New hamster is becoming more antisocial

EmmaDurnford · 03-11-2017, 04:58 PM

Hi everyone, this is my first post as a new member of Hamster Central. I have had a number of Syrian hamsters over the past 25 years (yes I am in my late 40’s!!). I consider myself fairly experienced and despite all my past hammies having different personalities I have always handled and played with them with no problem until now. I bought a new ‘Black Bear’ hamster 3 weeks ago named ‘Washington’ (we’re visiting Washington DC and New York in May!). He is gorgeous, jet black with white paws and a white stripe down his front from his chin and was about 10 weeks old when we bought him.

When I first got him he was alert and inquisitive and very quickly learnt came up to me to take snacks from hand. However he did not like to be handled at all (ran away). I have been through this before and normally find after a couple of weeks of handling they gradually become used to me. However this is not the case for the first time ever. He is like a bar of soap and it has been incredibly difficult to get him out and I’ve only managed it 3 times. He still comes up to me for food but now snatches it and runs away to hide in his house (inside his cage). Now he runs back to his house every time I enter the room. I am so disappointed. Our last Hammy - Brockley was a lovely boy who literally went on ‘meet and greet duty’ when we had friends over for dinner and was so friendly.

Please can anyone suggest anything I can do to calm him down and get him used to being handled and at least not to keep running away. He is fit and healthy and putting on weight. Should I take out his closed house within his cage so he just has his bedding? Any help will be so gratefully received and thanks everyone in advance.

velma · 03-12-2017, 08:19 AM

Hi and welcome to HC. I got my most recent Syrian, Pip, in August and it's taken him a while not to settle in but to calm down. I think now he's a little older he's just a bit more chilled out. When I first got him home he was incredibly nervous for the first couple of weeks and then gradually relaxed into taking treats and food from me which he'd eat in front of me. As he settled in, I moved on to stroking him and then gently lifting him. One day he's be fine with it and another he'd jump literally inches into the air. He also started taking his fd to eat in his house. Now he's older he's calmed right down and doesn't jump anymore. He'll also eat in front of me. Until we got to that point, I just went with it and didn't try and force the issue. As you'll already know, all hams are different and some do just take a seemingly long time to get settled and comfy but in sure you'll get there.

Drago · 03-12-2017, 08:37 AM

Hello and welcome aboard to you and Washington! I agree with Velma, every hamster is very different! My hamster Duncan has never nipped nor even nibbled anybody in his life, but my other Syrian (now sadly passed) hated human contact and would bite every time you came near her despite months and months of me taming her. I wouldn't recommend removing the house, in fact, I would recommend adding more hideouts. This may seem odd but I find that hamsters who have more, seem to know they have bolt holes and thus are more confident. Just keep spending time with him and remain patient and persistent

Thin Lizzy · 03-12-2017, 08:42 AM

Hi Emma and Welcome to HC.
Leave his house in his cage, removing it will only upset him.
Three weeks isn't that long and like Velma says every hamster is different.
Have you tried the tissue trick? Stuff some unscented toilet tissue up your sleeves and leave for a couple of hours and then put it in his cage, curiosity will make him sniff it, doing this gets your ham familiar with your scent. Do this daily, add it to his cage. Also speak to him as much as you can so he gets familiar with your voice. Whenever he comes out into his cage area, praise him, offer him a treat. The great thing about the tissue trick is it works and I've found when I do it, my ham uses it as extra bedding.
Also try and not clean his cage too much, let him mark his cage, they like to rub themselves against the cage and toys.

EmmaDurnford · 03-12-2017, 05:24 PM

Thanks so much everyone for the advice. I have cleaned him out this evening which has been the first time since I got him (he has very deep wood chips so he was not dirty as such). I let him walk out of his cage via the door and then picked him up from underneath which seems lot better for him. I handled him and then popped him in a roly-ball whilst I cleaned him and handled him again afterwards. He seems a bit better, less skittish and he has never tried to bite me on any occasion.

