Question about my new syrian hamster's behaviour

[Goldliver]

Greetings,
I'm a student and decided to keep a hamster as my pet throughout my years of study. I recently bought my hamster and its been three days already. I've done researches about them, bought for it the proper necessary items needed but I have a few questions I want to ask regarding my hamster which I had listed below for further convenience:

1. My syrian hamster seems to be sleeping at night and I read that it was suppose to be nocturnal. she will play, eat and sleep occasionally during the day which is kind of a contrary to what I've read. When its night, she will sleep starting from the evening and sometimes she will be awake and eat while her eyes and ears closed. I am quite worried if anything happen to her as I care for her. The day I bought it, she explored its cage during the day and run on her wheel when its night. The next day, my family visit my grandma and I bought her along and her behaviour seems like a nocturnal animal. Today which is the third day I have her, we travelled in a car to my college and I changed her beddings( before was shreddings) to wood shavings. And now she just sleep even though its night here now. Can someone please explain to me, is it normal? Is she just adjusting with her new cage or because of the travels? and I live in a region where there is no winter so I'm not sure if she can hibernate or whatsoever.

2. I've watched an educational video on how to take care of hamsters and in that video, the tutor said that it is not safe to use wood shavings as bedding as it can cause medical problem to the hamster. Can someone please tell me is it true because I've bought packs of wood shavings from a pet store. If its not safe then why do pet stores sell it? Almost all of the pet stores I went sell it and its from the same brand too. or is it from hand made shavings? cause I bought it from a pet store.

3. Is there any possible disease you can get from hamsters? What happen if we make contact with its feaces or pee ? once I held my hamster and she smelled like pee, I washed my hand afterwards. Is there any precautions I need to take?

4. Can someone explain to me about carrier cage for hamster?

5. I'm planning to only have one hamster, is that okay for her? will that have any bad impact to my hamster? as it can't mate and socialize with other hamster. Even though syrian hamster is a solidary animal.

6. Any other advice and suggestions.

Thank you in advance and sorry if my questions are a bit long and annoying, I just have the need to elaborate sorry. and I'm new to this forum, so hello nice to meet all of you. Thanks again.

[Penguin]

Welcome to HC!

1. Seeing as you have only had her for 3 days I wouldnt worry too much. She still needs to settle in and her behavior will probably change once she gets more confident about her new home. Give her a week or so to settle and start interacting with her afterwards C:

2. As for the bedding/substrate - most wood-shavings are indeed no good for hamsters. The only type of wood shavings I would recommend is those made from aspen. Pine- and cedar shavings aren't good for the tiny things and can cause medical problems. Some alternatives to wood shavings (which are all safe):
Megazorb
Aubiose
Carefresh
Fitch
Boxo
Fincard

Unfortunately petstores sell a heap of things that are no good for the animals, so it's good that you did your research and came here to make sure 'just in case'. Another thing I would like to make sure is that you didnt purchase fluffy bedding, as this can be very dangerous for the ham as well.

3. I wouldn't worry about catching anything from the hamster, some people prefer to wash their hands before and/or after touching the pet, but I think that is down to preference. I personally wash my hands before handling my hamster and only wash them after if she was dirty. You should be careful about touching her when you are sick though, as she can catch a cold as well.

4. I'm not sure what to explain about a carrier. You would want one should you need to transport the hammy somewhere. Like to the vet for example. Get one that's a decent size where there is space for substrate and a tiny house where she can hide.

5. Hamsters are completely alright without a roommate. Especially syrians. If you get her a cage mate they will fight and chances are one of them will kill the other. I have heard people say that hamsters do not have the ability to feel lonely, surely they will come to enjoy your company, but they wont appreciate company from another hammy.

6. Feel free to ask anything. I would advice a cage that is at least 70x40 or more. The small hammies need quite some space C:

[Piebald]

Hi Goldliver welcome to HC!
I see you are in Malaysia and I am not sure what kind of Hamster supplies are available at pet stores. Not to worry you can make most of the things you need but it may require some learning.
First a Syrian hamster is fine alone. She would only fight with another hamster so it is not good to have more than one!
Second she will need a week to two weeks to settle in. She may be tired now from all the activity and stress of moving into a new place. Just talk to her softly and let her settle. It is not recommended to do full cage cleanings especially when settling in because she will be more comfortable with her own scent.
It is actually possible to make a Carefresh type substrate from plain toilet roll but it takes some time and a lot of rolls. However, if you cannot get it you might try. There is a video about it somewhere. . . Here:


Now can we talk cages? What size do you have? What kind of selection is available there? We can help you make a good cage from a plastic storage "bin" if you haven't already.
Why do you need a carrier cage? Hamsters do not travel particularly well because they are nervous animals by nature. It is good to have some way to transport her to a vet though if you need to.

