[Phoebe05]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

I noticed you said you checked with several pet stores on cage size, and that really isn't a good idea. Pet stores don't have any real knowledge on hamster care beyond what is severely outdated, especially when it comes to cage size, and they'll happily recommend cages that are far too small for any hamster species!

I would also not use hamster balls. They offer no enrichment and block out a hamster's senses so they can be very stressful, even if they seem to willingly run in them.

Sand baths are a must. Not every hamster rolls around in them, but they are a very important enrichment tool if used properly. If your cage doesn't have enough space for the basic necessities like a sand bath, a large enough wheel(12 inches for any Syrian), etc then it's not a very good cage.

Speaking of cages, while a lot of people like 100 cm x 50 cm cages(roughly 5 square feet) science and German standards lean towards a much larger cage size of one square meter or roughly 10 square feet/1550 square inches. A good example of a square meter cage would be a cage that is 5 feet long by 2 feet wide, which would definitely allow all the basics of a good cage along with plenty of extra enrichment and if tall enough and designed properly it could also allow for the ideal substrate depth of 2 feet or more. This would require some DIYing but it would be 100% worth it to make a cage that would actually last permanently in most cases(especially with male Syrians who seem easier to please for cage size while the females often aren't even happy with a square meter of continuous floor space). Keep in mind floor space also must be continuous and not connected through tubes, levels, etc which all do not count towards floor space.

A lot of hamsters don't necessarily want to be taken out of their cages every day so I wouldn't be too worried over not taking him out daily. You could try handling him outside of his cage only, and a good example of a place to try this would be inside a clean and fully dry bathtub with both you and your hamster inside it. Some people have cut up cardboard boxes and used the sides as playpens when they're stuck together in various ways which would be a very cheap or even free option. I personally wouldn't bother spending money on the metal ones sold at pet stores as they tend to be very easy for a hamster to escape from. A large plastic bin could work as a play space, but it really isn't the best for interacting with your hamster. They restrict your access to top only which can be stressful for many hamsters as they're prey animals and hands from above seem like predators to them, but they can still be utilized as a fun bonus enrichment area!

I will post a picture of his cage on this thread tomorrow and see what you think about it☺️