Last hope for Pixie.

[Ashie]

It's roughly been four years since I adopted my hybrid Pixie who is diabetic and times have been hard. When I first got pixie, I left her alone in her cage for about 4 days. In those days she was completely alone and left to settle in. Of course, she heard noise when I came into the room and sometimes spoke to her. After these four days, I started giving her some treats through her bars to get her used to me, I would also speak to her regularly. I learnt these tricks not only by research, but how I had tamed my four previous hamsters whom it had worked on... Here's the tricky part.

Pixie is my little devil girl. I mean that in the best way possible, I do love her, but I still have a scar going down my arm from where she bit me one night and wouldn't let go. (Not a large one, but i'm amazed it even made a scar... Of course I've been bitten before. Every hamster owner gets it, even if their hamster is a good one.) I've tried everything and believe me when I say everything. I've talked to breeders, I've researched and I've even tried my own methods but she just can't be tamed.

To help out about her, here are some things about her: She lives in a 60 gallon tank in my living room where it's quiet (My uncle gave it to me after he used to collect exotic fish, he stopped the hobby so he offered me the tank, I chose my living room since no one goes in there, it's pretty empty but it keeps a good temperature). She uses carefresh bedding, gets fresh water every day and fresh veggies. At the end of each week she has a massive clean out (While I clean her cage she plays in her playpen which I set up for her). She never hisses, but instead if she hears someone come into the room I've started to see her running out of her house and trying to catch the person in the room. (I was once in there to turn down the heater and she was out, her ears up and alert like she was about to pounce on something). I've tried treats, I've tried settling her in, I've tried starting over, I've tried scents, I can name alot more but it would just get repetitive and long.

I just don't understand it. No one can offer her a treat, because instead of going for the yummy treat, she goes straight for your hand to bite it. I love her, I really do. But this is no way for a hamster to live. For around 2 years i've been getting her out with gloves but she just bites through them. I want her to have a happy life where not only she, but I can hold her and kiss her once. I'm giving it one last try to try and make her the loving hamster I know she can be.

[Clairealex]

Firstly, four years?! Wow! What age was she when you got her? And with diabetes too? I'm literally astounded. Well done you!

Personally, I think at her age, it'll be a tricky one to change. Does she behave like this outside her cage? She sounds like she has some cage aggression, and is defending her territory when hands come in to invade it! Sometimes this just seems to be the nature of some hams, but things like using gloves or a mug to lift them out, then have cuddles outside the cage, can help.

The weekly clean out will be stressful for her, especially at her age, and could be triggering a response based on fear. It takes a good few days for them to settle into a fully clean cage, so really she's only have a couple of days where she's settled, happy in her nests etc before it all gets uprooted. I'd try to avoid full cage cleans. Just spot clean her wet corner and top up her bedding for a few weeks to see if this makes a difference. Of course, cleaning any plastic once a week and still continuing with the fresh water.

A part of me does think that this is just who she is. She's maybe a love from afar hamster. Some dwarfs just won't tame, as hard as you try, and are quite happy living on their own terms.

I do hope you can get those cuddles someday soon though.

[essentiallysue]

My Jo Jo was a biting hamster, too. When she was young, she (out to play) would run around the room and then come bite me on the arm and then run around again and do it again. We always had to use gloves with her. She continued her little bites all through her life. I would always say, "Her mother told her to bite humans." When she was dying, I held her in my hand. There were no more bites. She stared at me with her eyes open while I stroke her on the head. Then she closed her eyes and died. My precious Jo Jo was gone. I miss those bites. As you said, love her as she is.