Hamster Central - View Single Post

Pebbles82 · 01-09-2019, 03:19 AM

1. Yes

As you've got well used to having one dwarf hamster I can understand you wanting to have a pair. But if you want to do this it takes a lot of careful thought about cage set up to have the best chance of it working out -and always having to be prepared to separate them and have them in individual cages - so then, if you had a pair, you could end up needing three good sized cages. As said above, once separated they need to stay living alone.

An 80 or 90cm cage is a good size for a pair - big enough to fit two of everything in, but not so big it feels too open and exposed. There are varying thoughts on this and some people find much bigger cages are fine, but they are probably set up with a lot of enrichment (ie hardly any open floor space and filled with tunnels and houses and toys etc).

So a pair would be better than 3 or more because you need a wheel, house, water bottle etc for each of them - and the more you have, the more cages you need if they have to be separated.

The main thing with a pair, is they must be siblings - two brothers or two sisters - that have always lived together. Sometimes a Mother daughter pair or Father son pair - but siblings are best really.

And there must be no levels or shelves in the cage - as well as 2 or 3 of everything. Hamsters are by nature territorial and will claim a territory for themselves - so for example a shelf could be claimed as their own territory and fighting break out.

Likewise a house, or a wheel or a tunnel - which is why you need more than one of everything and tunnels need to be large enough that both can easily fit in at the same time (or one can guard the entrance and get territorial).

So at least two houses and houses need to have more than one entrance - so one can get out if the other one blocks the door. You can buy houses like that but the easiest way is to make one out of a cardboard tissue box/shoe box and cut doors in - 2 or 3 doors and one on top maybe.

They may snuggle up together, sleep together and only use one wheel or house but they need one each so they can always have a place to go if necessary so they don't fight over something.

Wheels - I've seen it recommended that if you have 3 wheels it's good. At least 2 though. And one of those wheels syrian sized so it's easy for them to run together i the same wheel. So a good combination would be an 8" open wheel, an 11" open wheel and a 6.5" flying saucer. Open wheels are better for pairs so they can get in and out easily without hurting themselves or getting trapped when they both try and get in and out (as opposed to the closed front wheels with the holes in).

They can then use them separately and together and have variety.

Larger tunnels like rat sized tubes will be big enough so they don't block an entrance.

They may live together well for some time and then fall out, which does happen often - especially when their hormones kick in as they grow up.

But there are people who have managed to keep a pair together for life. The cage set up is important. Two water bottles as well - and maybe scatter feed instead of using food bowls, but if you do use food bowls you need two of those as well.

Even to the point of not taking one out of the cage without the other one - always take them out together - or in a short time, the one left in the cage can get territorial and not accept the other one back.

Any signs of squabbling needs to be watched carefully as it can quickly develop into a fight and the fights can cause terrible injuries and maiming or death. And they may happen when you're not there or overnight. So at any sign of squabbling, monitor carefully and if it doesn't stop, then separate them.

You also need to watch out for bullying - if one starts to seem more dominant and the other hide away more, or one gets fatter and the other gets smaller (the fat one will be taking all the food and seeing the other one off!).

Cagewise for a pair, if you like the tank style, I think the maxi duna multy is good. Bin cage - agree with Cypher that the 145l rub bin is good (not too big, not too small).

Personally I prefer cages with front access. The hamster heaven (80 x 50) with all the tubes etc removed and blocked off, is good and plastic platforms etc removed. It may get a bit full with 2 or 3 wheels and a couple of multi entrance houses though.

01-09-2019, 03:19 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: new hamster ? in same room 1. Yes As you've got well used to having one dwarf hamster I can understand you wanting to have a pair. But if you want to do this it takes a lot of careful thought about cage set up to have the best chance of it working out -and always having to be prepared to separate them and have them in individual cages - so then, if you had a pair, you could end up needing three good sized cages. As said above, once separated they need to stay living alone. An 80 or 90cm cage is a good size for a pair - big enough to fit two of everything in, but not so big it feels too open and exposed. There are varying thoughts on this and some people find much bigger cages are fine, but they are probably set up with a lot of enrichment (ie hardly any open floor space and filled with tunnels and houses and toys etc). So a pair would be better than 3 or more because you need a wheel, house, water bottle etc for each of them - and the more you have, the more cages you need if they have to be separated. The main thing with a pair, is they must be siblings - two brothers or two sisters - that have always lived together. Sometimes a Mother daughter pair or Father son pair - but siblings are best really. And there must be no levels or shelves in the cage - as well as 2 or 3 of everything. Hamsters are by nature territorial and will claim a territory for themselves - so for example a shelf could be claimed as their own territory and fighting break out. Likewise a house, or a wheel or a tunnel - which is why you need more than one of everything and tunnels need to be large enough that both can easily fit in at the same time (or one can guard the entrance and get territorial). So at least two houses and houses need to have more than one entrance - so one can get out if the other one blocks the door. You can buy houses like that but the easiest way is to make one out of a cardboard tissue box/shoe box and cut doors in - 2 or 3 doors and one on top maybe. They may snuggle up together, sleep together and only use one wheel or house but they need one each so they can always have a place to go if necessary so they don't fight over something. Wheels - I've seen it recommended that if you have 3 wheels it's good. At least 2 though. And one of those wheels syrian sized so it's easy for them to run together i the same wheel. So a good combination would be an 8" open wheel, an 11" open wheel and a 6.5" flying saucer. Open wheels are better for pairs so they can get in and out easily without hurting themselves or getting trapped when they both try and get in and out (as opposed to the closed front wheels with the holes in). They can then use them separately and together and have variety. Larger tunnels like rat sized tubes will be big enough so they don't block an entrance. They may live together well for some time and then fall out, which does happen often - especially when their hormones kick in as they grow up. But there are people who have managed to keep a pair together for life. The cage set up is important. Two water bottles as well - and maybe scatter feed instead of using food bowls, but if you do use food bowls you need two of those as well. Even to the point of not taking one out of the cage without the other one - always take them out together - or in a short time, the one left in the cage can get territorial and not accept the other one back. Any signs of squabbling needs to be watched carefully as it can quickly develop into a fight and the fights can cause terrible injuries and maiming or death. And they may happen when you're not there or overnight. So at any sign of squabbling, monitor carefully and if it doesn't stop, then separate them. You also need to watch out for bullying - if one starts to seem more dominant and the other hide away more, or one gets fatter and the other gets smaller (the fat one will be taking all the food and seeing the other one off!). Cagewise for a pair, if you like the tank style, I think the maxi duna multy is good. Bin cage - agree with Cypher that the 145l rub bin is good (not too big, not too small). Personally I prefer cages with front access. The hamster heaven (80 x 50) with all the tubes etc removed and blocked off, is good and plastic platforms etc removed. It may get a bit full with 2 or 3 wheels and a couple of multi entrance houses though.