Dusty the Robo dwarf hamster.

[Maz]

I would keep all the old bedding and spread it on top of the new bedding There's an article on cage cleaning here.

Hamster cage cleaning

Tips on how to clean your hamster cage and avoid causing stress to your hamster. It's best to have plenty of depth of substrate and mainly spot clean your hamster cage. Avoid disturbing your hamster's nest and hoard.

www.thehamsterforum.com

I had a quick search and dandelion roots don't seem that easy to find in the US. It's not essential. It's a nice extra and something for forage and to chew on but there are plenty of other things hamsters can enjoy My robo used to love whole pumpkin seeds in their shells (the white ones) and dried coconut flakes.

 

[Dusty's Mom]

They look great! I had no idea Niteangel sold dandelion root. That kind of thing can be difficult to buy from Amazon. Yes, there is a lot of powders for humans and to make tea with it seems. I was not able to see the price of the one you linked as it shows as unavailable to me. Was the one I linked any use or is that too expensive?

The one you linked was a UK store and said over 4.25 pounds. They are in Cotswold, UK. I think the dandelion root I ordered was 1.8oz (50g) for $9.99.

 

[Dusty's Mom]

I went to a couple of thrift stores near me to look for glass or ceramic bowl/containers suitable for sand bath or just different substrate for Dusty to dig in. I came home with 6 possibilities and I found a 9 inch Silent Runner wheel that was in good shape for $3.49. It was a yellow one. I like it because it has a heavy base. My other wheel for Dusty is a wire base and I can see it moving around when in use.

I would keep all the old bedding and spread it on top of the new bedding There's an article on cage cleaning here.

Hamster cage cleaning

Tips on how to clean your hamster cage and avoid causing stress to your hamster. It's best to have plenty of depth of substrate and mainly spot clean your hamster cage. Avoid disturbing your hamster's nest and hoard.

www.thehamsterforum.com

I had a quick search and dandelion roots don't seem that easy to find in the US. It's not essential. It's a nice extra and something for forage and to chew on but there are plenty of other things hamsters can enjoy My robo used to love whole pumpkin seeds in their shells (the white ones) and dried coconut flakes.

Oh interesting about the coconut flakes, the ones I have seen have sugar coating for baking. LOL! I have the green pumpkin seeds for the gerbils and they eat those readily. I have not seen the white ones. I go to Sprouts, a farmers market grocery store, for any raw seeds/nuts for the gerbils.

 

[Daisy]

That's a great price for a Silent Runner and it's ideal for a Robo. They tend to like the enclosed wheels.

 

[Dusty's Mom]

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Here is my new table for the hamster cage with the items I have for the set up so far. I know I do not know what I am doing. I feel so lost and it will be so much different with bedding. I probably bought too many large things so I do not have to use all of this in the hamster cage. I appreciate any feedback I can get. I feel like I have no creative ability when trying to set up a cage for a hamster. That seagrass tunnel may be way too big. I had no idea it was so big. The dishes for sand bath and coco peat may be too big too. Let me know. Also I don't know if you set the platforms on the floor of the cage and then add bedding or add a little bedding first. I don't know if Dusty will need ladder or bridges to get into these dishes. I still have his water bottle to fit somewhere and I need to clean all of this stuff before I can use it. Thanks for any feedback. I also have more stuff coming and I wasn't planning to use it all at once but that was before I knew you were not suppose to change things in their cages. Always learning!

 

[RainbowBrite]

Sorry the link was for a UK site.

I personally think it is really hard to set up a hamster enclosure so please do not think it is just you. You do not need to worry because everybody will help you.

With platforms they go on the floor of the enclosure as it keeps them stable and prevents the hamster from getting under them.

If you have a big dish for substrate you can pop a hide in. This gives some cover and can help hamsters feel safer. They like clutter as it gives them places to hide and to feel safe.

What I do when I put something on a platform is to then surround it with bedding as this makes it easier for the hamster to acess it. For example, I have a sandbath on a platform. I then surrounded the sandbath with bedding and pressed it down. My hamster can now enter and exit the sandbath.

I am unable to see your video. Maybe it is set to private.

