Hamsters (merged)

laurajayne

Hammies are lovely, but as other posters say, you'll be heavily involved in his/her cleaning and welbeing.

We have 2, both Russians, and they're lovely. Freyja is now 2, and is still as crazy as she was when I bought her home! Runs on the wheel, plays hang tough from the bars. They're not smelly at all really, although I have noticed that my sisters hamsters (both boys, one at a time though) were/are smellier than Freyja.

I couldn't possibly say how suitable they are for children, as I was never allowed one as a child...mum hated any sort of rodenty critter. I was 24 before I got one

abaxas

Hi all,

We had dwarf 3 hamsters. One (rex) was attacked so we moved him out to a new cage.

4 months later the other two have hade a huge row and Fang has been hurt in the fight. So we've moved him to a new cage too.

The problem is not with the healing, as he's eating well and enjoying the wheel. But he's paranoid, any noise, me switching on the light. Infact anything makes him squeek, fall onto his back and submit.

Any ideas on how to help my little friend? Or maybe just wait and time will heal his wounds and mental state?

Thanks

happylion1

Yes just give him time, he will be ok.

Starna

Hi, I hope Fang is feeling a bit better now. You may find the website, 'hammysworld dot com' useful on hamster behaviour, in particular regarding their instincts in protecting their territory. I certainly found it useful for helping my adopted Syrian, Sindy, settle in. She was the most nervous hamster I ever had but now she's doing great.

Sorry I can't post the web link as I'm a new poster on the forum!

Good luck :-)

sneezyboots

make sure that his new cage is not close enough to the other one's cage that he can smell or hear him, otherwise he will think for a while that he can still get him.

nicki_2

Its DD's birthday in April and I plan on buying all the bits and pieces I'll need for her to get a hamster. I've already sourced a cage with bits in it (not sure what there is yet, will find out tomorrow when I pick it up) and I know it needs some specialist stuff but what do I NEED to get as if DD has her way it'll live in an exercise ball and eat cucumber none stop :rotfl: Seriously, she's read the leaflet about Syrian hamsters from petsathome, loves her aunties two russian dwarf ones, and there is one in school as a class pet who I love to bits as well. She also knows they're nocturnal and is okay with that.

I know it would need a house to sleep in, an exercise ball ideally, bedding of some form, and I know they use [STRIKE]hay/straw(?)[/STRIKE] Sawdust (Edited as I realised now I made a mistake:o) & sand in school for theirs. Obviously there's food & a water bottle as well. I'm asking here as I can't help but feel that the leaflet we got would be slightly biased at trying to get us to buy everything they sell

Also has anyone got any tips on cleaning the cage out? The one I'm getting is second hand and I know that hamsters are territorial so how can I ensure this cage is de-smelled? Is there an everyday cleaner I can use to clean it out or do I need the specialist cleaners?

Any help/advice will be gratefully received - this is her first ever pet, and my first rodent (I've had a dog, cat & 6 goldfish and don't want to go there this time ).

Claire_Bear

Firstly, I'd like to give you the compulsory warning about buying hamsters for children as presents, and to make sure she'll definately look after it for the two years (ish) it can live, and to be warned that there's the possibility that she'll lose interest after a few months and you'll end up looking after it. But all that aside, what you'll need is...

