulty eating — common in rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas and degus. Metabolic bone disease nutritional osteodystrophy · MBD Metabolic bone disease is weakening of the skeleton from a dietary imbalance of calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D — a common, preventable killer of sugar gliders fed a fruit-heavy, low-calcium diet. Mycoplasma (respiratory disease) Mycoplasma is a bacterial respiratory infection extremely common in pet rats and mice, causing sneezing, sniffling, a chattering noise and laboured breathing — it has no cure and is managed, not eliminated. Rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHDV) RHD · VHD RHDV is a highly contagious, often-fatal virus of rabbits — which is why a routine RHDV vaccine (two initial doses, then yearly boosters) is a core part of responsible rabbit care. Red tears (porphyrin) chromodacryorrhoea Red tears are a reddish-brown porphyrin secretion around a rat’s (or mouse’s) eyes and nose that looks like blood but isn’t — a sign of stress or illness, not injury. Scurvy (vitamin C deficiency) Scurvy is the painful disease guinea pigs develop when their diet lacks enough vitamin C — causing weakness, a rough coat, reluctance to move, swollen joints and poor healing. Wet tail proliferative ileitis Wet tail is severe, often-fatal diarrhoea in hamsters (frequently caused by proliferative ileitis), seen as a wet, soiled, matted rear end with lethargy and loss of appetite — a veterinary emergency. Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome (WHS) WHS is a progressive, incurable neurological disease of pet hedgehogs that causes wobbliness, an unsteady gait and eventually paralysis, usually starting before age two.

🤔 Behaviour

Barbering Barbering is when a dominant rat, mouse or gerbil chews the fur or whiskers off a cage-mate (or itself), leaving a clean-shaven patch — usually a social-stress or dominance behaviour. Binky A binky is a rabbit’s exuberant jump and mid-air twist — an unmistakable sign of a happy, comfortable rabbit with room to move. Bruxing & boggling In rats, bruxing (gentle tooth-grinding) and boggling (the eyes appearing to vibrate) are signs of a deeply content, relaxed rat — often during a favourite scratch. Declanning Declanning is when a previously bonded gerbil clan suddenly turns on each other, with serious fighting that means the animals must be permanently separated. Popcorning Popcorning is the sudden joyful leap-and-twist of a happy guinea pig — a completely normal sign of excitement, especially in youngsters at feeding time. Self-anointing Self-anointing is a hedgehog’s odd habit of frothing at the mouth and smearing the foamy saliva over its own spines when it meets a new smell or taste — completely normal, if alarming to watch. Torpor Torpor is a hibernation-like drop in body temperature and activity — dangerous in pet hamsters, hedgehogs and sugar gliders, which can enter it if kept too cold (or, for hedgehogs, too warm). Weasel war dance The weasel war dance is a ferret’s frantic hopping, arching and bumping into things — a happy, excited “let’s play” display, not a sign of distress. Wheeking Wheeking is the high-pitched whistle guinea pigs make when they’re enjoying something; many owners hear it when they rustle the food bag.

🐾 Anatomy & biology

Coprophagy Coprophagy is the normal behaviour of eating one’s own droppings to re-absorb nutrients — healthy and necessary in rabbits, guinea pigs, rats and other small pets, not a sign of illness. Crepuscular Crepuscular animals are most active at dawn and dusk — rabbits are the classic small-pet example, which is why they often seem quiet by day and lively in the early morning and evening. Diurnal Diurnal animals are active during the day — the degu is the standout diurnal small pet, awake and sociable when you are, which is part of its appeal. Hindgut fermenter A hindgut fermenter digests fibrous plant food using bacteria in an enlarged caecum at the end of the gut — rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas and degus all work this way, which is why constant fibre (hay) is essential. Marsupial A marsupial is a pouched mammal — the sugar glider is the small-pet example, and (despite looking rodent-like) it needs marsupial-specific care, not rodent care. Nocturnal Nocturnal animals are active mainly at night — most small pets (hamsters, mice, chinchillas, sugar gliders) are nocturnal, so daytime is their sleep time and shouldn’t be disturbed. Open-rooted (continuously growing) teeth elodont teeth Open-rooted teeth grow continuously throughout life — rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, degus and the rodents all have them, so their diet must constantly wear the teeth down. Patagium (gliding membrane) The patagium is the stretchy membrane running from wrist to ankle on each side of a sugar glider, which it spreads to glide between surfaces — and which can tear if it catches on cage fittings. Prey animal Nearly all small pets are prey animals — hardwired to hide weakness — which is why they mask illness until it’s advanced and why building trust (and watching for subtle changes) matters so much. Tail slip (degloving) Tail slip is when the skin sheds off a gerbil’s or degu’s tail if it’s grabbed or caught — a painful defence mechanism that usually needs veterinary treatment (often amputation of the exposed part).

🏠 Housing & setup

Bar spacing Bar spacing is the gap between cage bars — it must be narrow enough that a small pet can’t push its head through and escape or get stuck; if the head fits, the whole animal usually follows. Cedar & pine shavings (avoid) aromatic shavings Cedar and pine shavings (and dusty sawdust) release oils and dust that can harm small pets’ airways and, in ferrets, are toxic — so safe, low-dust paper- or aspen-based bedding is used instead. Deep bedding (burrowing substrate) Deep bedding is a thick layer of safe substrate that lets burrowing small pets (hamsters, gerbils, mice) dig tunnels — a core welfare need, not decoration, and far deeper than pet-shop cages provide. Dust bath A dust bath is a tray of fine dust (chinchilla sand) that chinchillas and degus roll in to keep their dense fur clean and healthy — they bathe in dust, never water. Fluffy / cotton-wool bedding (danger) Fluffy, cotton-wool-style “fibre” bedding is dangerous for small pets — its thin strands can be swallowed or wrap around limbs, cutting off circulation and costing an animal a foot or its life. Gerbilarium A gerbilarium is a deep tank-style enclosure — solid glass or plastic sides, a secure mesh top and a deep bed of substrate — designed so gerbils can dig proper burrows, unlike a standard barred cage.

🤎 Care & welfare

Bonding Bonding is the careful process of introducing social small pets so they accept each other as companions — done gradually, on neutral territory, and never rushed. Exotic vet small-animal vet · exotics vet An exotic vet is a veterinarian experienced with small and “exotic” pets — the right professional for rabbits, rodents, ferrets, hedgehogs and sugar gliders, whose care differs from cats and dogs. Neutering & spaying Neutering (males) and spaying (females) is the surgical prevention of breeding — important for many small pets both to allow mixed-sex or reduced-conflict companionship and to prevent serious disease. Quarantine Quarantine is housing a new or sick small pet separately for a period before introducing it to others, to avoid spreading disease into an established group.