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Old 09-27-2016, 06:37 PM   #1
HenryHazelHammies
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Question Abnormal Hoarding?

MY Syrian hamster hoards almost every seed/nut/treat I give him. He always pouches it, and instead of having one hoard just near his favourite hideout, I have discovered four, in separate areas of the cage, all relatively close to the hideout though. It's been a real pain cleaning his cage and mixing in some familiar bedding because I can't dig half an inch into it without finding large amounts of food he's stashed. I need to spot clean almost every day for his fresh veggies he's stashed so they don't rot. What's even worse, however, is that he poops near his hoards too! I'm afraid that if he ingests some of the food that's been in close contact with his own feces. I don't want to keep emptying the hoards, as I'm afraid of him stressing out too much. What do I do?

Sorry this is so long.
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Old 09-27-2016, 09:20 PM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

Some hams hoard more than others which is fine up to a point but if yours is hoarding that much then you may be over feeding, try cutting back a bit until at least some of the hoard goes down.
They eat some of their poo so don't worry about that being near the food.
Could you give fresh food during out of cage time maybe or find some other way of keeping an eye on it?
I know mine won't eat too much veg so I tend to give them big bits so they can't run off with it to hide it somewhere!
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Old 09-28-2016, 01:34 AM   #3
peasypea
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

Mine have always stashed food and poo together! Think they must do it naturally to show that it is their food and other animals won't take it.

Mine have always eaten the fresh food first though, it is never there the next day. Nelly used to put her fresh food in the litter tray so when she went for a wee she could have a little snack haha, gross aren't they? Maybe you should try giving a bit less, they only need a couple of tiny bits a day really so maybe if it is rotting then it is a bit too much for him to eat.
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Old 09-28-2016, 10:31 AM   #4
flowerfairy
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

Kashi is an obsessive hoarder. I have to replace it regularly. Always feel a tad guilty but needs must.

Gopal and Arun (males) both hoard food and poo. Gopal likes to wee on his as well ... so lots of stash changes there too.

Woodstock doesnt hoard as much and the roborovskis hardly hoard at all.

They all eat nuts, porridge and any green things I give them straight away.

You have had some good advice already. I agree with feeding less. I have to force myself not to over feed mine as they all love food sooo much!
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Old 09-28-2016, 12:53 PM   #5
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

All sounds quite normal! They do hoard most of their food, and then snack from their hoards when they are in bed usually. If you find any hoards when spot cleaning, best to leave them unless they are wet, or if you have to remove any, replace it with new food in the same place. Otherwise your hammy will think someone has stolen his hoard and it'll make him hide even more food! The fresh food is a pain though. And that does sound a bit unusual. Our hammy tends to eat anything fresh straight away but he did used to hoard broccoli when he was a baby and it would turn to compost under his nest. As Cypher says, give him very limited amounts. I give a very small piece about 1cm cubed size and no bigger. That all gets eaten straight away usually.

The piles of poop are emergency food supplies! Just in case there is a food shortage. They eat them. In fact ours used to poop in his food bowl if it was empty lol. They aren't dirty or smelly, the poops, they are just like little hard seeds and they can eat them to redigest vitamins.
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Old 09-28-2016, 02:23 PM   #6
badwolf
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

I tried to remove a piece of veg from Riff Raff's hoard once. She came out from her sleeping place and frantically stuffed the entire hoard into her mouth and ran into her wheel! She looked hilarious :P She's very possessive over hers!
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Old 09-28-2016, 05:14 PM   #7
HenryHazelHammies
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Default Re: Abnormal Hoarding?

Thank you for the advice. I'll cut down on the food a bit and check the hoards to see any progress. A little question I have, though, is how do you tell if a hamster has eaten their food or pouched it? I thought I could tell by feeling their cheeks, but I found that not entirely accurate because their cheeks are huge.
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