New Hamster keeps sleeping and not using the wheel

Neekeay

Neekeay

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I got a hamster yesterday and currently it's evening. He has just slept till now and only came out once in a while for a snack. Im kinda worried so is it normal? he also has burried himself under a platform and keeps sleeping there. He hasn*t used the wheel yet but i know he's aware it's there because he went on it when I put him in for the first time (the wheel is 30cm, i got a goldhamster).

I'd be very thankful for an answer.
 
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Hello and welcome :-) It all sounds perfectly normal :) He's just adjusting to a new environment. It can take them 2 or 3 days just to settle in and usually a couple of weeks to fully adjust and start acting like he owns the place. It's just a bit of time and patience although can be frustrating.

Meanwhile just keep talking to him through the enclosure/cage so he gets familiar with your voice and presence. They can hide away a bit at first and only come out at night. Some of us have a nightcam and you can watch the video on your phone the next day and see what he's been up to during the night.

So they like to burrow or nest somewhere, often sleep till late evening and are awake most of the night. Sometimes they're still up around 6am or 7am.

You can get them into a bit of a routine of waking a bit earlier by putting the food out around 6 or 7pm each day and making a bit of cage noise when you do it and they then get used to getting up at that time for food. But may go back to bed again until later.

He's also probably still a baby so a little bit scared or cautious perhaps. Looking forward to seeing a photo of him :-)
 
Maz said:
Hello and welcome :-) It all sounds perfectly normal :) He's just adjusting to a new environment. It can take them 2 or 3 days just to settle in and usually a couple of weeks to fully adjust and start acting like he owns the place. It's just a bit of time and patience although can be frustrating.

Meanwhile just keep talking to him through the enclosure/cage so he gets familiar with your voice and presence. They can hide away a bit at first and only come out at night. Some of us have a nightcam and you can watch the video on your phone the next day and see what he's been up to during the night.

So they like to burrow or nest somewhere, often sleep till late evening and are awake most of the night. Sometimes they're still up around 6am or 7am.

You can get them into a bit of a routine of waking a bit earlier by putting the food out around 6 or 7pm each day and making a bit of cage noise when you do it and they then get used to getting up at that time for food. But may go back to bed again until later.

He's also probably still a baby so a little bit scared or cautious perhaps. Looking forward to seeing a photo of him :-)
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Firstly, thank you so much for your reply you took some of my worries and yes, he's under 4 months old. Also he doesn't eat that much I still haven't refilled the food yet because it's not empty (2 tablespoons of food the pet store suggested me to use). I'll attach an image of him ^^

PXL_20240820_144117380.jpg

PXL_20240821_162108087.NIGHT.jpg
 
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He's gorgeous :-) A lovely colour too. For Syrians it's best to give a tablespoonful a day. A rounded tablespoon maybe. No they don't eat all of it but they also ignore old food that's left out - they're picky like that. So it's best to put some out every day. I tend to top the bowl up with the tablespoonful the second day and the day after that I chuck anything that's left and put another tablespoonful out. It might sound a bit of a waste but they don't eat a lot and hamster food isn't that expensive. If you just wait till the food is gone it'll probably just sit there. Then he'll get a bit stressed that there's no new food. They like the feeding routine of food being put out daily as well.

They mostly eat from their hoards and only pouch food from the bowl.
 
Maz said:
He's gorgeous :-) A lovely colour too. For Syrians it's best to give a tablespoonful a day. A rounded tablespoon maybe. No they don't eat all of it but they also ignore old food that's left out - they're picky like that. So it's best to put some out every day. I tend to top the bowl up with the tablespoonful the second day and the day after that I chuck anything that's left and put another tablespoonful out. It might sound a bit of a waste but they don't eat a lot and hamster food isn't that expensive. If you just wait till the food is gone it'll probably just sit there. Then he'll get a bit stressed that there's no new food. They like the feeding routine of food being put out daily as well.

They mostly eat from their hoards and only pouch food from the bowl.
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Ah thank you so much! it is kinda late here so i will change it right when i wake up! His name is Nugget (kinda fitting eh?) Thanks again for the help.
 
Ooh that must have been a lovely moment. Onwards and upwards :-)
 
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