Hamster questions

witchgirl26

Hi everyone. So bit new to this forum but looking at possibly getting a hamster in the next while and wanted to see if anyone had any advice. I've done a bit of reading as to what breed to look for and the basic items needed but really any and all advice is welcome - tips, tricks, best practices, where is best to buy the hamster etc.

It'll be my first foray into per ownership but I have looked after my cousin's dog and gerbils previously and I love animals.

Thanks in advance!

famagusta

But them as young as you can and handle them as much as you can early on so they get used to it. Dont buy a hamster that has been in a shop and not handled for ages.
Buy a male if possible as they are a bit nicer than the females! (in my experience)

They are great pets, had them for years, used to breed them too. Lovely pets. Very little hassle.

Don't put two in a cage together.

famagusta

oh and dont buy the dwarf ones, buy a normal (syrian i think) hamster

witchgirl26

Thanks famagusta! Yes the Syrian one was the one I was looking at because of what I'd read up about the dwarf ones.

Do you have any recommendations as where would be good to get one in Dublin? Also is there any issue with no-one being there during the day? I know they're nocturnal creatures but want to double check!

baby and crumble

Yay hamsters!!!

My first piece of advice is to look towards getting a Syrian, like others have said as young as possible. You will need to put lots and lots of time into taming them.

Boys tend to be lazier than girls. I prefer girls just because they're fiestier (not saying they'll bite just saying they're more likely to want to interact with you).

Cage & environment:

Get the biggest possible cage you can. Hamsters needs lots of space. They need to have a good quality wheel, and I always advise people to "size up"- so if you have dwarf hamsters get them the wheel that's marketed for Syrians, if you have Syrians get the wheel for rats. You want to make sure a full size hamster can run with their back straight rather than curved. We swear by the Karlie Wonderland wooden wheel.

You can train hamsters to use a toilet to pee in (tbh they poo everywhere but they're not smelly at all and they're little pellets so not a big deal). Let your hamster settle in to the cage, you'll quickly see they have a spot they favour. Once that's established, get a small dish or takeaway container and you can either use normal sawdust bedding or sand or something and put it in the same spot with some of the soiled material. They'll just keep peeing there but now it's in a container you can just dump and clean every day to keep smells down.

We used to make loads of stuff For the cage ourselves using lollipop sticks and loo rolls and things. Ramps, tunnels, hammocks, whatever you can think of. Hamsters are really quite clever and they get bored easily. We used to change around the layout when we cleaned weekly. Check out YouTube for ideas.

DONT use the packaged "cotton wool" type bedding. It doesn't break down in their guts so if they eat it or swallow some when they're building a nest, it can make them really sick. Just tear up plain toilet paper. Just as cosy and much cheaper and safer.

Taming:

The easiest way to tame a hamster for handling is in the bath if you have one. Get in (no water and fully clothed!) with hammy. Let them run around and over you without trying to do to much with them. They'll get used to you quickly. Either way when you get it first let it settle in for a day or two without disturbing it. It needs to feel safe before you start to handle it. It takes a lot of patience but after a month or two our guys are usually happy to ride around on shoulders or in hoody pockets.

Excercise:

It's a good idea to let hammy out each night if you can for a wander. You can get pens to keep them
In, we just used to set up pillows for climbing etc on our bed or the sofa. Just keep an eye, hammie don't have good eyesight so they don't really see depth. They think something is a little drop so they'll go for it but they've got very delicate bones that break super easy. Don't let them run around without watching them all the time.

A really good thing to have is a container of chinchilla sand (you'll get it in any pet shop). They LOVE digging and bathing in it. Don't use normal play sand though, unless you bake it first to kill mites and bugs.

Treats:

Hamsters love fresh veggies and some fruits- but each will be different so try them with things until
You find what they like. Do look up the list of hammie safe food though, there's some stuff you'd think would be fine and it's not. Try little dog biscuits for keeping teeth down (hamsters teeth constantly grow so you have to give them hard things to gnaw on or they'all start chewing bars to keep their teeth down.), and veggie based baby food (the little jars are handy). Ours alway went ape for broccoli, apple, cucumber (only in small amounts) and grapes (no seeds). Also try getting a pot of dried mealworms (usually sold for birds)- great for protein!

Those are my basic tips. Just please please get the biggest cage possible. Most of the cages you get in pet shops are way way too small. Don't get the "pod" types either for Syrians. They're made for dwarf breeds really and a decent sized Syrian can get stuck in the connector tubes and dehydrate really fast.