Cage. The bigger the better.
Wheel. If the cage is going to be in a room where you spend a lot of time, or sleep, seriously consider spending a little bit more and getting a silent wheel, or it'll drive you crazy. Make sure the wheel is solid plastic and not a wire one as the poor hamster can get their paw caught between the bars, and it can end up in a very nasty situation!
Water bottle and food dish. A ceramic food dish is best as it's nice and heavy and won't be tipped over.
Sawdust to put in the bottom of the cage.
Bed and some bedding. The shredded blue cloth type is good, people say stay away from the fleecy cuddly type as it can get tangled around limbs, causing the circulation to be cut off.
A place for the hamster to go when you're cleaning the cage, such as a runaround ball, or a big plastic storage tub.
You can buy disinfectant spray from the pet section in places like Pets at Home, and Wilkinsons. They're only about a pound a bottle if I remember right though so not more than any other type of cleaner.
Food, just buy the hamster flakes from the pet shop, but it would be nice to supplement with treats and fresh fruit/veg. Try not to give too much though as things with high water content such as cucumber can lead to wet tail (diarrhoea), remember hamsters only have a tiny stomach Give a tiny bit, if you give more than the hamster can eat they'll probably carry it into their bed to store, and it'll go off. There's lots of lists online about what hamsters can and can't eat so might be worth having a look.

Think that has the essentials covered, sorry if it was a bit long! Hope it helps though Good luck with your new furry friend when you get him

Apricot

When we had hamsters they had a cage with a wheel & little house in it. We used to fill the cage with sawdust not hay or straw. Sand baths are also advised for hamsters but can get quite messy! We had an exercise ball but you need to be sure that you put the lid on properly as ours came loose once and we ended up chasing Charlie (hamster) around the room for an hour! Also - make sure cage door/lid closes really tightly as hamsters are excellent escape artists.

Be sure to disinfect old cage well (old hamster may have died of some infectious disease) then clean with a paste of bicarb and water to get rid of any smells.

Use un-dyed toilet tissue paper shredded for hamster to make a nest (not newspaper as print can be toxic). Ours also loved having toilet roll tubes in the cage which they would hide in and chew.

Get the cage ready before you pick hammy up as they will likely be stressed travelling from pet shop & it will be less stressful for it to go straight into the cage & make itself at home. Oh and be careful it's not pregnant - ours (meant to be a boy) had 9 babies 2 days after we brought her home!

nicki_2

Oopps...it is sawdust they use in school.:o I got that wrong. will go back and change it now. Its only going to be a small cage (the ones £20-35 ones from Petsathome) for now but if all goes well we'll expand to a bigger one - we love the idea of having one of those ones with lots of pods & tubes

Can't wait to see whats in the cage when I get it as it was shoved to the back of the shop on table with things piled around it in a local houseclearance place. I just noticed the wire top & then some purple at the bottom. When I asked, it was a hamster cage and the fella is going to get it out for me tonight as he was sorting someone out with some computer stuff and I didn't have the cash on me Now I just need to make sure I have my haggle head on when I go to get it - he wants £10 for the lot - I'm aiming to pay between £5-£10 depending on how much is in it. I always manage to haggle him down to 50-70% of this original asking price depending on what it is :money::A

Claire_Bear

nicki wrote: »

Oopps...it is sawdust they use in school.:o I got that wrong. will go back and change it now. Its only going to be a small cage (the ones £20-35 ones from Petsathome) for now but if all goes well we'll expand to a bigger one - we love the idea of having one of those ones with lots of pods & tubes

Can't wait to see whats in the cage when I get it as it was shoved to the back of the shop on table with things piled around it in a local houseclearance place. I just noticed the wire top & then some purple at the bottom. When I asked, it was a hamster cage and the fella is going to get it out for me tonight as he was sorting someone out with some computer stuff and I didn't have the cash on me Now I just need to make sure I have my haggle head on when I go to get it - he wants £10 for the lot - I'm aiming to pay between £5-£10 depending on how much is in it. I always manage to haggle him down to 50-70% of this original asking price depending on what it is :money::A

If you're on Freecycle, try posting a Wanted for a cage, I got a really big cage from there for my Gracie and it had a few little bits and bobs in there too. Might be worth trying, or keeping an eye out if anyone is offering one. £10 is a good price though for a little setup, good luck with your haggling There's also some decent homemade hamster enclosures, you could maybe try something like this: http://www.chinchillanation.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/dsc_02941.jpg
and connecting it up with your bought cage via a tube or something like in the photo?