Hamster Central - View Single Post

racinghamster · 03-04-2018, 06:30 AM

Having kept mice, hamsters and gerbils in my past, I prefer tank-style caging now. Barred cages (if you can find the ones with the very narrowest bars) are the best cages for mice as mice are (a) good climbers and (b) require better ventilation due to their tendency for respiratory ailments.

Hamsters and gerbils on the other hand are ground dwellers by nature, so the Maxi Duna Multi type that Serendipity linked to would be my choice, or something along the same lines. The Zoozone 1 is 100cm in length and adequate for all species of hamster. The grill on the top however would require meshing for a Syrian, but dwarf hamsters (I`ve kept both Roborovski and Russian dwarf) in a Gabber Rex tank without adding the grill and never felt it was needed. I did make a wooden frame with mesh to fit this cage when I kept a Chinese hamster in it as Chinese hamsters are very mouse-like and good climbers!

The main dangers for me with barred cages are tooth breakages/injuries and falls from climbing. Having two liabilities waiting to happen are enough for me to choose the tank-style caging all day long. So the breeders who won`t sell to people who do use barred cages do have their animals welfare in mind. I can understand their logic.

03-04-2018, 06:30 AM
racinghamster PM Fluffy for custom title Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Central Scotland Posts: 13,415	Re: Barred cages is not allowed Having kept mice, hamsters and gerbils in my past, I prefer tank-style caging now. Barred cages (if you can find the ones with the very narrowest bars) are the best cages for mice as mice are (a) good climbers and (b) require better ventilation due to their tendency for respiratory ailments. Hamsters and gerbils on the other hand are ground dwellers by nature, so the Maxi Duna Multi type that Serendipity linked to would be my choice, or something along the same lines. The Zoozone 1 is 100cm in length and adequate for all species of hamster. The grill on the top however would require meshing for a Syrian, but dwarf hamsters (I`ve kept both Roborovski and Russian dwarf) in a Gabber Rex tank without adding the grill and never felt it was needed. I did make a wooden frame with mesh to fit this cage when I kept a Chinese hamster in it as Chinese hamsters are very mouse-like and good climbers! The main dangers for me with barred cages are tooth breakages/injuries and falls from climbing. Having two liabilities waiting to happen are enough for me to choose the tank-style caging all day long. So the breeders who won`t sell to people who do use barred cages do have their animals welfare in mind. I can understand their logic. __________________ Get A Life, Get A Rodent!