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Pebbles82 · 06-03-2019, 03:04 AM

The Barney cage comes with just about everything you need except a few toys

You don't need that many really - just the odd tunnel and hidey place and you can make them - eg pringles tubes (washed out of course), cardboard egg boxes etc. I had quite a few things accumulated from our last syrian. I do like the hanging rat sputniks though (like a plastic hammock) - they are somewhere to sit and also something to sit under, so like another mini shelf/hide really. They work best next to a shelf so the hamster can get in easily.

The only real toys they seem to enjoy, in my opinion are tunnels or hidey places. Yes they do need substrate area to dig on and move around on, but a tunnel (like the large cork one in my cage) is just a kind of shelter over the substrate and they can still run through.

What they do sometimes need, depending on the personality of the hamster, is a bit of overhead cover. They can feel quite exposed if there is a large open space of substrate and nowhere to dive into for safety! And the same if there is a large open space above.

The Barney has a nice shelf (something to hide under/sit under if they want but also to sit on, which they like doing at wash time sometimes), and a it has a nice big house for nesting. A floor tunnel and one or two other items would be fine

They also need a chew stick to keep their teeth worn down.

Mine definitely aren't creative ha ha. I just hung things over the places where the hamster went and always feel a bit frustrated that everything seems a bit symmetrical in our hamster's cage! It can be a fiddle, so can be good to keep it simple - and you can guage whether the hamster approves.

So - the fiddly bit is ensuring everything works - and in particular "access" - sometimes you see very creative cages but the hamster can't access something or reach it because there is no way up to it eg - and if that happens to be the water bottle or food that isn't good.

The Barney sorts most of that out for you - ramp up to the shelf (I don't use it but most people do) and that takes up a fair bit of space so you wouldn't need a lot more at floor level.

The shelf is good for putting a food bowl on so it doesn't get full of substrate. I also have my (mouse sized) water bottle over the shelf so any drips don't make the substrate soggy. Putting something under the water bottle to help keep their nails getting too long, can be a good idea and helps soak up any drips too. Something like a terracotta plant pot base is fine or the rough side of a ceramic tile eg. So every time they go for a drink it wears their nails a bit.

But everyone's cage is different and hamsters have different personalites and like different things. A nervy hamster will need more things to hide in or under so they move around the cage without feeling too exposed. A more gung ho hamster won't be bothered.

They do like to dig and build mountains out of the substrate sometimes and move it around. Our hamster piles it round the outside of his house in winter, for insulation? Or to hide a hoard.

So yes the wheel is mainly for running/exercise - the other items are for variety or "enrichment" - places to go, things to do, so it's interesting and they don't get bored.

But their basic instincts and behaviours are nesting, hoarding, foraging, grooming, running - and escaping! I've found with that size cage they don't usually try and escape.

Some behaviours are to tell you something and get your attention - eg if the wheel is stuck and not turning, or the water bottle has emptied itself, so any frantic behaviour can be a sign to check things are ok in the cage.

So you don't need a lot of toys etc or to spend a lot. One thing I think is worth investing in though is a litter tray/potty as they will use one and it helps keep the cage clean and dry so you don't need to clean out very often (clean outs do stress them so partial cleans are better - eg spot cleaning the substrate if necessary mostly and only changing the substrate after 6 to 8 weeks or even longer if it's clean and dry - and not cleaning everything at the same time, so something always smells familiar and they still feel at home - eg wheel a different week to substrate and any toys etc a different week again - so as and when needed).

I get this litter tray which works well in a corner - they often choose a corner of the cage as a toilet so when you find out where he is peeing, spot clean that area a bit (ie take out a handful or so of soiled substrate and add a handful of new) and put the toilet there with chinchilla bathing sand in (soaks up the pee). The first time, put a tiny bit of the pee'd on substrate on top of the sand so they know it is still their toilet area.

