Should I get Rats Or gerbils?

I want something that is fun to watch, also something maybe I can let out and not be scared of me. Let it play around. Also I have a pug, but hes really friend I'd like it to be friendly around him.

Secondly sometimes I can be really busy, so I'd like one that doesn't require a lot of cleaning up. I heard gerbils are better in that department?

And lastly where can is a good place to buy whichever I choose? I've been doing re-search and people say buy from shelters, but wouldn't it be rather strange to buy just a gerbil from a shelter? I don't really want to support puppy mills(or whatever) those are just wrong

Thanks

gerbils are very lively and arent easy to play with. i would reccomend a rat because they are very good companions, they are freindly and easy to play with/ handle. gerbils are small so it could get squished gerbils make the same amount of mess as a rat, just a bit smaller.

buying a pet from a shelter uis a good thing, so long as they arent kept in cramped cages. get one from a shelter where owners didnt want them and they are looking for a good home. i hate it when they breed them there.

rats rock!!!
exsperienced rat/gerbil owner

if you want something you can play with then get rats. once they are tame they enjoy being held and stroked, you can teach them tricks. and some rats like it when you wrestle with them, you just roll them about with your hand

its got to be rats, rats will go back to their cage by themselves once tame, they don't run away are very easy to pick up & hold DO NOT bite, and are in my opinion not as smelly as hamsters mice & gerbils, some rats can get on with other pets i.e dogs, cats, rabbits, not smaller though they will kill small birds and mice

have 13 ratties, all come out and are allowed to go anywhere they like, no damage and always come when called

i recommend that you get a rat as they are a type of animal that likes to be played with where as a gerbil is a Very lazy animal that spends most of his time sleeping also i recommend that if you do get a rat that you get two as one will get lonely on his/her own. also i recommend you get a rat as they are very clean animals and they are not that hard to clean out when the cage gets dirty where as with a gerbal you will have to frequently clean the cage. i also recomend that you get your rat from a pet shop as most pet shops sell them farly cheap.

i hope this helps with your problem.

i have a rat myself who was very lonely on his own so i went out and got him a friend.
so you could say that my source is personal experiance.

A rat :)

rats are great, especially if they're handraised! i want to get some. we'll see how that goes...