I did not pick up your replies before I cleaned him and I did take out his house but piled up lots of bedding instead. Based on your suggestions if he seems disorientated I will put it back and will definitely try the tissue up the sleeve/armpit trick - have not heard that before. I'll keep you updated, you have made me feel a lot better. It's funny how people who have not kept hamsters do not understand that they are all different and have distinct personalities! (I may even get a photo of him to post!)

Thin Lizzy · 03-12-2017, 08:11 PM

I would put the house back in, hamsters need places to hide, they also like to feel safe and having plenty hidey/shelter type places.
Try and leave at least 3 - 4 weeks before his next cage clean and just do daily spot checks on his toilet area.

Pebbles82 · 03-13-2017, 03:44 AM

Our hammy was like this - he was a pet shop hammy - probably hardly ever handled and a bit insitutionalized lol - or roughly handled and very scared. It took us about two months to tame him

So some of it is patience with a nery hamster. But I am sure he can be tamed.

He will be a bit stressed at the moment after the cage clean probably. I agree, put "a" house back. If the old house was a bit small or not open underneath, then maybe put a new house back in made out of a shoe box. Cut the bottom out of the shoe box and a hole in the front for a door and use the lid as a lift off roof. That way you can check inside the house without having to remove it and the nest falling apart. They do love their nests being left in tact usually.

I found with a large house like that, our hamster built a really big nest and hoarded in there and seemed much happier. The darker it is inside the happier they seem to be. Although your hammy may seem a bit reclusive they just need time to build confidence probably.

I used to get our Syrian out by putting a tube over the house entrance with a treat in the far end (usually a piece of cheese). He would walk into the tube and I'd lift him out in the tube with a hand over either end and then put one end of the tube in a hamster ball so he walked into it. Then pop the lid on the hamster ball and carefully carry him to the bathtub. Dry bath with plug in. Carefully put the ball down in the bath and take the lid off (it helps to have a couple of toys, tunnels and hidey places already in the bath). eg kitchen roll tube and a mug on its side or whatever else you have.

So we basically did bathtub taming. About twice a week. He would run around and slither up and down the sides. When he'd used up a bit of energy we would try and stroke him - if you touched him he would ping two feet in the air! So we left it a bit longer.

We started by trying to stroke him on the back with one finger (while he was slithering up the side of the bath). He would jerk his head as if threatening to bite. So we'd try again a bit later. Eventually he accepted the stroke with one finger without jerking his head round and after that, things went quite quickly. We moved onto cupping a hand under him while he was walking round in the bathtub. So just slid the palm of the hand under him, lifted a centimetre or so but didn't hold, and let him walk off again. Did this a few times - left it till another sesssion. Next session we lifted him a little bit more and let him walk off. Then lifted him up and held him and he was tame as anything then. They need to get used to you, and touch and gain some trust sometimes I think. Your hammy maybe had a bad experience before you got him.

Any kind of changes in the first couple of weeks can regress the taming sometimes. So now you've done the clean maybe give him a few days just being left alone, with a big pile of nesting material out in the cage in a pile and a new shoebox house, and scatter feed a bit, and then maybe try the bathtub taming thing.

Our hamster never did like a hand in his cage and never came out voluntarily. Once he was out he was fine. But he liked his privacy!

EmmaDurnford · 03-13-2017, 10:47 AM

I felt bad about the house removal so it went straight back in this morning! It has an open base and closed top and all past hamsters seem to enjoy the space. I'm finding that he'll come out of his enclosed house when he feels the cage being moved and placed on the floor. I open his lower door and he will eventually come out that way and seems to be easier to pick up as well. I'm avoiding putting my hands into his 'space'.

I'm going to try the tissue under the arm trick as well and he seems to like his ball and then is happy to be handled afterwards. I think 'Thin Lizzy' is right about the cage clean as well. He has very deep sawdust and I always put a little bit of 'dirty' sawdust back in the same place after cleaning out so he knows where his toilet is so I can leave it longer between cleans.

I'll keep you posted. Thanks again everyone.

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-13-2017, 01:24 PM

I don't know if you can get ahold of nesting material called Eco bedding, but it's great to use for nests. It's basically shredded nesting paper, absorbent and very cozy. I use it all my hammys cages. Can be spread around in the bedding to fluff it up too. I love that stuff.