Handling Hamsters

[ArthriticAssassin]

I've learned that all hamsters have different personalities but I have issues figuring out what mine is. Sometimes he'll come right up to the cage and wait for me to pick him up. Sometimes he'll run away from me as fast as he can. He never likes it if I put my hand in his cage but if I put it on the outside of the cage, he'll try to climb in it (I have to lift his butt up though because he's so small.) Sometimes he'll stay in my hand for ten minutes just wanting to be pet and warm. Other times he'll just use me as a climbing post and not want to stay still. Sometimes he'll get up earlier then I expect and run a muck but other times, he won't come out of bed till very late at night. Did I tame him badly? Am I doing something wrong? Or do I just have a very moody hamster?

[Skeever]

You just have a hamster. Moody Hamster is redundant

[Thin Lizzy]

Some hamsters can be a bit territorial about their cage/home, maybe when you put your hand in he feels abit wary, so try putting you hand in a little at a ttime - no fast movements.
He's fine when your hand is outside the cage.
Like skeever said, they can be very moody, make a fuss of him, use treats.
Try rubbing your hands in his wood shavings so he can smell his smell on you.

[cypher]

Your ham sounds quite normal, sometimes it can be hard to tell just what kind of mood they're in! They often want to wait a while after waking up before they're in the mood to come out to play & being territorial about the cage is fairly common too so you're not doing anything wrong you just need to try to follow your hams lead.
Is there anything like maybe a bendy bridge or toy you could put close to the door so he can climb out more easily? One of mine is a bit like this so I've put a couple of things by the door so it's quite clear when she wants to climb out & I don't have to try to reach in & grab her.

[ArthriticAssassin]

Cypher, he has a large and deep cage but it's connected to a more shallow cage. He can climb out from the shallow cage but when he wants to be picked up, he goes to the deeper cage, as if he prefers having his butt lifted. If he goes to the shallow cage, it means he wants to climb out and explore by himself. If he wants to climb out by himself from the deeper cage, he has steps but he still prefers to come to my hand put his front paws down and wait for me to lift the rest of him out.