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Strangeo Forum Tips on hamster care?    Wee Scrivener Trell        8/4/2013 Title says it all; does anyone have tips for a beginner hamster owner? I've been researching around, but I'm not finding much results and often the results I do find, well. I don't trust them as far as I can throw them. I trust the people here a lot better, honestly. I have endless knowledge on mouse care, but I'm not sure how much of this is relevant for hammies. Are there any experienced hamster owners in the Caves? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Peppery One Papriko   8/4/2013 I only have guinea pigs, but for a good reason. When my parents bought me my first pet, they decided against hamsters because they are active in the night and sleep most of the day. Also, the guinea pig book (there is a section which covers guinea pigs living with other pets) says that hamsters are more of a loner and somewhat aggressive regarding their territory. Lets play plants! Photosynthesis... Photosynthesis... Photosynthesis...   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/4/2013 It all depends on the hamster, I'm told. The ones we're looking at are dwarf hamsters, that grew up in a group. They were much friendlier than the hedgehogs. Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   youkaihybrid26   8/5/2013  1 =) I had two hampsters; my brother savagebeast had one too. I had a dwarf named Coda, a teddy bear named Jerry, and he had a Teddy bear named Chewy (doesn't know how to spell his name). My tip for a dwarf is get a wheel, they love to run. I warn at night it can get really annoying! Just basically make sure you have a clean cage, lots of stuff for them to chew on, and water. They are great little pets hopefully you get a little critter more social then my first robo dwarf. Just your neighborhood Youkai dropping by =)   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/5/2013 The dwarf hammies are cute, eh? I've got the basic needs down pat, I'm just looking for more in-depth knowledge now. What I'm looking for most is tips on cage dimensions and types, what works best and why; which is better: dwarf or regular; taming tips and the best way to pick them up; peanut free food brands, and what sort of treats (fruits and veggies) are safest. Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Charity   8/5/2013  1 I've had some hamsters, six, actually. Maybe I could help? The cage size really depends on you, the bigger the cage or the more complex, the longer it will take to clean. I've always had smaller cages, myself. My hamsters didn't seem to mind, just as long as they had their wheel to run in. One more thing about cages, be careful not to get a wire two/three-story cage if you plan on getting a dwarf hamster, one of my poor hammies got his leg stuck in one before... As for which type of hamster to pick, that's really just up to you as well. All my hammies are dwarfs, I personally like the Campbell hamsters the best. From my experience, they seem to be the smartest and live the longest. As for taming, hold/pet your hamster daily, If your hamster bites, get some cheap gardening gloves, they'll help a lot. If you are going to have more then one hamster and would like for them to be friends... There is no way to force friendship, so just put them nearby each other if they try to fight, just separate them as fast as you can. Also you need each hamster to have it's own cage, I had two hamsters that got alone very well, but... Even then they would sometimes fight over the cage... How to pick up your hamster? Don't put your hand over the hamster's head you move too fast or you could scare it, let the hamster come to you and carefully put your hands under it, then lift it up. Peanut free food..? Are you allergic? Hmm... It's been so long... I don't remember any blends without... What sort of treats for hamsters? Well.. There's a lot, Here's a pretty good list. Is there anything else you need help with?   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/5/2013 Ah! Thanks luv! I'm actually looking at a 24'' by 14'' plastic bottomed wire cage right now, as it's the nicest size I've found. Any cage I'd even consider buying is a one story wire cage, because honestly, all the others are shoddy in my opinion. All the other ones I've found have been seriously teeny and we're looking at two or three hamsters right now. My siblings seem set on dwarfs but I'm a little more inclined to the syrian, if only because they're easier to feed. Then again, I've yet to pet a dwarf, so that opinion might change. Ha ha! I've done extensive research in the past on wheels, and I've found a good one. Mesh, small holes that their feet won't get stuck in... Yep. I've heard of different ways to accustom hams to each other, one being to put a daub of vanilla on the base of each of their tails, so they smell the same to each other. Odds are we're going to have all females, which I'm told have a lower tendency to fight than males. I'm a rather gentle person by nature, so I've no doubt that eventually they'll become tame to me. Haven's needing a little practice on not being too rough, but she'll be fine in time. The only thing I'm really worried about are the other siblings, which I know can be very rough. Odds are the older two won't give half a flying fig, but my little brother is simply obsessed with cute fuzzy things; I just fear he might be too rough once he gets used to them. Funny, the one I petted didn't seem as afraid of me as I thought. All three of us had our little mitts in that box, but he kept sniffing over to my hand. Oh yes, most of my family, I included, are deathly allergic to peanuts. Even the slightest trace can set someone off. But, I seem to have found a good peanut free mix, with a back up brand in case I can't find this one. The only downer is that we won't be getting our hamsters until we move into our new house, which won't be until April at the soonest. But, our dad's been very lenient in letting us work odd jobs about this house to earn money to buy all the supplies, so once we get to the new house, it'll be a simple matter of "Let's go get those hamsters!" Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 Augh... Help me! ;n; I joined a hamster forum and everyone is saying that a cage that's smaller than 360 square inches is cruel! The only one that I can find that they won't escape from is only 336 square inches at most, and they're saying it's inadequate. ;n; I reeeeally don't want to have to use a glass tank or a plastic bin, but they're saying it's my only option. What do I do? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Air Guitarist kezune     8/6/2013 Simple. Add floors. It'll give your hamster more room to explore and give him more room to roll around and do hamster things. Plastic shelves could work. It's been a long time since I owned a hamster, though. Updated Rehosting Policy[/title]   Charity   8/6/2013 Hamsters are so small, that should be a big enough cage for one hamster, though it would be a little crowded for two or three... It would probably be best to make the cage yourself from the looks of it.   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 What sort of cage did you have Charity? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Air Guitarist kezune     8/6/2013 Er. Fixing what I said previously - add floors in the cage if there's room enough to do that. Updated Rehosting Policy[/title]   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 It's about 15 inches high; is that high enough to add a second floor? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Air Guitarist kezune     8/6/2013 Sure! Hamsters don't need all that headroom. Just make sure he(she? they?) has a little ramp and some cardboard tubes to play with up there. Updated Rehosting Policy[/title]   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 Cool. Now is this for Syrians, or dwarfs? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Air Guitarist kezune     8/6/2013 That, I'm not sure of. XD Like I said, it's been a long time, but adding a floor in the cage is just an easy way to give them more square footage to live on. Updated Rehosting Policy[/title]   Charity   8/6/2013 The reason I said "Make" rather than "Fix" is I attempted to fix a cage failed... ^^' As for cages, I had quite a few cages. This looks like the best ones I had: Small, but my hamsters didn't mind. The cage I said to try to avoid looked (sort-of) like this: My hammy got his leg stuck in one of the ladder sides... Then there's this kind: A bit more room... But, it's a pain to clean it out every week...   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 Is this cage okay? Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"   Charity   8/6/2013 Yeah! That should be a lot of room for them!   Wee Scrivener Trell     8/6/2013 Great! We're just getting one Syrian hammy to start with, so she should be okay I think. Trell "Holy crap in a casket!"

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