 

[Maz]

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Here is my new table for the hamster cage with the items I have for the set up so far. I know I do not know what I am doing. I feel so lost and it will be so much different with bedding. I probably bought too many large things so I do not have to use all of this in the hamster cage. I appreciate any feedback I can get. I feel like I have no creative ability when trying to set up a cage for a hamster. That seagrass tunnel may be way too big. I had no idea it was so big. The dishes for sand bath and coco peat may be too big too. Let me know. Also I don't know if you set the platforms on the floor of the cage and then add bedding or add a little bedding first. I don't know if Dusty will need ladder or bridges to get into these dishes. I still have his water bottle to fit somewhere and I need to clean all of this stuff before I can use it. Thanks for any feedback. I also have more stuff coming and I wasn't planning to use it all at once but that was before I knew you were not suppose to change things in their cages. Always learning!

It all looks great Don't worry about setting things up. As Rainbow says it's something that not everyone finds easy. I don't either. But I tend to base a set up around the house and wheel and platforms. Eg put those in where you want them first then fit everything in around and in between and play around with things a bit - sometimes you have ideas along the way I am not very creative with these things ha ha. I put the house on the left, the wheel at the back and the platforms on the right. Which is a bit symmetrical but then platforms are symmetrical. I did get quite daring once and put a lower platform nearer the middle, for a sand bath, and that worked quite well

As to what you put in first. You can put the platforms in first and then the bedding under and around them. When I tried that, it worked to a degree but then I had to take one of the platforms out again to be able to get enough bedding in the far corner under another one and then push the remaining platform back in again, which was a bit of a fiddle. As you have to get your hand right down in the bedding to ensure the platform sits solidly on the base without bedding under the legs then.

So I'd start with platforms and house in first and see how you go I think the 3 way sisal tunnel looks fantastic and I'm sure you'll find somewhere to put it.

 

[oddvon]

It sounds like you'll need to have a think about the tanks. If the 4 foot one won't fit. And if you already have a 3 foot one. Obviously the more space you can give the better but I think a 3 foot tank is seen as perfectly acceptable in the US As long as it's deep enough and tall enough. It's only about 4" shorter than a 100cm one.

Just to give you an idea of how active Robos can be once settled in, this is a short video clip of my last Robo at night It's not speeded up either! He was like yours at first, hid away a lot. But gradually they come out and you can chat to them. This is a 100cm cage.

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Buddy ...... Buddy is that you.... ?? how did you get there ?.......oh its Maz's speedy Robo... there was me thinking Buddy is the only rocket powered model available .....

 

[Dusty's Mom]

Sorry the link was for a UK site.

I personally think it is really hard to set up a hamster enclosure so please do not think it is just you. You do not need to worry because everybody will help you.

With platforms they go on the floor of the enclosure as it keeps them stable and prevents the hamster from getting under them.

If you have a big dish for substrate you can pop a hide in. This gives some cover and can help hamsters feel safer. They like clutter as it gives them places to hide and to feel safe.

What I do when I put something on a platform is to then surround it with bedding as this makes it easier for the hamster to acess it. For example, I have a sandbath on a platform. I then surrounded the sandbath with bedding and pressed it down. My hamster can now enter and exit the sandbath.

I am unable to see your video. Maybe it is set to private.

Sorry you couldn’t see the video. I made sure it was unlisted this time and not private. It goes public at midnight so you should be able to see it now. Thanks for all the instruction on setting up the tank. Tomorrow I start cleaning everything. The bedding going up to things on platforms makes total sense. I probably bought too much stuff. I have a month to return stuff from Amazon if I need to. I see all these cute set ups in ads for hamster stuff and I could never do that. And it always looks like there isn’t deep enough bedding. Cage gets here in two days. Then the fun begins!

 

[Dusty's Mom]

It all looks great Don't worry about setting things up. As Rainbow says it's something that not everyone finds easy. I don't either. But I tend to base a set up around the house and wheel and platforms. Eg put those in where you want them first then fit everything in around and in between and play around with things a bit - sometimes you have ideas along the way I am not very creative with these things ha ha. I put the house on the left, the wheel at the back and the platforms on the right. Which is a bit symmetrical but then platforms are symmetrical. I did get quite daring once and put a lower platform nearer the middle, for a sand bath, and that worked quite well

As to what you put in first. You can put the platforms in first and then the bedding under and around them. When I tried that, it worked to a degree but then I had to take one of the platforms out again to be able to get enough bedding in the far corner under another one and then push the remaining platform back in again, which was a bit of a fiddle. As you have to get your hand right down in the bedding to ensure the platform sits solidly on the base without bedding under the legs then.