They are very clean little things really. Ours pees in the very back corner of his toilet and sits in the front part to have a wash when he wakes up. Then you just empty the litter tray out every few days and put more sand in. I easily go 3 to 4 months without needing to change the substrate, with a litter tray and the odd bit of spot cleaning. The base stays clean and dry if you have 4 to 5" deep substrate. So it takes a lot of substrate to start with but ends up working out cheaper in the long run.

So getting a litter tray is worth investing in

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trixie-Corn...gateway&sr=8-9

The sand needs to be Chinchilla Bathing sand. Or some people use childrens play sand from Argos which is sterilised. A tub of the Chinchilla bathing sand lasts me ages.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Supreme-Pet...gateway&sr=8-2

Some people also waterproof the wood shelf and the inside of the house by painting them with plasti-kote enamel paint, which is pet-safe, virtually odourless and water based. I have never had the shelf pee'd on but I do paint it just in case, so it's wipe clean. It is a good idea to paint the inside of the house as occasionally they can have an accident and pee inside the house and then it gets stinky. Or you can just give it a scrub under a tap to clean it if you don't want to bother with painting, but it might need having to replace the house eventually. Annoyingly you can't get replacements for the shelf and same house but there are plenty of other houses.

This is the plastikote. It does come in different colours if that appeals! Two coats makes it waterproofed and wipe clean. I do one coat and the second coat the next morning - it dries in a few hours if the coat is thin.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The extra tunnels etc at roof level are a bonus for variety but not essential

Some people have amazingly creative cages - mine tend to be more practical and look a bit mish mash ha ha.

The most important thing really is to have everything set up before moving the hamster in, so you don't need to move things or make any changes - at least for the first couple of weeks while they're settling in. And you can guage what they like or have a problem with at that time. They usually like a large tube or tunnel (rat sized ones are best for syrians as the hamster sized things are often only big enough for dwarf hamsters - a syrian with full pouches can be 6cm wide or more!).

After they're in the cage, adding the odd new thing is fine and usually well accepted. What they don't like is things being moved around or taken away! Sometimes it's necessary but best avoided.

They scent mark their cages in the first few days/week - so they claim the items as theirs and also it provides a scent trail to find their way around as they really don't see well. Which is why removing all their scent can stress them and make them feel a bit lost. Hence the partial cleaning.

Don't worry about poops unless they start taking over and then spot clean a bit. Their poops are like little seeds and not dirty or smelly. They will sometimes eat them. This is normal - they have two stomachs and can redigest nutrients and vitamins from their poops - they may even have a little hoard of poops somewhere for emergency food supplies!

Food - not sure which one you use but you can't go wrong with Tiny Friends Harry Hamster as a basic mix. It contains everything needed and is sugar free. They need at least 18% protein which that mix has.

Apart from that, a tiny bit of veg each day is good. Initially every 3 days so their stomachs adjust to the veg, then after a week or so every day. Broccoli, carrot, cucumber etc are fine and the ones I tend to have in the fridge. But there are a lot more - there is a list of safe fruit and veg on here. Things to avoid are citrus fruits, tomato, onion, spices etc. And apple pips (poisonous).

Just a tiny piece of veg - about 1cm cubed size (doesn't have to be square though!). They tend to eat it straight away rather than hoard it.

They like any fresh food as a treat - eg a little piece of apple or banana or half a shelled walnut or pecan nut will be snaffled up.

Best to leave nests and hoards alone as they are very precious about those. Unless they are pee'd on and have to be removed, but then try and leave a bit of the old nest behind and and add a big pile of torn up strips of plain white toilet paper in the cage somewhere (not in the house) and they take those to rebuild the nest. If hoard has to be removed it's important to replace it with new food in exactly the same place. If their hoards are removed they can start peeing on them to deter thieves! Which leads to a catch 22 type thing.

I find the hoards stay clean and dry until it's time to do the substrate and I prune it a bit then as the lower part of the hoard can go a bit stale, but dried food tends to last quite a long time hoarded.

Sorry that is probably far too much information all at once.

