Scared Hamster

[hellobg]

Hey everyone.

I need help with Sterling's taming as he won't even go near or try to go near my hand, with gloves ofcourse. I was holding out a sunflower seed and he just doesn't seem to buy it.

Franc was already cooperative since he goes onto the glove or once my glove is in the cage and which he'll expect a sunflower seed, but Sterling on the other hand just won't.

I've considered moving him to my spare Speedy Gonzales Cage as I find the Ferplast Ratatout really really annoying as it's more narrow compared to the Speedy Gonzales, or should I move him in the Ferplast Duna Multy?

I'm not sure if this is allowed to put other users here but Serendipity said something about barred cages giving more interactions compared to a glass tank, should I try it with Sterling?

[dreamtree1234]

Many barred cages have a tendency to make interacting with your hamster easier since they usually have a front door which is great so you don't have to reach into the cage from above which can be a bit more intimidating for your hamster since it resembles a predator reaching to grab its prey. Also, with barred cages, your hamster is more prone to smelling your scent easier which will allow you to become more familiar to him sooner. This doesn't mean that a tank or bin cage isn't excellent choices though. Each person has their own preference for what works best for them and their hamster, and the ease of taming each hamster is different, too. I, personally, have a bin cage for my female Syrian Eros. It works great for us, and she was easily tamed from the beginning. I have family members with tank cages for their Syrian hamsters and they love it and never had any slight difficulties taming their hamsters from the beginning. If the glass tank isn't working well for you and Sterling, it may be good to have him in a barred cage. However, I would try to give him some more time to settle in as he may just need a little extra adjustment time after being separated from Franc due to them fighting.

As far as taming is concerned, I would use the tissue trick if you haven't already done so. It is an excellent way to get your ham used to your scent. I would not use a glove when trying to tame him as many hamsters are more skittish around them and you want him to smell you instead of the glove. Are you using a glove because he is a biter who draws blood? I would let him have a few days to settle in and get used to all of the changes and then start having him go into a transport container to have short, out of cage taming sessions in a secure playpen or a dry, tub with the drain covered with a towel. I would have plenty of toys in there with you both and let him crawl on you, play around with the toys. After a few of those sessions a couple days later, I would start to offer him treats, letting him crawl onto the palm of your hand. After doing this a few times, I would see if you are able to scoop him up lower at first for a few times, and then raising the height slowly as time progresses. Eventually, he will be accustomed to being held by you and you can even carry him in your hand without fear of him jumping out from his cage to playtime sessions.

I would continue to offer to hand feed your hamster as long as he doesn't always bite when you offer your hand. Patience and consistency is the key to taming. I will be wishing the three of you the best of luck. Have fun with the process, and please let us know how it is coming along.

[cypher]

I find barred cages much easier especially is you can get a barred cage with a nice large front door for access but even without that it allows you to interact with your hams without invading there space & some, especially the more nervous ones are more comfortable with that.
You do of course have to weigh up the stress of moving home again against the benefits.
It's not long since you got your boys & they have already been through some big changes so take your time with taming & give them time to settle now.
I would ditch the gloves too, they are generally only used as a last resort with hams that won't stop biting.
Your hams need to get to know your scent & will probably find it a lot less of a threat than a glove in the cage!

[hellobg]

Thanks cypher and dreamtree, the reason I use gloves is they do nibble hard, not enough to draw blood but enough for me to feel it, I'm not sure for Sterling but that's what Franc did

I did use the tissue trick, apparently it wasn't enough. There was a thing I did with Franc since I was going to clean Teo's cage, the Kerry Terrarium and I had an idea to put Franc there. Anyways I did put Franc there and Teo in the Alaska because he wanted more space. Franc barely noticed the difference as I put the used bedding ontop.

I wonder if I can do that with Sterling as it seems to have worked with Franc.

As for the gloves, I confidently tried without it to Teodor, surprisingly his nibble doesn't feel too hard like Francs and I'll try to do it for Sterling and Franc.