Hello from Wally the yellow-haired Syrian and family

[Hamster Haven]

Hello everyone! I am excited to join the community. I owned hamsters when I was younger, but did not have any for decades. Now, when my daughter turned 8, Wally has become our first family pet.

Wally is about 3 months old at this point. We got him when he was about 2 months old from an ethical breeder in Illinois. Wally is very soft and sweet, but taming him has been a bit more of a journey than with the hamsters I owned when I was younger. I think that one reason for this may be that I have a much better cage for him than I had for my hammies in the 90s, because I know better now. I probably have about 7 inches of bedding consistently around the NiteAngel cage, which is great for him, but this also provides him plenty of cover for burrowing and staying hidden until late at night! He has developed a very comfortable (for him) nocturnal schedule, which has made the taming process challenging since it is wholly when we are sleeping.

He will take food from our hands, allow himself to be pet while eating, and voluntarily climb into a transportation container to be brought to a playpen or bathtub, but when it comes to being picked up or held, he is still looking to wriggle away as quickly as he can. The sleep schedule has also made it problematic because we can only take him out earlier in the evening if we luck out and he gets up for a quick drink of water while we are up. SO, we currently are only able to take him out for playpen/ bathtub bonding a couple of times a week. I will usually try to hand-feed him in his cage when I get up for work and pet him while he is eating or stuffing his food. I have noticed what I would call some progress recently- after our play sessions he doesn't always go back into his burrow or for a covered place. It seems like he feels fine to putter about in this cage for awhile. He will also sometimes put paws onto my hand on his own to get food, though he still resists completely climbing in. I'm thinking of reducing some of the bedding throughout the cage (not where he sleeps) to perhaps help if we need to try to gently wake him for spot cleaning or to get in a taming session- not what I really want to do, but I'm feeling a little tired and desperate- any suggestions would be welcomed! I know that I may not be able to change his sleep patterns, but any small changes to be able to increase his comfort with us would be welcomed! I read the "taming" article Maz posted and that was an encouraging read.

 

[RainbowBrite]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Wally is beautiful!
To me Wally sounds a very happy and healthy hamster. Hamsters do come out late as they are crespular. I would not reduce his bedding.

Hamsters are not really cuddly and many dislike being touched and prefer to come out to play with the use of a tunnel or cup so they are not physically touched.

I have a camera so I can find out what my hamster gets up to and that can be a really nice way to see what they get up to.

Wally taking food from your hand, allowing you to pet him and even putting his paw on you is fantastic. This shows he is comfortable with you.

 

[Maz]

Hello and welcome to the forum! He is absolutely gorgeous! So fluffy! I can see a Christmas photo winner coming up in 2023 lol! I know the problem with them sleeping late. Our Syrian is the same at the moment. He used to be up about 8 or 9pm until the dark cold nights came along. Also he may still be a bit shy at the moment.

What you can do, especially if it's a child's pet, is get them in a routine of being woken up early evening for feeding time. They soon get used to it. So maybe around 7pm to 8pm? Depending when you eat. Or earlier maybe. They vary but our first syrian had a highly active phase if got out around 5 or 6pm, but was more laid back and dopey between 8pm and 10pm and a bit easier to handle and tame then. After 10pm he was in night time zippy "run away" mode.

So you just make a bit of cage noise when you're putting food out at whatever time you choose so it wakes him up. I also find scattering a few treats helps, (like pumpkin seeds) and also putting the little bit of daily veg on a separate dish quite a distance from his house. That way they actually have to get up and go across the cage to get the veg (which they seem to look forward to every day). Cucumber and broccoli are popular here.

Then when he gets used to waking up knowing it's food time you can get him out in whatever transporter you're using. If it's a tube or jug, put a smelly treat inside (cucumber or a tiny bit of hard cheese maybe) then lift him out when he walks in to get it.

Yes I'd maybe stick to bathtub or playpen taming 2 or 3 times a week maximum at the moment. They can get a bit overwhelmed with more.

They vary so much in personality. Some male Syrians are very dozy and laid back and happy to sit and be stroked for a while - our first one was like that. Some will never sit still but you can still pick them up and interact with them, which is the main thing. And when they're really tame they might even respond to their name.

Our first Syrian was what you might call cuddly as he'd go to sleep on your knee under a blanket But only if it was between 8pm and 10pm! So sometimes it's getting to know their fast and slow times of day.

 

[Maz]

Re the bedding. I would also leave it. He may be hiding away a bit at the moment but he'll soon grow in confidence.

 

[elusive]

Hi & welcome to the forum.
Wally really is a handsome little guy!
Great advice from the others & I can’t add to that, I agree about the bedding, they do need the deep bedding to feel secure & to allow for natural behaviour so removing may actually decrease his confidence.
I’ve found that making a gentle noise when feeding can help encourage them out if they get a nice treat or some tasty fresh veg they can soon learn that it’s a positive thing & begin to come out more readily.
He’s still quite young & it can take time & patience but going at their pace usually pays off.

 

[Hamster Haven]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Wally is beautiful!
To me Wally sounds a very happy and healthy hamster. Hamsters do come out late as they are crespular. I would not reduce his bedding.

Hamsters are not really cuddly and many dislike being touched and prefer to come out to play with the use of a tunnel or cup so they are not physically touched.

I have a camera so I can find out what my hamster gets up to and that can be a really nice way to see what they get up to.