But the key is - enough enrichment, avoid cleaning out too much, variety, and not stressing them!

06-03-2019, 03:04 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Behaviour change after an escape The Barney cage comes with just about everything you need except a few toys You don't need that many really - just the odd tunnel and hidey place and you can make them - eg pringles tubes (washed out of course), cardboard egg boxes etc. I had quite a few things accumulated from our last syrian. I do like the hanging rat sputniks though (like a plastic hammock) - they are somewhere to sit and also something to sit under, so like another mini shelf/hide really. They work best next to a shelf so the hamster can get in easily. The only real toys they seem to enjoy, in my opinion are tunnels or hidey places. Yes they do need substrate area to dig on and move around on, but a tunnel (like the large cork one in my cage) is just a kind of shelter over the substrate and they can still run through. What they do sometimes need, depending on the personality of the hamster, is a bit of overhead cover. They can feel quite exposed if there is a large open space of substrate and nowhere to dive into for safety! And the same if there is a large open space above. The Barney has a nice shelf (something to hide under/sit under if they want but also to sit on, which they like doing at wash time sometimes), and a it has a nice big house for nesting. A floor tunnel and one or two other items would be fine They also need a chew stick to keep their teeth worn down. Mine definitely aren't creative ha ha. I just hung things over the places where the hamster went and always feel a bit frustrated that everything seems a bit symmetrical in our hamster's cage! It can be a fiddle, so can be good to keep it simple - and you can guage whether the hamster approves. So - the fiddly bit is ensuring everything works - and in particular "access" - sometimes you see very creative cages but the hamster can't access something or reach it because there is no way up to it eg - and if that happens to be the water bottle or food that isn't good. The Barney sorts most of that out for you - ramp up to the shelf (I don't use it but most people do) and that takes up a fair bit of space so you wouldn't need a lot more at floor level. The shelf is good for putting a food bowl on so it doesn't get full of substrate. I also have my (mouse sized) water bottle over the shelf so any drips don't make the substrate soggy. Putting something under the water bottle to help keep their nails getting too long, can be a good idea and helps soak up any drips too. Something like a terracotta plant pot base is fine or the rough side of a ceramic tile eg. So every time they go for a drink it wears their nails a bit. But everyone's cage is different and hamsters have different personalites and like different things. A nervy hamster will need more things to hide in or under so they move around the cage without feeling too exposed. A more gung ho hamster won't be bothered. They do like to dig and build mountains out of the substrate sometimes and move it around. Our hamster piles it round the outside of his house in winter, for insulation? Or to hide a hoard. So yes the wheel is mainly for running/exercise - the other items are for variety or "enrichment" - places to go, things to do, so it's interesting and they don't get bored. But their basic instincts and behaviours are nesting, hoarding, foraging, grooming, running - and escaping! I've found with that size cage they don't usually try and escape. Some behaviours are to tell you something and get your attention - eg if the wheel is stuck and not turning, or the water bottle has emptied itself, so any frantic behaviour can be a sign to check things are ok in the cage. So you don't need a lot of toys etc or to spend a lot. One thing I think is worth investing in though is a litter tray/potty as they will use one and it helps keep the cage clean and dry so you don't need to clean out very often (clean outs do stress them so partial cleans are better - eg spot cleaning the substrate if necessary mostly and only changing the substrate after 6 to 8 weeks or even longer if it's clean and dry - and not cleaning everything at the same time, so something always smells familiar and they still feel at home - eg wheel a different week to substrate and any toys etc a different week again - so as and when needed). I get this litter tray which works well in a corner - they often choose a corner of the cage as a toilet so when you find out where he is peeing, spot clean that area a bit (ie take out a handful or so of soiled substrate and add a handful of new) and put the toilet there with chinchilla bathing sand in (soaks up the pee). The first time, put a tiny bit of the pee'd on substrate on top of the sand so they know it is still their toilet area. They are very clean little things really. Ours pees in the very back corner of his toilet and sits in the front part to have a wash when he wakes up. Then you just empty the litter tray out every few days and put more sand in. I easily go 3 to 4 months without needing to change the substrate, with a litter tray and the odd bit of spot cleaning. The base stays clean and dry if you have 4 to 5" deep substrate. So it takes a lot of substrate to start with but ends up working out cheaper in the long run. So getting a litter tray is worth investing in https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trixie-Corn...gateway&sr=8-9 The sand needs to be Chinchilla Bathing sand. Or some people use childrens play sand from Argos which is sterilised. A tub of the Chinchilla bathing sand lasts me ages. