New Hamster Help

[Mboyd117]

Hi all,

Starting this thread so I dont pester folks on their own threads with my queries.

We have recently decided to get a Syrian Hamster for our kids and have invested in the Savic Aura 120 cage. It is due to arrive Monday, but little Hammy will need to be in a smaller cage for a couple of days from saturday until Monday (60cm x 40cm).

Everything else is sorted from our Niteangel wheel to food and bedding its just the cage.

Any tips or advice on how to keep her comfy until we get her big home sorted? I will try to have her out in a playpen as much as possible but inevitably she will need to be in a cage overnight.

Thanks in advance.

 

[ilguy]

Hi all,

Starting this thread so I dont pester folks on their own threads with my queries.

We have recently decided to get a Syrian Hamster for our kids and have invested in the Savic Aura 120 cage. It is due to arrive Monday, but little Hammy will need to be in a smaller cage for a couple of days from saturday until Monday (60cm x 40cm).

Everything else is sorted from our Niteangel wheel to food and bedding its just the cage.

Any tips or advice on how to keep her comfy until we get her big home sorted? I will try to have her out in a playpen as much as possible but inevitably she will need to be in a cage overnight.

Thanks in advance.

Are those dimensions right? That's way too small. If that is what you have, get something else from a store asap. Whether it be a tote, box, etc. Girl needs room to sleep and breathe.

Playpen or free roaming time would have been my suggestion to help keep boredom down. Any clutter or toys you can add will help too. Also consider making some special treats, unique foods are enrichment too.

 

[Socks' Mum]

It is quite small, but for only a few days should be OK. She might hide initially and only come out after dark. A few tunnels and some deep bedding should help to provide enrichment. Some shredded kitchen towel might be useful if she wants to build a nest. She might want to assemble a hoard, so putting sunflower seeds and monkey nuts and pumpkin seeds around the cage could help keep her occupied. Any tunnels should be 7cm wide or larger and made of material that can't be chewed up into sharp pieces. No thin plastic. C!oth such as fleece should only be used under supervision as the fibres can be a hazard if they are swallowed.

 

[Socks' Mum]

Its important that if she climbs up the bars, as they often do, that if she lets go and drops straight down, her landing should be on soft bedding. Hamsters are more burrowers than climbers and aren't good at dealing with falls. Platforms should be low so that if they run off the edge, there isn't far to fall or jump.

 

[Maz]

Are those dimensions right? That's way too small. If that is what you have, get something else from a store asap. Whether it be a tote, box, etc. Girl needs room to sleep and breathe.

Playpen or free roaming time would have been my suggestion to help keep boredom down. Any clutter or toys you can add will help too. Also consider making some special treats, unique foods are enrichment too.

They have a Savic Aura cage coming which is 120cm x 64cm She'll just been the smaller cage until that's ready, and that should be fine for a baby hamster for a week or until the cage is set up.

How long have you had her? Sometimes, if they have only just come home and moved into the small cage, it's actually better to leave them in it for two or three weeks before moving them to another cage, as it's a lot of change for a baby hamster to adjust to all at once

Unless of course she is showing signs of stress in the smaller cage, then it would be better to go ahead with the move.

On moving day, it's important not to clean anything in the old cage, and move all the old bedding across as well - obviously it won't go far in a new bigger cage! But you can spread some on the top of the new bedding. This then smells familiar and helps them settle in. Likewise don't clean another items you're planning to move across to the new cage, so they still have her scent. It's tempting to clean things at moving time, but it will be fine for the couple of weeks settling in time she needs in the new cage. A cage move is a bit like when you bring the home - they need 2 or 3 days left alone a bit to adjust, and it can be up to two weeks before they really feel at home in the cage and are more confident.

If she has any nesting area or hoard, also move that across as well - you could maybe put it any new house you have, or just in a similar location to where it was before (ie front left of cage eg).

I think it's more important to have the new cage fully set up before moving even if it takes a little longer So there's no adjustment or changes needed after she moves in.

 

[Mboyd117]

Thanks all.

Im bringing her home on saturday for the first time and we will be around all weekend and will have her out in a playpen as much as possible. I have some empty large plastic storage boxes which I might try and fill with bedding and cover in a mesh or something to give her some more space.

