'Rescue' hamster - eats, sleeps and goes to toilet in little house?

[chippytea]

Hey all,

A few days ago I took on a hamster that the owner was going to 'dispose' of because the hamster dared to nip his little girls finger. I know, I know - hence why I immediately offered to buy her and her cage / accessories.

Now, the thing is, I'm not really used to hamsters (I have a house rabbit at the moment), but this one has a few strange quirks.

She came with this cage :

https://www.rosewoodpet.com/small-an...anslucent-teal

... and seems to store food, sleep, and go to the toilet all in the top part (the grey box with green lid which stick through the top bars) of the cage, not using the bottom area of the cage at all.

Any ideas? I've never had to toilet train a hamster before, the rare occasions I've come across them they've normally already worked out how to use one corner of the cage for that and another area for a house / 'nest'.

[alpacassei]

All my hamsters keep their food store either in or near their nest so that it's close to them. Two of my Russians also use their bed as a toilet sometimes but I'm not sure why they do it (maybe it's to mark their territory??). Someone else here probably knows more about this and how to stop it...

The box doesn't seem to have good ventilation so I'm worried about her sleeping in there, especially since it's also her toilet. It doesn't look like it's removable so you could try making a nest area somehwere else in the cage and seeing if she'll use that instead?

Also her cage is a little small for a hamster. I'm not sure if you're already planning on ugrading her cage but some good cages for Syrians are the Alaska, Barney, and Alexander cages. For dwarf hamsters I recommend the Duna Multi or Duna Fun Large. If you can find large enough storage boxes you could try making her a bin cage (there's a lot of tutorials online).

Good luck with your new hamster! Everyone on this forum is really helpful if you have anymore questions or need advice

[AmityvilleHams]

Definitely consider bin cages!They're easy to expand,affordable unless you make them expensive,and much easier to move than a lot of alternative options Even if you can't find one very large bin,you could still use several bins to make a suitable cage if they're attached properly(no tubes,must be large entrances or whole sides removed).

[CMB]

Well done for taking on the unwanted hamster. What species is it" Syrians need big wheels, houses, tubes etc. Most toys etc sold for hamsters are only suitable for dwarf hamsters due to size and hole sizes.

The hamster may stop using the hide for everything once it has settled in

To encourage it to go to the toilet in another place. You could take some pee soaked bedding from the hide and put it in a corner of the cage (in a potty). The house would need cleaning with a pet safe deodoriser to remove all trace of pee smell. As if the house smells of pee the hamster is likely to keep using it as a toilet.

If you tell us what country you live in it will help people make suggestions on things you may want/need to buy.

[flowerfairy]

Houses with no bottom are great. I put my hamster's houses on top of a large pile of substrate (I use fitch) which they burrow into and create lovely stores of food and poo.

Their poo is dry and odeur free so not a problem to have it stashed by the food. One of mine likes to wee in her stash despite having a large sand tray (chinchilla sand not dust) near by. I change her stash regularly making sure to put some new food back so as not to upset her.

Zooplus sells the alaska, barney, alexanda, etc A great website.

Hope your little hamster settles in soon. Enjoy!

[Drago]

First off, it was a very kind thing for you to take in that little ham and I applaud you for that! I think she might like having a spacious bin cage better than what she's in, I'm not sure if that cage is quite large enough for a ham or not, but it would be a better investiment to upgrade either way as bin cages can easily be expanded and customized! I'd say it's not too unusual for her to be going to the bathroom in the same area she stores food, especially if she's a younger hamster who isn't litter trained. As suggested above, a sand pit would be a nice addition and would encourage her to use that instead of her house as a toilet. The storing of the food in this box would be another good reason to switch to a bin or at least a different style of cage simply due to the fact that her peeing in there can be causing ammonia to build up to deadly levels, and it will make it grotesquely moist in the little box. Good job on rescuing her and giving her another shot at life, and I'm sure she will thank you for the chance

[Thin Lizzy]

Hi chippytea and welcome to HC.
Good on you for rescuing her and giving her a forever home. It makes my blood boil when I read about people getting rid of the hamster because it bit the kids. Hamsters will bite if they feel scared.
Flowerfairy has mentioned cages that are popular with hamsters and used by many of us on the forum. The cage she's in is a bit on the small side. And I prefer the houses with no bottoms too.