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Supreme-Pet...gateway&sr=8-2 Some people also waterproof the wood shelf and the inside of the house by painting them with plasti-kote enamel paint, which is pet-safe, virtually odourless and water based. I have never had the shelf pee'd on but I do paint it just in case, so it's wipe clean. It is a good idea to paint the inside of the house as occasionally they can have an accident and pee inside the house and then it gets stinky. Or you can just give it a scrub under a tap to clean it if you don't want to bother with painting, but it might need having to replace the house eventually. Annoyingly you can't get replacements for the shelf and same house but there are plenty of other houses. This is the plastikote. It does come in different colours if that appeals! Two coats makes it waterproofed and wipe clean. I do one coat and the second coat the next morning - it dries in a few hours if the coat is thin. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 The extra tunnels etc at roof level are a bonus for variety but not essential Some people have amazingly creative cages - mine tend to be more practical and look a bit mish mash ha ha. The most important thing really is to have everything set up before moving the hamster in, so you don't need to move things or make any changes - at least for the first couple of weeks while they're settling in. And you can guage what they like or have a problem with at that time. They usually like a large tube or tunnel (rat sized ones are best for syrians as the hamster sized things are often only big enough for dwarf hamsters - a syrian with full pouches can be 6cm wide or more!). After they're in the cage, adding the odd new thing is fine and usually well accepted. What they don't like is things being moved around or taken away! Sometimes it's necessary but best avoided. They scent mark their cages in the first few days/week - so they claim the items as theirs and also it provides a scent trail to find their way around as they really don't see well. Which is why removing all their scent can stress them and make them feel a bit lost. Hence the partial cleaning. Don't worry about poops unless they start taking over and then spot clean a bit. Their poops are like little seeds and not dirty or smelly. They will sometimes eat them. This is normal - they have two stomachs and can redigest nutrients and vitamins from their poops - they may even have a little hoard of poops somewhere for emergency food supplies! Food - not sure which one you use but you can't go wrong with Tiny Friends Harry Hamster as a basic mix. It contains everything needed and is sugar free. They need at least 18% protein which that mix has. Apart from that, a tiny bit of veg each day is good. Initially every 3 days so their stomachs adjust to the veg, then after a week or so every day. Broccoli, carrot, cucumber etc are fine and the ones I tend to have in the fridge. But there are a lot more - there is a list of safe fruit and veg on here. Things to avoid are citrus fruits, tomato, onion, spices etc. And apple pips (poisonous). Just a tiny piece of veg - about 1cm cubed size (doesn't have to be square though!). They tend to eat it straight away rather than hoard it. They like any fresh food as a treat - eg a little piece of apple or banana or half a shelled walnut or pecan nut will be snaffled up. Best to leave nests and hoards alone as they are very precious about those. Unless they are pee'd on and have to be removed, but then try and leave a bit of the old nest behind and and add a big pile of torn up strips of plain white toilet paper in the cage somewhere (not in the house) and they take those to rebuild the nest. If hoard has to be removed it's important to replace it with new food in exactly the same place. If their hoards are removed they can start peeing on them to deter thieves! Which leads to a catch 22 type thing. I find the hoards stay clean and dry until it's time to do the substrate and I prune it a bit then as the lower part of the hoard can go a bit stale, but dried food tends to last quite a long time hoarded. Sorry that is probably far too much information all at once. But the key is - enough enrichment, avoid cleaning out too much, variety, and not stressing them!