New Drawf hamster, help!

[Tweezy]

Hello. I recently got a new drawf hamster from Pets at home. They do a rescue service where you can donate x amount to rehome a hammy - this is what myself and my partner did.

We decides to call him Chilly because he was chilling and seemed like a hamster who loved to chill. Now I'm a little worrid.

He's roughly 10 weeks old and we've ha him for three days now. I can feed him food and he is fine taking it from me and also smelling me- the issue is he won't leave his little house except for water and food.

I know in the wild they run for miles, but my little hammy ol makes trips to restock on food and water!

Any ideas why he isn't that active?

Thanks
John

[cypher]

Hi & welcome to the forum.

3 days isn't long at all so your little guy is still settling in to his new home, it's a huge change for them & some can take longer than others.
What cage have you got him in?
Try not to leave too much open space, use things like small card boxes, toilet or kitchen roll tubes, egg boxes or similar things he can use as little hideouts if he gets scared while out & about.
Does he have a wheel? Check the wheel is working ok & the right size for him to run comfortably, they can rarely resist the wheel once they get brave enough to come out.
Try scattering some of his food around the cage or hiding treats in there to encourage him to come out & explore more.
When you say he's taking food from you & sniffing you is he coming out to do this or are you taking him out?
Give him more time & just be patient for a while, talk to him lots, even when he's hiding away & he should gradually gain confidence.

[Tweezy]

Hi Cypher and thanks for replying. He's in a pretty good hamster cage with a big plasic bottom with plety of bedding for him to burrow and move around withou actually being ontop of the bedding!

I'll pop some more bist and bobs in it, thanks.

Yeah he has a wheel and it turns just fine - could it be too big for him?

Yeah we hid some treats around on the first day, I'll do it again

I don't push my hand into him, rather I leave it 10cm away and let him make the final distance to me to show that I trust him and hopefully he'll trust me

I'll keep on doing what I'm doing and hope he gets braver!!

Thank you.

[cypher]

Sounds good
I think he's doing fine for the short time you've had him & you're doing the right things for him.
I doubt his wheel will be too big, they generally need an 8"/20cm wheel mine all have silent runners now which are 9" & even the young ones race away with no problem!

[Tweezy]

Perfect!! I'm not worried anymore Going to keep an eye on his food and water levels Thanks again.

[pinkneon]

Also, he may be coming out once it's all dark and quiet! Put a bit of bedding on top of his wheel before you go to bed and if it's gone in the morning you know he's used the wheel

[Gimleyand Meeko]

This is completely normal Your hamster is in a new world and a new cage so they are a bit worried, usually they stay in there "safe" shelter and only come out for food and water, once they have settled in they will be fine and run about for ages What species are they? What cage are they in?

[Chiela]

pinkneon >>
Hahaha I think I have gone blond, what a simple trick, to find out where they go fx when you are sleeping (if one needs to find out). Why didn't I think of that LOOL feeling a bit slow right now XD

[Tweezy]

Thanks for all the replies people He's coming out a little bit more today and hes been coming over to my hand and sniffs it! Then retreats back to his tepee house!!

I've popped food around different parts of the cage they're gone in the moning, hasn't gone up to the top floor yet!! I'll pop some bedding on top of his wheel

He's a dwarf hamster!

[Pygmypuff]

Hi Tweezy! What species of dwarf hamster is he though? Roborovski? Campbell's Russian? Winter White? Hybrid?