Wally taking food from your hand, allowing you to pet him and even putting his paw on you is fantastic. This shows he is comfortable with you.

Thank you! It is encouraging to hear that reinforcement. My instincts have been to keep things the same because he seems happy and healthy, even if a little timid (which, as you point out is probably more normal than not for a hamster). I actually had just read a post yesterday about a camera and was thinking that that could be a fun addition for us to be able to see what he is up to when we're asleep!

 

[Member ID2]

Hello and welcome to the forum!

Wally is stunning. What a beautiful hamster. His habitat sounds lovely as well.

Their behaviours and routines depend a lot on personality i think. Like humans, all hamsters are different.

I had a Syrian who wanted out of cage time once every two weeks but our current boys are waiting by their doors at 19.00 every evening. They don't want cuddles, they want to freeroam and explore. In separate playareas of course.

I understand that things can get tricky when a child looks forward to pet the family hamster because not many hamsters keep the same waking and sleeping times as a child.

I'd try to tempt him out with fresh food at the same time every evening but i wouldn't reduce the bedding either.

Installing a night camera as suggested by RainbowBrite would be a fun way for your child to observe Wally on days when he doesn't want to get up early.

 

[Hamster Haven]

Hello and welcome to the forum! He is absolutely gorgeous! So fluffy! I can see a Christmas photo winner coming up in 2023 lol! I know the problem with them sleeping late. Our Syrian is the same at the moment. He used to be up about 8 or 9pm until the dark cold nights came along. Also he may still be a bit shy at the moment.

What you can do, especially if it's a child's pet, is get them in a routine of being woken up early evening for feeding time. They soon get used to it. So maybe around 7pm to 8pm? Depending when you eat. Or earlier maybe. They vary but our first syrian had a highly active phase if got out around 5 or 6pm, but was more laid back and dopey between 8pm and 10pm and a bit easier to handle and tame then. After 10pm he was in night time zippy "run away" mode.

So you just make a bit of cage noise when you're putting food out at whatever time you choose so it wakes him up. I also find scattering a few treats helps, (like pumpkin seeds) and also putting the little bit of daily veg on a separate dish quite a distance from his house. That way they actually have to get up and go across the cage to get the veg (which they seem to look forward to every day). Cucumber and broccoli are popular here.

Then when he gets used to waking up knowing it's food time you can get him out in whatever transporter you're using. If it's a tube or jug, put a smelly treat inside (cucumber or a tiny bit of hard cheese maybe) then lift him out when he walks in to get it.

Yes I'd maybe stick to bathtub or playpen taming 2 or 3 times a week maximum at the moment. They can get a bit overwhelmed with more.

They vary so much in personality. Some male Syrians are very dozy and laid back and happy to sit and be stroked for a while - our first one was like that. Some will never sit still but you can still pick them up and interact with them, which is the main thing. And when they're really tame they might even respond to their name.

Our first Syrian was what you might call cuddly as he'd go to sleep on your knee under a blanket But only if it was between 8pm and 10pm! So sometimes it's getting to know their fast and slow times of day.

Thanks! These are great ideas to try! Luckily, my daughter believes he is the most wonderful creature in the world, even if she doesn't see him come out for days at a time It's nice to hear multiple people reinforcing to keep the bedding, too, because I was feeling really good about the research we'd done there and trying to provide enough, but then self-doubt started to creep in.

 

[Member ID2]

Meant to say. This is such a beautiful photo of your daughter and Wally.

 

[Zara]

Hi and welcome, Wally is gorgeous, so fluffy and what a fabulous colour! Sounds to me like the taming process is going really well I’d just ditto the others and agree that perhaps if you try and feed a little earlier in the evening, he may be inquisitive and pop out to see you and in time become interested in coming out for a short while at an earlier time slot.

 

[Maz]

There are many different views on how hamsters like to behave as well, and it really does come down to personality. A hamster that is really tame is quite happy pootling around on a bed or sofa sometimes. They might like to free roam but we had one that just used to sit in the corner looking bored! The first hamster I had (wasn't mine it was a bf's) was never tamed - we didn't know about taming then. But he did free roam - and yes he enjoyed it because he was wild basically! A tame hamster can also enjoy it. In some cases you can get a really close bond with a hamster and then the bond is more about them wanting you to be there whatever they're doing. You become Mummy! I've only had that close a bond with one hamster so far.

 

[Maz]

As for his colouring - I am not an expert on pedigree colourings but he looks like a Cinnamon (long haired). Or possibly apricot (official colours) - the breeder should know

 

[Coco61]

Hello and welcome here. It’s a great forum to find out all you want and chat too.
Wally is a stunning hamster, what a beauty and your daughter looks as though she is getting on well with handling him.

 

[Hamster Haven]

As for his colouring - I am not an expert on pedigree colourings but he looks like a Cinnamon (long haired). Or possibly apricot (official colours) - the breeder should know

I'll have to follow up on that because I'm curious, too. Half the time I forget how ginger-y he really is until he comes out.

 

[Maz]

If he's gingery he's probably a cinnamon But sometimes a cream hamster can look quite orangey as well! Cream can be a misnoma. His eye colour will help decide. Cinnamon hamsters have red eyes - not always noticeably red - a kind of claret red colour. I can't tell from the photo. Cream hamsters can have either red or black eyes. No idea about apricot colour eyes!

 

[Tulsi]

Wally is really gorgeous. I wonder what his official colour will turn out to be.