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Old 04-23-2020, 11:37 AM   #1
Rashy
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Join Date: Mar 2020
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Default Attacked by my hamster

A few days ago, we did get a new dwarf boy in house, he is 4 months old. I have given him some food from the hand, but today he attacted my hand and did bite me. His previous owners did give up to tame him.

He have a cage there are 78 cm. What can I do so he doesnt attack me again?
Can it help to get a cage with a door in the front?

Last edited by Rashy; 04-23-2020 at 11:42 AM. Reason: Missed something
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Old 04-23-2020, 11:40 AM   #2
Flossypet
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Can you post a more accurate description of your cage, maybe a photo? It's hard to know what you mean by 72cm.
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Old 04-23-2020, 11:49 AM   #3
Rashy
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

It is ferplast criceti15
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Old 04-23-2020, 12:30 PM   #4
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Hi there. It just means he is scared - most hamsters aren’t keen on a hand in the cage, even when they are tame, but if he ran at your hand it will be fear of an intruder in his territory. The biting could be if your hands smell of food Testing to see if you’re edible. They can get cage rage if they’re stressed but that seems unlikely in a good sized cage - unless you have been cleaning him out a lot and throwing away his nest and hoard! Too much cleaning out can make them very stressed - it removes all their scent. If you have at least 4 to 6 inch deep substrate you can use a litter tray and spot clean mostly then you don’t need to change the substrate for a long time - I go 2 to 3 months. Their nest and hoard can be left alone unless pee’d in but they hoard might need pruning down a bit from the bottom when you eventually do a substrate change.

Having said all that it is a top opening cage and some hamsters feel scared by things coming from above - like a claw! Being prey animals and a front opening door is a lot better generally fir interaction. Add into that he may have been roughly handled by his previous owners or at some time before that.

If you can get a cage with a front opening door that would be a good start to taming, along with plenty of enrichment in the cage - variety, a nice house, tunnels and chews etc. Plenty of hidey places - so he feels happy. After that you’ll probably need to take it slowly so trust builds. He needs to get familiar with your voice and scent first and you could then try some hand taming out of the cage - eg in a playpen area or dry bathtub. You could wear gloves if worried he may bite.

If he’s had a really bad experience with hands previously it could take a bit of time for him to trust being handled. I had a Robo I never could handle (he didn’t bite but hid and didn’t like being handled) but still had a lot of interaction with him and little chats.

A good cage is probably the Hamster Heaven got a dwarf hamster - if you take out the plastic tunnels and penthouse and just leave the one solid shelf. It’s not too tall a cage and has a lovely big front opening door. I would also suggest getting both an upright wheel and a flying saucer for added enrichment and hidey places like cardboard boxes. You could also scatter feed as they like foraging.

Not sure how long you’ve had him but the first couple of days it is best to completely leave them alone. After that they need a couple of weeks settling in time so during that time don’t do clean outs or move things around in the cage. You can keep talking to him through the bars and offering him a treat through the bars. Unless he shows signs of wanting to come out I would wait that two weeks and just keep talking to him and offering him treats through the bars. After that you could lower a tube into the cage with a smelly treat at the far end (the other end near his house). When he walks into the tube for the treat put both hands over the ends (wear gloves) and lift him out in the tube keeping it level. Don’t jump and drop him if he pushes against your hand. You need a box right next to the cage so you can put the tube down on the box and let him walk out of it. You can then carry him on the box to a playpen area or bath area for taming. They can have completely different behaviour out of the cage than in the cage - in the cage they are territorial.
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Old 04-23-2020, 12:37 PM   #5
Rashy
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Hi there. It just means he is scared - most hamsters aren’t keen on a hand in the cage, even when they are tame, but if he ran at your hand it will be fear of an intruder in his territory. The biting could be if your hands smell of food Testing to see if you’re edible. They can get cage rage if they’re stressed but that seems unlikely in a good sized cage - unless you have been cleaning him out a lot and throwing away his nest and hoard! Too much cleaning out can make them very stressed - it removes all their scent. If you have at least 4 to 6 inch deep substrate you can use a litter tray and spot clean mostly then you don’t need to change the substrate for a long time - I go 2 to 3 months. Their nest and hoard can be left alone unless pee’d in but they hoard might need pruning down a bit from the bottom when you eventually do a substrate change.

