Needing many answers about my Black With Tort Hamster Maddie

[BlackWhiteTortMaddie]

So, I’ve had a black and white tort (I think that’s what it’s called?) hamster named Maddie since September 2018, and I’ve done mediocre research on how to take care of her. After new occurrences and digging deeper, I feel like I need a lot of questions answered. Recently, we got a huge cage off someone, who had rats in it. I Clorox wiped it all down, let it sit for a few days, and got a new tray for the bottom, then finally moved her over. She doesn’t chew on the cage so I’m not too worried about the Clorox.

First Question> She likes it, but we had a problem where she would crawl through a corner and get under the tray and get stuck between the tray and the cage wall. Is it normal for them to want to squish themselves or was she looking for a way out? We put stuff outside of the tray to prevent her from doing it, but she’ll still try often.

Second Question> The cage has a lot of stuff for her to climb. for example, trays that go from one side to the other with a little staircase to get to each. The problem is that she likes to climb to the top of the cage or on top of the wheel, but then doesn’t know how to get down and falls. She did this the first day but I don’t see or hear her (falling) doing it anymore. Should I be worried about the cage being too big and her falling or do you think she would learn after a day or two?

Third Question> The cage didn’t come with a water dripper, so we are using the one from her old small cage. However, Maddie has been acting weird lately, staying EXTREMELY still, we will get to that later. I did research, and the only thing I could find about staying really still is smelling something, hearing something, or dehydration. Since she’s been in that cage for a few days now with the same exact environment, I checked the water. I click my finger on it, and a very small amount, not even a drop, comes out. I tried cleaning it out but nothing changed. I read somewhere on these forums that I should get it replaced immediately, but for the meanwhile have a saucer with water for her to drink. Is that a good idea to leave a cup of water in her cage? Note that I made sure she knows it is water and that she can drink it, but I’m afraid shes not the smartest and may jump into it.

Fourth Question> About the whole staying EXTREMELY still part. I’ve read through pages and pages of forums about this, and the majority of people say it’s out of fear or it’s comfortable. Its definitely not out of fear and it’s definitely not smelling anything new/ hearing anything since it’s already been in the cage for a few days. It’s only started staying still today, and it’s scared me to the point where I’m writing this long ass post. She stays very still for decent chunks of time until she comes back to her senses, but that’s in my hand, on a chair, and in her cage by herself. Does anyone have any idea what this might be? I’ve had her since September 2018 and this is the first time she’s done this.

Fifth Question> Before I paid close attention to her because she was doing that, she randomly squealed like she was hurt, but she didn’t seem hurt like she fell or anything. Does that have to do anything with the previous question?

Sixth Question> After reading many forums, I was wondering about the whole “Taming” thing and positive/negative reinforcement. I don’t think I’ve tamed her on purpose, when she first got her we took her out of the carrying box she pissed, pooped, and let out some kind of jizz? But over time we would take her out and play with her, and even though she was still very scared she would get used to us. Never really bit us or did anything like that again, but I don’t feel like I’ve “tamed” her. She runs. A lot. I think her life goal is to escape even though she’s living like a queen. I hear about people letting their Hammies run around as they please, but she hides from me and she’s been out all night a few times. Is she not of the personality to run around freely or is she just exploring?

Last question> If you’re still reading this, thank you so much for taking the time to help me out, Im in desperate need for answers. Anyways, the last question is about how to get her more comfortable around me. I can hold her and put her on my shoulder, but she just runs around constantly, I’m assuming that’s normal, but I have a lot of cousins that come over often and aren’t nice to her. I feel like that’s what makes her run and want to escape, but I know she can sense the difference between me and them. Is there any way I can make her more calm and want to stay around me?

[Shannonmcn]

Hi! Welcome to the forum!

A lot of your questions would be easier to answer if you posted a picture of your cage. (I find uploading to imgur and posting the BB code link is the easiest way.)

1. They do both like to squish themselves into small spaces sometimes (especially if they're feeling insecure) but she is almost certainly looking for a potential escape route. For a lot of female syrians that is the ultimate life mission. Is she actually stuck? Could she hurt herself doing this? If the cage is designed in a way she can get trapped somewhere I would think about whether or not it is actually suitable.

2. You should be worried yes. They can seriously injure themselves. On the other hand she may just be excited and maybe a bit stressed in her new cage and yes, she might stop. If she doesn't though you'll need to find ways of adding extra levels or hammocks etc so she can't fall too far.

3. Hams do fine with a bowl. It should be shallow though, not a cup. I saw an ErinsAnimals video recently with the idea of putting rocks or pebbles in their water dish with the water so they don't feel as inclined to jump in.

4. It sounds to me like she's heard or smelled something. They have much more sensitive noses and ears than we do so it's likely something you would never notice yourself. A few days really isn't enough time for her to feel comfortable in her new cage yet so she is probably a little bit on edge or nervous. That's perfectly normal.

5. In combination with random squealing tho, that is a concern. Is she still moving well? Like, running on her wheel normally, no limps or favoring any legs, still digging about, foraging etc. Squealing and freezing aren't really symptoms you can do much with so you'll have to keep a close eye on her and consider a trip to the vet.

6. Female syrians are notorious for this kind of behaviour, I wouldn't worry about it. If you can pick her up and handle her without scaring her then she's as tame as she needs to be in my opinion.

7. If your cousins aren't nice to her, your cousins shouldn't be anywhere near her. Ever. She might be able to tell the difference between you and the people who aren't nice but that is besides the point. You have a responsibility to protect her here.

[BlackWhiteTortMaddie]

I can’t download imgur at the moment due to apple problems, but the cage is about 31.5 x 21.5 x 35 inches, with strong bars that she doesn’t seem to chew on. I have two levels in there that don’t reach the top, I feel like she wants to be able to get to the top so I’ll look around for new pieces to put in. She hasn’t tried going under the tray since we blocked it off, but when she could she couldn’t get herself out. If not being watched, she could’ve stayed stuck for a long time and result in getting hurt. We couldnt find a tray to fit the bottom of the cage so we made our own that works fine, then we covered up the area she was getting under at. I can tell she slowly is learning her lesson with climbing up the bars, considering she’s been doing it much less. 6 of her old cage could fit in the new one, so I’m guessing she isn’t used to being able to go that far up. It was a random squeal that I’ve only heard that one and only time, but she still is running around like normal and running on the wheel. Lastly, my Cousins live at my house half the time so I will have to give them a talk or they can’t be near her. Thank you for all of this information, I’ve been doing lots of research but I can’t find answers to some of these questions without asking. I will try to find more levels and get a picture on here of her cage, so I’ll keep you all informed

[10Minutes]

Do try feeding her water directly if you're concerned she's not getting her water.

I'm concerned because I've never seen my hamster drink (my husband said he saw her drink once), so although the bottle is there all day, I remove it to feed her directly from the bottle every evening. My hamster is willing to drink if fed, but she just drinks a little and doesn't seem that thirsty. To be on the safe side, I' do intend to continue doing that because it's really important that she does get some water.

You don't have to be very intrusive to feed her from the bottle (as you mentioned, your hamster might be a little nervous). I usually just call her name softly and tap the spout against her nest where she's sleeping, then place the spout in front of her to sniff when she comes out to investigate. When she starts licking at it, I'll gently squeeze the bottle a bit so that the drops fall out easier for her. I'm careful to be gentle about it so that it doesn't get in her nose and cause choking. She usually drinks a little, and loses interest. I'll try a few more times and if she doesn't show any more interest in it, I'll just replace the bottle.