I read a lot of the information here on enrichment and have ordered a decent amount of it to fill her cage with fun from the start. It all arrives Friday except the new bigger cage which won't be here until Monday.

Ill transfer it over as suggested with plenty of familiar scent.

 

[Maz]

I would wait a bit for playpen time. Generally it's best to start slowly with talking to them through the cage the first few days, then offering the odd treat through the bars, and giving them a couple of weeks to adjust to the cage. Unless she shows signs of wanting to come out, like coming to the door or looking desperate to come out. It's fine to wait that couple of weeks and then you could start some playpen/socialising time

 

[Socks' Mum]

It would be good to hamster proof the room she is in as new hamsters can be little Houdinis when it comes to escaping. They can fit under doors if there is a space and into small holes as well as jump surprising heights. Then if she gets out she will be in the room waiting to be picked up, rather than under the fridge.

 

[ilguy]

They have a Savic Aura cage coming which is 120cm x 64cm She'll just been the smaller cage until that's ready, and that should be fine for a baby hamster for a week or until the cage is set up.

How long have you had her? Sometimes, if they have only just come home and moved into the small cage, it's actually better to leave them in it for two or three weeks before moving them to another cage, as it's a lot of change for a baby hamster to adjust to all at once

Unless of course she is showing signs of stress in the smaller cage, then it would be better to go ahead with the move.

On moving day, it's important not to clean anything in the old cage, and move all the old bedding across as well - obviously it won't go far in a new bigger cage! But you can spread some on the top of the new bedding. This then smells familiar and helps them settle in. Likewise don't clean another items you're planning to move across to the new cage, so they still have her scent. It's tempting to clean things at moving time, but it will be fine for the couple of weeks settling in time she needs in the new cage. A cage move is a bit like when you bring the home - they need 2 or 3 days left alone a bit to adjust, and it can be up to two weeks before they really feel at home in the cage and are more confident.

If she has any nesting area or hoard, also move that across as well - you could maybe put it any new house you have, or just in a similar location to where it was before (ie front left of cage eg).

I think it's more important to have the new cage fully set up before moving even if it takes a little longer So there's no adjustment or changes needed after she moves in.

I read the post Maz... 60 cm by 40 cm isn't much bigger than a shoe box which is why I asked if that was correct. That isn't okay for a Syrian until the Aura arrives, even a plastic storage tote from any store will be bigger

 

[Socks' Mum]

I dunno, 60cm x 40cm is about the size of the pet shop cages hereabouts . It's just a little while, a few days and then she will be in a nice Savic with lots of space. I think she'd will be OK for just that tiny bit.

 

[Maz]

I also think she will be ok for a bit. When I first started keeping hamsters, a 60 x 40 cage for a syrian was fairly common and seen as acceptable! Although most people were using 80 x 50 cages. The difference was, people used to give a lot more out of cage time. And now we know better, that it is far too small for a permanent home for a hamster. However some baby hamsters actually do ok in a smaller cage initially. The main issue is it might not fit a big enough wheel. The main thing is that an upgrade will be happening.

There is also the stress element with a baby hamster - too many cage changes can cause health issues and they can be prone to wet-tail - they can be better with stability in a smaller cage for two or three weeks, than being moved to a bin and then another cage change.

If she starts showing stress behaviours in the 60 x 40 cage though - eg bar chewing or climbing, you may need to let her out a lot! And get the new cage set up fairly quickly

 

[Rescued One]

I would wait a bit for playpen time. Generally it's best to start slowly with talking to them through the cage the first few days, then offering the odd treat through the bars, and giving them a couple of weeks to adjust to the cage. Unless she shows signs of wanting to come out, like coming to the door or looking desperate to come out. It's fine to wait that couple of weeks and then you could start some playpen/socialising time

I agree with Maz; my Luna was a baby when I got her and all she wanted to do at first was burrow and hide. It was a good month before she got "explore-y" although she would come out of hiding just as far as she had to to snag a treat. Slow and steady wins the day with babies....

 

[Mboyd117]

The cage is now in my possession and it barely fits the niteangel wheel but I can work with it. When we get her home ill update you all. Thanks again

 

[Socks' Mum]

Sweet, it's an exciting time

 

[Mboyd117]

So here we have the temp cage setup. I have a little house buried and packed full of bedding underneath. I also left some bedding clumped up for digging into.