Having said all that it is a top opening cage and some hamsters feel scared by things coming from above - like a claw! Being prey animals and a front opening door is a lot better generally fir interaction. Add into that he may have been roughly handled by his previous owners or at some time before that.

If you can get a cage with a front opening door that would be a good start to taming, along with plenty of enrichment in the cage - variety, a nice house, tunnels and chews etc. Plenty of hidey places - so he feels happy. After that you’ll probably need to take it slowly so trust builds. He needs to get familiar with your voice and scent first and you could then try some hand taming out of the cage - eg in a playpen area or dry bathtub. You could wear gloves if worried he may bite.

If he’s had a really bad experience with hands previously it could take a bit of time for him to trust being handled. I had a Robo I never could handle (he didn’t bite but hid and didn’t like being handled) but still had a lot of interaction with him and little chats.

A good cage is probably the Hamster Heaven got a dwarf hamster - if you take out the plastic tunnels and penthouse and just leave the one solid shelf. It’s not too tall a cage and has a lovely big front opening door. I would also suggest getting both an upright wheel and a flying saucer for added enrichment and hidey places like cardboard boxes. You could also scatter feed as they like foraging.

Not sure how long you’ve had him but the first couple of days it is best to completely leave them alone. After that they need a couple of weeks settling in time so during that time don’t do clean outs or move things around in the cage. You can keep talking to him through the bars and offering him a treat through the bars. Unless he shows signs of wanting to come out I would wait that two weeks and just keep talking to him and offering him treats through the bars. After that you could lower a tube into the cage with a smelly treat at the far end (the other end near his house). When he walks into the tube for the treat put both hands over the ends (wear gloves) and lift him out in the tube keeping it level. Don’t jump and drop him if he pushes against your hand. You need a box right next to the cage so you can put the tube down on the box and let him walk out of it. You can then carry him on the box to a playpen area or bath area for taming. They can have completely different behaviour out of the cage than in the cage - in the cage they are territorial.

Thank you It sounds like I need to buy a new cage then. I dont know how he have been treated before, I only know that they kinda gave up on him. Now he do have a waterbowl, but I will buy a waterbottle for him tomorrow. How is the mary rat cage from ferplast as a hamster cage?
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Old 04-23-2020, 02:03 PM   #6
Vierville
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Hi Rashy.

Firstly, thank you for giving the little hamster a second chance.

He is only biting and attacking you because he is scared. My hamsters did this when I first got them too.

You just need to offer him lots of treats like dried mealworms and sunflower seeds and talk to him gently and over time he will become much more tame.

The Ferplast Mary cage is a good size for a dwarf hamster. The bars are 1.1cm apart which should be OK.

Good luck!
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Old 04-23-2020, 02:08 PM   #7
Rashy
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Oh, thank you, all animals needs a second chance

Do you have alaska hamster cage in uk?
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Old 04-23-2020, 08:49 PM   #8
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

The Alaska is a good option and it’s available in the Uk. It’s a bit tall for a dwarf hamster though. The Mary doesn’t have good access I believe so not much an improvement on what you have. I’d get the Hamster Heaven. The Alaska is cheaper but you’d need quite a few extra shelves etc to make it safe and avoid fall risks due to the height whereas the hamster heaven is lower and already has a shelf - and a wheel. The tubes can make good floor toys in single runs rather than attached to the cage. Access is very good in the HH - proportionwise.
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Old 04-24-2020, 03:58 AM   #9
Rashy
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

Alaska is smaller in hight then HH, but do you chose HH because it is a more complete hamster cage?
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Old 04-24-2020, 04:03 AM   #10
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Attacked by my hamster

HH is 38cm tall Alaska is about 46cm tall . The listing for the HH says 50cm tall but that includes the height of the plastic penthouse (which really needs removing!). The actual cage itself is 38cm tall (about 36cm tall inside).

The HH works best just as a plain cage with one shelf left in and the Penthouse and tubes removed (it comes with caps to block off the tubes). It is a good size and has a huge door that goes right to the top of the cage - one of the best things. Plus low height. You can sometimes find them second hand on ebay cheaper although with the current situation that might not be easy or a good idea - not sure.

Also forgot to add - at four months old your hammie is still a child - very young - easily scared. I'm sure he'll soon settle down.
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