How do I trap the hamster????

notlongnow_2

Our hamster has escaped!! I know it is still around as I leave some food out for it next to open cage on the floor and some kitchen roll ripped up and by morning, both have gone!

Im pretty sure its in the kitchen/dining room area as baby dropped raisons in the living room and it didnt take those at night so im sure it doesnt go in there.

I never hear it, I have no idea where it is, but know it must be ok as it keeps coming back for food and Im presuming water as the piece of apple in its cage has been nibbled next to its water bottle.

I have no idea where it can be. My theory with the kitchen roll was that is would be easier to see a nest of white kitchen roll under a cupboard etc rather then a grey hamster...I have seen either!!

I set a trap of a ramp leading up to a small tub with food on the ramp and then a unsteady cardboard ramp going across the tub with food on so when it steps on it it will fall in...it hasnt!!

I cant see where it could get under floorboards but it could get under kitchen door into the utility room but its freezing in there so I thought it would stay in the kitchen where its warm. Or it could get to the celler steps..again, freezing cold.

How on earth do I catch it.

Presuming that I am feeding the escaped hamster and not a mouse..lol.

ClareEmily

They can be a !!!!!! to catch we lost one forever under the floorboards, we thought also he would go somewhere warm but alas no.

However on the bright side we have also caught 2 hammys successfully (one escaping twice).

You need to make the house as quiet as possible, normally first thing in the morning (crack of dawn), call out it's name, and listen really carefully, they do make quite a bit of noise moving about, and tempt out with peanut butter or toast (something that smells really tempting). Their sense of smell is very good. Place food in the corner of all the rooms and once you discover which room it is in, block access off to the others so that your search area is reduced.

If you go to the pet shop get a humane rat/mouse trap.

Good luck

Found one of ours under the kitchen units and the other in the bottom of the sofa.

notlongnow_2

Thanks for that. Ive got to do something as Im feeling guilty its pottering about even though im sure its quite happy.

I thought about getting a humane trap but its quite a big hamster and very very fluffy so unless it comes in different sizes then it wont fit..lol. Pesky little thing!!

moggylover

No tips for catching him I'm afraid, but I had one that went missing for about 3 weeks (and we never did work out how he had gotten himself out of the cage ) and then turned up looking for a tit-bit one evening when I was sitting quietly drinking tea in the kitchen. I got him a biccy, and just picked him up whilst he was jamming it into his (still) fat little face!

Funnily enough he was a fluffy one as well. He was known as Houdini from thereon in:D .

Good luck with catching him.

ClareEmily

We heard ours scrabbling around under the kitchen units and thought it had got stuck but when we pulled away the kick boards it was there happily making a bed out of all the fluff and other gross bits and pieces he had found..eiw

We also find the traps a bit small, so used the trap entry (they can squeeze themselves in the smallest places) and taped it to a bigger plastic container.

The one that escaped twice got under the kitchen units through to the cupboard in the bathroom and we finally caught him under the bath arghhhh, he is now padlocked into tank.

ClareEmily

moggylover wrote: »

No tips for catching him I'm afraid, but I had one that went missing for about 3 weeks (and we never did work out how he had gotten himself out of the cage ) and then turned up looking for a tit-bit one evening when I was sitting quietly drinking tea in the kitchen. I got him a biccy, and just picked him up whilst he was jamming it into his (still) fat little face!

Funnily enough he was a fluffy one as well. He was known as Houdini from thereon in:D .

Good luck with catching him.

That made me laugh, they really are cupboard loves

Raksha

Get a deep bucket, some books to make a ramp/steps and put the yummy food in the bucket. The bucket should be steep enough inside for the hamster not to be able to climb out again.......

Can you tell I've done this before?

notlongnow_2

Im kind of trying that but its taking food by the looks of it as far as it can reach on the ramp without climbing. Its not a massively steep ramp. Ive stuck peanuts and sweetcorn to the ramp with peanut butter but its too bloomin cleaver for me!!lol.

wolfehouse

hope you've caught him
the food needs to go at the bottom of a slippery (read plastic)bucket.
the ramp is just to help the critter get to the food.

one hammy drops in, he can't climb back out and should be waiting for you in the morning.

kyssyn

I used the bucket method too. I put cheese in the bucket because it was his favourite food and rubbed it on the ramp so he'd follow the smell to the cheese. I also made sure there was absolutely no food anywhere else. It didn't work the first night but it worked on the second night, I guess he got too hungry to resist!

Also make sure the ramp up to the bucket is stable, hamsters seem pretty smart about checking stability so if it's too wobbly he won't use it.

Ladygrim

OP

Have you got him yet?

LG