That's a rosewood naturals nibble woodroll, a couple of hamster safe gnaw toys, niteangel forest mix in the corner with more buried, a little cosy fluffy hideout, water bottle, small foodbowl on the platform and a preformed house under the bedding in the corner for her burrow. I didnt know the tube came with the cage so will see how that goes and make sure it is safe for her to fit. If not ill block it off with perspex or wood. I also have a trixie hammock but I wanted to wash off the factory chemicals before I put it in so its still drying.

I have to get a couple of things from the store when I pick her up but any comments welcomed. What do you guys think? Bedding only 10cm deep so might add more. Ill transfer this all over to the new cage when it arrives along with all the other cool things we ordered.

My niteangel wheel doesn't fit (large) but there is a little tiny wheel here which is maybe 6 or 7 inches. Is it worth putting it in or safer to leave it out? Would two nights in a small wheel be ok?

 

[Maz]

She’ll be fine for a couple of nights. I would take the fluffy hide out though and also leave out the trixie hammock if it’s fabric. It’s not that safe to have fabric items in the cage as they can chew them and pull the wadding out which can lead to digestive blockages or cotton threads can get wrapped round teeth or feet.

The fluffy hide will be nice for out of cage time though . Where you can keep an eye on it. She’ll like that.

The small wheel is very small but it will be fine for a couple of nights.

In the corner where the fluffy hide is, you could maybe put some cardboard inside the bars and pile the bedding up deep in that corner. And it’ll give some cover as well and make it feel less open. If you have some kind of cardboard tube to add as well they like having a tunnel to run through at floor level. A kitchen roll inner tube is fine but you would need to slit it down the length so it expands or they can get stuck. Plus I think some of these kitchen roll inner tubes have got smaller!

 

[Mboyd117]

Thanks a bunch maz ill do all of that. Yeah the hammock is material based



Ill be be able to get some cardboard tubes for sure. Bigger ones from work. Theyre used for storing large drawings so I think they'll be more than big enough.

Ill send photos tomorrow once we get her home

 

[Maz]

Can you send the hammock back for a refund? There is so much unsuitable stuff sold for hamsters unfortunately. The clips holding the fabric are also a bit of a hazard for a hamster getting a foot caught when jumping out. 10 years or so ago there used to be so many hamsters with broken legs from using things like that. Not so much these days. You can get these plastic hammock/sputniks though - but if your new cage is taller that might not work.

They like a lot of cover but it's better at ground level really - eg platforms, large cork logs - something to run through and also climb over.

When you set up the Aura cage you will need a LOT of bedding! At 118cm long and 64cm deep it takes a bit of filling and with that cage you do need the bedding 10" deep - ie to the height of the top of the plastic - otherwise it's too tall for safety. I wouldn't rush to move her in the next two days if she seems ok - it can be better working out the cage set up before moving her.

If you saw the other thread where someone has an Aura cage, although you need a lot of bedding to start with, you then don't use very much for a long time, because with 10" of bedding, you don't need to do a full clean out, you can spot clean mainly or just do partial cleans every 3 months or so (eg one third of the cage at a time).

Do you have some items to fill the new Plaza cage? Basics I think would be a house (a shoebox house would do!), ideally some kind of platform - it's something to sit under, some sprays and ideally a large cork log. A few other hidey places help - eg tissue box hides or any other little houses or hides you have. Coconut huts are popular. If you have a cork log you don't really need a cardboard tunnel as well.

 

[Mboyd117]

Quick update. 24 hours in and her behaviour seems to be normalising. She has started hoarding food in one of the tubes on the cage and this morning we have noticed she has been making a burrow down in the bedding.

Yeaterday we had occasional cage climbing and when she got that way we put her in the playpen so she can do more exploring and use the big wheel which she loved. She has allowed some petting without showing any darting around or fear responses so she seems relatively social.

This morning she seems more content. Movement is a bit slower and more relaxed. Shes comes over to see us and sniff around when we come to the cage to see her and then goes about her business and she's eating and drinking plenty.

I think i have something like 170L of bedding coming for the aura which should be a full fill or close to it. Bedding was like half the price of the cage lol. And yeah we have a few hides and ill get a Cork log and a coconut. They look cool. Where would you recommend getting the sprays from?

 

[Hank]

She is gorgeous