Meet My Winter White, Cornelius <3

[strawberrypoo]

I got him August 29th, 2025. He is the light of my life, and I care for him deeply. He has a vet appointment September 22nd, and I've been leaving him alone for the most part. Besides spot cleaning and scatter-feeding him. I would love some bonding tips for this little guy. By the way, his full name is Cornelius Nathanial Crumb.

 

[Maz]

Hello and welcome He's adorable - they steal our hearts don't they? Just curious why he has a vet appointment? If he seems well and healthy, they don't need an initial vet check, and in fact it can stress them when they're just settling in.

 

[Maz]

By the way I LOVE his name What was the inspiration?

 

[strawberrypoo]

Hello and welcome He's adorable - they steal our hearts don't they? Just curious why he has a vet appointment? If he seems well and healthy, they don't need an initial vet check, and in fact it can stress them when they're just settling in.

Hello! Thank you for the warm welcome. I got him into a vet just so he has a vet to go to in case of emergency, get him on record with an initial wellness check. I thought it would be good to get it out of the way. I wasn't thinking of taking him routinely just to get him situated.

Lol. His name just came to me. Initially I was just gonna name him, Crumb, but I felt like Cornelius had a better ring to it.

 

[Maz]

We had one that ended up with four names when my stepson was younger - just to keep everyone happy. It ended up being Newton something something something AKA Newtus Hamsterus - Newt for short.

Do you actually need to do a vet visit to have him registered with one? Where I am, I can just register with a vet and just take the hamster if needed. At one time people used to recommend wellness checks (depending on where you got the hamster from) but it isn't really necessary. However it is up to you and maybe it's a requirement to register where you are? It may set back taming a bit.

 

[strawberrypoo]

Newtus Hamsterus lol. That's very clever. There's just something about giving pets long, prestigious names. I wonder if its their short lives, and trying to make them as remembered as possible.

 

[Maz]

We had one that ended up with four names when my stepson was younger - just to keep everyone happy. It ended up being Newton something something something AKA Newtus Hamsterus - Newt for short.

Do you actually need to do a vet visit to have him registered with one? Where I am, I can just register with a vet and just take the hamster if needed. At one time people used to recommend wellness checks (depending on where you got the hamster from) but it isn't really necessary. However it is up to you and maybe it's a requirement to register where you are? It may set back taming a bit.

I think we posted at the same time, and I edited my previous post and added a bit, which you might have missed

 

[strawberrypoo]

There are only three exotic vets in my area, and the three of them offer wellness checks by appointment. I didn't see anywhere that they allowed just a sign up. I think they need a patient record. I live in the Upstate NY area. Btw, this is my first hamster and pet. So, I feel like I'm being a bit of hypochondriac. But I know dwarfs can contract diabetes and have raspatory problems. I don't know how he was fairing at Pet's Smart, so I just want to make sure he's good and go from there with a vet I'm closest to.

But so far, he's been active during noon. I read to him yesterday while he shoved seeds an pellet in his cheeks. He didn't seem bothered by my voice. I accidently spooked him because I was fixing his wheel stand. He's made a burrow behind his wheel and ceramic hide stand. He came out and looked at me, like, "What?" then he darted back underneath the wheel stand. I felt so bad lol.

 

[ilguy]

So good to so see another dwarf ham on here. He's definitely got extra Campbell in him, pretty coloring and mousey ears! Can't wait to see what he gets up to

 

[strawberrypoo]

Aw, thank you! He's very cute, isn't he? I was shocked when I saw his cinnamon eyes. He wasn't out when the store associate got him. I thought for sure he'd have boba ball eyes. I love him dearly. Btw, your hamsters are really cute! Also, do you have any advice you're willing to share from your experience with dwarfs? I'm a new hamster mom and am willing to get all the advice from experienced hamster parents.

 

[ilguy]

Aw, thank you! He's very cute, isn't he? I was shocked when I saw his cinnamon eyes. He wasn't out when the store associate got him. I thought for sure he'd have boba ball eyes. I love him dearly. Btw, your hamsters are really cute! Also, do you have any advice you're willing to share from your experience with dwarfs? I'm a new hamster mom and am willing to get all the advice from experienced hamster parents.

He's very pretty, reminds me of the cinnamon toast crunch cereal in a good way. I think you're already doing a great job letting him settle in, that's the hardest thing to do as a new owner and most common hurdle.

Whenever you're in doubt, less is more when it comes to hams. Make sure not to over clean, you do want to spot clean daily but leave unsoiled bedding and the burrows alone as long as possible. If there's a noticeable odor coming from one then it's time to clean it. They navigate mostly by smell, and need to get their environment marked with their scent. It's stressful if they have to re scent and dig all over again.

For bonding, other than getting them to take treats from you a few tricks that might help:

-Rub your hands gently in some bedding near their burrow and place a treat on it. Helps associate you with food
-Hamsters are territorial, some don't like you being in their enclosure at all. You can use a mug or 'hamster taxi' to transport them to a neutral area, it can make all the difference.
-Toys that have some level of indirect interaction help deepen a bond once they're used to you. My little guy loves his forage board, they learn fast you're the one setting it up and will associate you with fun in addition to food

Everyone here is more than happy to help, you will get tons of great advice and every ham is unique.

 

[strawberrypoo]

He's very pretty, reminds me of the cinnamon toast crunch cereal in a good way. I think you're already doing a great job letting him settle in, that's the hardest thing to do as a new owner and most common hurdle.

Whenever you're in doubt, less is more when it comes to hams. Make sure not to over clean, you do want to spot clean daily but leave unsoiled bedding and the burrows alone as long as possible. If there's a noticeable odor coming from one then it's time to clean it. They navigate mostly by smell, and need to get their environment marked with their scent. It's stressful if they have to re scent and dig all over again.

For bonding, other than getting them to take treats from you a few tricks that might help:

-Rub your hands gently in some bedding near their burrow and place a treat on it. Helps associate you with food
-Hamsters are territorial, some don't like you being in their enclosure at all. You can use a mug or 'hamster taxi' to transport them to a neutral area, it can make all the difference.
-Toys that have some level of indirect interaction help deepen a bond once they're used to you. My little guy loves his forage board, they learn fast you're the one setting it up and will associate you with fun in addition to food

Everyone here is more than happy to help, you will get tons of great advice and every ham is unique.

Thank you for the advice, it's seriously very helpful to me so I appreciate it a lot. I did use the hamster taxi once. Today actually, when he was active. I left his burrows alone since I got him. So, five days. But I do think he was peeing near his burrows. He did get in the mug, and I placed him in his carrier. I felt so bad when I saw his scratching at it. I don't know if it was long enough, but I know urine-soaked bedding should be cleaned out. Hopefully he can forgive me.

 

[Socks' Mum]

Welcome to the forum Cornelius, you are very handsome. You've got a lovely home