Stress or curiosity?

ahennessy1 · 11-30-2017, 05:30 PM

Hi guys,

I'm new to this forum so bare with me, I'm going to give to a brief overview of my hamster before getting to the point of the post...

I rescued a Roborovski hamster back in May 2017. She has quite a sad past. She was purchased from a large retailer store at the beginning of the year by an acquaintance of mine. She didn't look after her well at all! She had kept her in a TINY travel cage with just food and water. No wheel, toys etc. She kept her in the bathroom because she "had no room". Anyway, a dear friend of mine found out about her living conditions and had offered to take her because her owner claimed that they didn't like her because she was "too quick" and "not tame". So my friend took her (without any hamster knowledge at all) and had purchased her a larger cage (still below minimum requirement) and a wheel etc. Nevertheless she was in a better situation.

At the time I wasn't looking for a hamster, nor did I have any knowledge in them at all but I fell in love with how cute she was. My friend kept her for around 4 months before asking me if I could have her instead as her cats were trying to get to her.

Anyway, after much deliberation I decided to adopt her permanently. While looking after her in her current cage I did a LOT of research and watched many Hamster Youtube videos from big bloggers such as Erinsanimals, Hammylux and Hoppinghammy.

I then made the conscious decision to buy her a MUCH larger cage. She is now in a Skyline Marrakesh cage which measures at 97cm x 47cm. She has lots of toys, chews, a bigger wheel, a play pen, lots of hiding spaces etc. My only issue now is trying to get her tame as she has a hard time trusting me. I have made lots of progress since I've had her and she can now eat from my hand (even though she nips me because she thinks my hand is food). Although we still have a while to go before I can pick her up for playtime/cuddles.

Anyway, I have noticed that she sometimes goes up against the glass wall and scratches it almost as if she wants to escape? It worries me that she is stressed as I feel that I have provided much stimulation and a bigger floor space for her but I am worried that she may still be stressed. She is in my bedroom and 95% of the time a very quiet area. Either this or is she just curious to get out? I would take her out but she isn't tame yet.

What do you guys think?
Sorry for the long post I thought that maybe her background might be relevant to the question.

Thanks!

Amy

Fluffagrams · 12-01-2017, 08:08 AM

I'm wondering if your hamster found the change from a small cage to a much larger one to be a little overwhelming? I've found from talking to other Robo owners that some seem to thrive in larger cages and others find that a smaller cage is a little less stressful and certainly when taming, a smaller space is often an advantage.

Are you trying to tame her whilst she's in her cage? I find that my robo is more receptive to handling when he's in a carrier or small storage box than he is when he's in his own cage. You can always use a mug or toilet roll to transfer her to the carrier if you're not able to pick her up yet.

cypher · 12-01-2017, 08:13 AM

I think it's totally normal for them to scratch at the sides of tanks or bin cages just because it's there tbh, not necessarily a sign of stress at all, I think you need to look more at overall behaviour to determine that.
It sounds as though she's doing quite well generally, considering her background taming is going to take some time but provided she makes progress & doesn't take backward steps in taming & bonding I think she's probably fine, some hams do find large cages overwhelming but I'm not really reading anything that suggests that here, taming can be a little more difficult in a larger cage as it's so much easier for them to hide away but if she seems happy generally & you can be consistent but patient with her taming she will probably come on ok with time.

CMB · 12-01-2017, 02:13 PM

Some robos (and other species) never become tame. So you are doing ok with taming, by having her eating from your hand. Keep practicing and you may get her even more comfortable with handling etc.

ahennessy1 · 12-01-2017, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fluffagrams

I'm wondering if your hamster found the change from a small cage to a much larger one to be a little overwhelming? I've found from talking to other Robo owners that some seem to thrive in larger cages and others find that a smaller cage is a little less stressful and certainly when taming, a smaller space is often an advantage.

Are you trying to tame her whilst she's in her cage? I find that my robo is more receptive to handling when he's in a carrier or small storage box than he is when he's in his own cage. You can always use a mug or toilet roll to transfer her to the carrier if you're not able to pick her up yet.

Yeah I'm trying to tame her whilst she's in her cage and I find that she tends to use her hideaways a lot whilst doing so. I will use her travel cage next time or put her in a playpen. Thank you