Oh and your last question about being out during the day. No problem. Hamsters will sleep most of the day. They might get up for a drink and a pee but that'll be it. They get really active around dusk and dawn.

I miss having hamsters.

witchgirl26

Thanks so much baby and crumble!! Quick question - is it ok to leave the cage on the ground or should it be on a coffee table or something? And any issue do you think if it's against the side wall of a chimney? I'm trying to think of a good spot in the house & there's a space there which would be perfect if it was ok.

baby and crumble

So long as it's well balanced and won't fall I don't see a problem. We used to have ours take over a full section of our book case. Beside a chimney should be fine too. Just somewhere where they won't be disturbed too much during the day when they're asleep. Hamsters can be INCREDIBLY grumpy if they don't sleep.

Maybe that was just ours!!!

witchgirl26

Thanks so much. Luckily we're all out during the day so it should have a lovely rest time. It would be in the same room as the TV but I'm usually first in & keep the sound low anyway!

famagusta

Ya you can leave the cage on the ground. Somewhere that is not in direct sunlight during the day and someplace not too noisy.

Great post above from Baby and crumble. We used to use the lid of a jam jar for their 'pee corner' and clean it every day and the cage will not start stinking after a few days.

One point to note with the feeding of hamsters. When you feed them they stuff it all into their cheek pouches and bring it into their larder, which is usually in their nest. Don't over feed them as you can think they are eating all their food every day but they are just storing it in their larder. when you clean the cage out every week you can see that there should be a little bit of food stored but not loads of it.

Also, when giving fresh fruit and veg, which they love, only give them little bits as it will go off in the nest if they don't eat it all.

They are very easy pets as they sleep all day when you are at work and get up at night when you can play with them.

As said above, get a big cage and a good wheel, they are active and smart and its important to keep them entertained.

famagusta

As for the best place to buy one, i'd ring around and see what they have in stock before driving around the city. i bought my last one in the omniplex in santry, the staff in there were great. they handled them loads which helps

Knine

Put the cage somewhere that you won't hear them when trying to get a nights sleep! They can be fairly noisy at night running in their wheel or if they develop bad habits such as gnawing the bars on their cage.

I prefer males & they seem to live longer too. My males all lived 3 + years. They are easy to sex with the rail end of a male being much more elongated then the very round females. Google if not sure! Be very careful taking them out as their eyesight is not great & they can be badly hurt if they fall.

As mentioned above - don't ever use that cotton stuff sold in petshops. They will appreciate a pile of unscented toilet tissue or torn up kitchen roll to make a nice nest with. They will have a secret stash of food hidden in their cage so make sure fresh foods are only given in amounts that will be eaten straight away. As they have cheek pouches avoid anything that might melt if they stuff it into their pouch.

Syrians are the larger type of hamster & are not sociable. They come in lots of lovely colours & coat types. I used to breed Satins & longhaired. As mentioned get as large a cage as possible & make sure it is strong as Syrians are good escape artists. I had one who could eat her way out of any plastic cages!

witchgirl26

Knine wrote: »

Syrians are the larger type of hamster & are not sociable. They come in lots of lovely colours & coat types. I used to breed Satins & longhaired. As mentioned get as large a cage as possible & make sure it is strong as Syrians are good escape artists. I had one who could eat her way out of any plastic cages!

Thanks for the info - are Syrians not the more social ones? From the reading I'd done I was led to believe that they were the best for handling etc over a lot of the other common breeds available.

dudara

famagusta wrote: »

oh and dont buy the dwarf ones, buy a normal (syrian i think) hamster

I've had dwarf hamsters for about 15 years now, and I love the little furballs. I have a pair of opal Russians at the moment that are just sweethearts. However, if you're starting out, a regular hamster is probably the best way to go.

Knine

witchgirl26 wrote: »

Thanks for the info - are Syrians not the more social ones? From the reading I'd done I was led to believe that they were the best for handling etc over a lot of the other common breeds available.

As in not social with other hamsters! The Syrians once tame are pretty good with being handled. Just don't handle them until the evenings when they wake up.

baby and crumble

Yeah, really don't wake a sleeping hamster.

REALLY don't.

Syrians are great for handling, they are so smart and sweet. But you cannot have 2 Syrians together.

mozzy

There is a great youtube channel for advice : https://www.youtube.com/user/HoppingHammy