[Cricetinae]

1) Hamsters are best described as crepsucular, which means they are generally most active around twilight. However, this does not mean they are only active at twilight. Hamsters don't have a regimented lifestyle, they will quite often have brief periods of exploration/drinking/eating during the day. There is nothing inherently dangerous about a domestic hamster having a varied sleep pattern.

2) Most brands of commercially available wood shavings are dust-extracted and kiln-heated. This means that the dust that can cause respiratory issues is largely removed and the phenols that may be dangerous are also removed.

3) Yes, it is possible to become ill from handling and being in close proximity to rodents, like with most pets. However, the risk is fairly minimal. Domestic pets are not exposed to the bacteria or other animals that permit them to become carriers. It is best practice to wash your hands before and after handling your hamster or interacting with the cage, this further minimises any risk.

4) Simply a small cage used for transporting the hamster during trips. Allows you to transport your hamster without needing to take the whole cage. Useful to have in the event you needed to take her to the vets.

5) That's fine. Syrian hamsters are solitary by necessity and do not display any obvious signs of unrest or unhappiness at living a life time alone. Aside from a mother raising her litter, Syrian hamsters would not interact much with other hamsters in the wild.

6) There are countless topics when covering good care of a hamster. However, one particular recommendation would be to look at the food your providing. I'd recommend checking if the macronutrient split (carbohydrate, protein, fat) of your hamster food is ideal, and if the micronutrients required are included. The information should be printed on the hamster food packaging and can be contrasted to resources available online.

[Goldliver]

Thank you all of you for the answers and advice, really appreciate ...

[Goldliver]

Originally Posted by Cricetinae

1) Hamsters are best described as crepsucular, which means they are generally most active around twilight. However, this does not mean they are only active at twilight. Hamsters don't have a regimented lifestyle, they will quite often have brief periods of exploration/drinking/eating during the day. There is nothing inherently dangerous about a domestic hamster having a varied sleep pattern.

2) Most brands of commercially available wood shavings are dust-extracted and kiln-heated. This means that the dust that can cause respiratory issues is largely removed and the phenols that may be dangerous are also removed.

3) Yes, it is possible to become ill from handling and being in close proximity to rodents, like with most pets. However, the risk is fairly minimal. Domestic pets are not exposed to the bacteria or other animals that permit them to become carriers. It is best practice to wash your hands before and after handling your hamster or interacting with the cage, this further minimises any risk.

4) Simply a small cage used for transporting the hamster during trips. Allows you to transport your hamster without needing to take the whole cage. Useful to have in the event you needed to take her to the vets.

5) That's fine. Syrian hamsters are solitary by necessity and do not display any obvious signs of unrest or unhappiness at living a life time alone. Aside from a mother raising her litter, Syrian hamsters would not interact much with other hamsters in the wild.

6) There are countless topics when covering good care of a hamster. However, one particular recommendation would be to look at the food your providing. I'd recommend checking if the macronutrient split (carbohydrate, protein, fat) of your hamster food is ideal, and if the micronutrients required are included. The information should be printed on the hamster food packaging and can be contrasted to resources available online.

Excuse me, so are you saying that the commercial brands of wood shavings are safe for hamsters?

[Cricetinae]

Originally Posted by Goldliver

Excuse me, so are you saying that the commercial brands of wood shavings are safe for hamsters?

In my experience, yes. If properly kiln-treated, phenols should not be present. And if properly dust-extracted, particles small enough to enter and damage the respiratory system should not be present. The issue arises when these processes are not performed or performed insufficiently - hence why I can't speak for all brands, as this may vary. Here in England, these processes are almost always carried out and to a high standard, hence the safety. But i'm not sure about other localities.

Furthermore, the concern here is ultimately the 'should not' oppose to 'will not'. Because of the uncertainty, some people prefer to use substrate options whereby the risk is not just negligible, but absent. Such as with carefresh. Though not everyone has this luxury.