So I'd start with platforms and house in first and see how you go I think the 3 way sisal tunnel looks fantastic and I'm sure you'll find somewhere to put it.

Thanks Maz. Good ideas I will do that and see how it goes.

 

[RainbowBrite]

I think you may be setting your youtube videos to go public at a certain time. There is an option to select them as 'unlisted' and then anybody with the link can click on them and watch them. This is what I do when I want to show videos on here.

No idea if this is of any help but this is a link to my robo set up. It is nothing special but as you have a tank style like me it may be of some use.

Show us your cages 2022

The Silent runner on it's stand is 35cm high so you could measure :) It also needs at least half a cm above it so it doesn't get stuck on the roof. That might sound obvious but I've had that before!

thehamsterforum.com

I know what you mean by seeing amazing set ups and not being able to copy them.

 

[Maz]

I leave some of mine as public and some as unlisted. The unlisted ones only show where you post the link, as Rainbow says

 

[SarahBee]

Hi Dusty! I adore robos! Good luck settling in

 

[Dusty's Mom]

I think you may be setting your youtube videos to go public at a certain time. There is an option to select them as 'unlisted' and then anybody with the link can click on them and watch them. This is what I do when I want to show videos on here.

No idea if this is of any help but this is a link to my robo set up. It is nothing special but as you have a tank style like me it may be of some use.

Show us your cages 2022

The Silent runner on it's stand is 35cm high so you could measure :) It also needs at least half a cm above it so it doesn't get stuck on the roof. That might sound obvious but I've had that before!

thehamsterforum.com

I know what you mean by seeing amazing set ups and not being able to copy them.

Thanks again RainbowBrite, I did set the video to unlisted but there was still a schedule to go public at midnight. I don't see how you turn that off. I thought choosing unlisted would do that. Hopefully I will figure this out soon. Thanks for the link to that thread I have looked at it and I am sure I will be looking at it more.

Hi Dusty! I adore robos! Good luck settling in

Thanks SaraBee

 

[Dusty's Mom]

I leave some of mine as public and some as unlisted. The unlisted ones only show where you post the link, as Rainbow says

Right and I know I did choose Unlisted for that video....I don't know why happened. Did you all get to see it eventually?

 

[Maz]

It definitely showed up I think Rainbow was thinking you maybe didn't want it showing publicly and would have preferred it to be unlisted (which means it doesn't show up on youtube itself, but does show up wherever you past the link). I leave some of mine public and others unlisted.

To check if it's set to unlisted or not. You go to your youtube account, select videos and at the top where it says "manage videos" you click on that. This opens the videos up as a vertical list of small boxes - on the right of each video box you can right click and there's a drop down menu - to change it to public or unlisted or whatever you prefer

However your videos are showing up just fine on here

 

[Dusty's Mom]

Thanks, Maz, I will have to look into that. Glad my videos are finally showing up. I also forgot to explain that the video moves around because as I was filming I was walking around the table and I have very bad knees and I tend to limp when I walk.

 

[Maz]

You don't need to worry about the video moving around. I can empathise as well as I have bad knees! Which is why I have my cages at waist height (or just below).

 

[RainbowBrite]

I have just seen the video and I love what you have bought! You have even arranged everything in such a nice way! The way you put the bowl with the ramp and bridge leading into and the glass container it is perfect for Dusty as he can access them both and then have two ways of going out. The platform with the wheel on is so nice. I bet he will love the multichamber hide and he has the coconut hide and cute wooden hide.

He will have such a lot of chews to play with. I do not think you need to worry about getting a cork log. He has plenty of lovely things. Just to say, with the wooden items I always paint them with a hamster safe varnish as it protects the wood against urine. I think people in US use Mod Podge for that.

Amazon.com: Mod Podge Matte Sealer, Glue & Finish: All-in-One Craft Solution- Quick Dry, Easy Clean, for Wood, Paper, Fabric & More. Non-Toxic - Craft with Confidence, Made in USA, 32 oz., Pack of 1

Shop Mod Podge at the Amazon Arts, Crafts & Sewing store. Free Shipping on eligible items. Save on everyday low prices.

www.amazon.com

You are doing such a wonderful job of researching and buying lovely things for Dusty.

 

[Maz]

I was also going to say you maybe don't need the cork log as well, but a cork bark piece would be nice, for the texture.