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Old 11-08-2015, 08:28 PM   #1
Ann
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Default Chinese hamster questions

Hi there! My husband bought a Chinese hamster for me this past Friday and I had a couple questions about her. I know they're pretty shy in general so I've just been letting her settle in. I've only seen her come out twice for a few seconds each time and that was only to get a couple pieces of food to take back in her house. Is there a way to encourage her to come out or at least not run and hide if she sees me move? I'm not wanting to rush her or anything, just wanted to get some ideas for after she's settled in.

The other thing I wanted to ask about was climbing toys. I've read that Chinese hamsters like to climb. Is that pretty common or does it really just depend on the individual hamster? I live in the US and there aren't very many climbing type toys for hamsters. At least, not that I've seen. I saw some parakeet ladders online. Would that be a good option? I'm also open to DYI if anyone has any suggestions.
I have her in a bin cage measuring 16in X 27in. Is that big enough? It's definitely bigger than what she was in when we got her but I can get a bigger one if I need to. I was also planning on adding at least one level to it. My daughter wanted to name her Clover, so I think that's what we're going with. I'll try to get a picture of her when/if she decides to come out. She's very cute and seems to be really sweet the little bit I've seen of her.
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Old 11-08-2015, 09:36 PM   #2
virtualkeith
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Hi Ann.

Congratulations on your new hamster!
I have actually never laid eyes on a Chinese except for pictures as they are restricted in my state. I can't give you specific information, but I would wait and hopefully a member named cypher will answer questions for you. She is really knowledgeable and I know she has had chinese hamsters before.
As you said, hamsters can have their own personalities, and I was advised here to let my Syrian settle anywhere from 3-7 days. I've heard chinese are a shy species, but hopefully cypher can be of help. I'm sure there are others here as well who can probably give you advise.
Best of luck, and congratulations again!
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Old 11-08-2015, 10:17 PM   #3
cypher
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Congrats on your new little one Ann

Chinese do tend to be a little bit shy & timid to begin with but the principles of getting them used to you are the same, it may just take a slightly more gentle approach & a bit more patience.
Begin with the tissue trick, some toilet tissue up your sleeve for a few hours then pop that into the cage & repeat for a few days so she can get really familiar with your scent & learn it's non threatening, stand by her cage & talk to her quietly, even if she's hiding away she'll know you're there & get used to having you around.
Once she's settled she should begin to get braver & then you can try introducing your hand into the cage, try to let her come to you at first.
Scatter feeding is also a good way to encourage them to be out & about a bit more & encourages natural behaviour too, I usually begin half & half, some food in a bowl if that's what they're used to & some scattered or hidden around the cage.
They are such gentle little things & so rewarding once they come out of their shells so just give her a little time & don't rush her & I'm sure she'll be fine.

They do love to climb & are a lot more agile than the other species but some bird ladders can still be unsafe if the rungs are far apart & they have any bits on them that little feet can get caught in so do be careful, they are just as happy to dig & burrow so lots of substrate is important, plain old cardboard tubes or small boxes, egg cartons,coconut shells, small terracotta flower pots & simple things like that can make perfect toys for both climbing on & hiding in so don't worry if you can't find things specifically for hams that you think would suit her.
Her bin cage should be fine for now but she could probably do with more space once she's more confident, they don't like lots of open space but are very active so plenty of toys & hideouts along with an 8" wheel all of which need a good bit of room in the cage!
Keep us posted, look forward to hearing more about her
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Last edited by cypher; 11-08-2015 at 11:51 PM.
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Old 11-09-2015, 02:38 PM   #4
Ann
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Thanks! I'll skip the parakeet ladder. I was a little iffy about it anyway, but thought it was at least worth asking about. I do have some toilet paper tubes and egg cartons already in her cage along with a tunnel and sand bath. Looks like I'm going to have to get a bigger wheel, though. I have a 6.5" silent spinner that belonged to our winter white who passed away a couple weeks ago. I thought it might be on the small side since she's so long, but I'll get a bigger one as soon as I'm able to. I'll definitely try the tissue trick. Hopefully she'll warm up to me soon. I might try to get a picture of her the next time she comes out... if she stays still long enough.
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Old 11-09-2015, 02:42 PM   #5
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

we have had three Chinese now and they are lovely little beasts. You may find moderator Vectis site of use as she specialises in Chinese and has lots of information there
http://vectishams.webs.com/

I personally don't like my hamsters to climb as there can be issues if the fall off or twist badly and catch a limb in the bars
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Old 11-09-2015, 03:44 PM   #6
Vectis Hamstery
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Congratulations on being owned by a Chinesey. They really are lovely hamsters. She may bot have had as much space as you've given her in her old home, so making sure she has plenty of hidey holes is a good idea. She may not approach you for attention, and they are often more active in their cages at night when the lights go off, so you will likely need to get her out to start handling her. You can use a cardboard tube to let her run into and then let her walk from the end onto your hand (held an inch or two above the floor) and then let her walk hand to hand when she gets more confident with you. I like to handle new hams over a box so if they run off I don't have to grab onto them.

Try her with the silent spinner you have before going out and getting a new one (if she's old enough for a wheel). It can be fine for some Chinese hams.

My Chineseys love lots of substrate to dig about in and burrow. In fact, most of them prefer that to climbing if given the choice! For climbing, I've used branches from the reptile/fish sections of pet shops for them to scamper over if they choose.
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Old 11-10-2015, 09:50 AM   #7
Ann
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

I think she's starting to get a little braver. She lingered a little longer when she came out last night. How long should I wait before I start handling her? I don't want to wake her up, should I just wait until evening when she's more likely to be awake? Or should I just wait until she comes out of her house? Thanks so much for the advice!
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Old 11-10-2015, 01:27 PM   #8
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Quote:
Originally Posted by Vectis Hamstery View Post
Try her with the silent spinner you have before going out and getting a new one (if she's old enough for a wheel). It can be fine for some Chinese hams.
I have 6.5" Silent Spinners for my two Chineseys and although Lord James isn't quite old enough for his yet, it's the perfect size for Lady May who is fully grown at 10 months old. I wouldn't say she's excessively small for a Chinese so it might be worth doing as Vectis suggests and trying her with it to see how she gets on.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Vectis Hamstery View Post
My Chineseys love lots of substrate to dig about in and burrow. In fact, most of them prefer that to climbing if given the choice! For climbing, I've used branches from the reptile/fish sections of pet shops for them to scamper over if they choose.
That's a really good idea and once that didn't really cross my mind until now. I'll have to have a look in the aquatics section for some next time I go to the pet shop.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ann View Post
I think she's starting to get a little braver. She lingered a little longer when she came out last night. How long should I wait before I start handling her? I don't want to wake her up, should I just wait until evening when she's more likely to be awake? Or should I just wait until she comes out of her house? Thanks so much for the advice!
With Lady May I used to wait until the evening before waking her up gently and then allowing her to come out of her nest before trying to get her out. When I first got her I found it easier to get her to climb into a toy or something to lift her out until she got used to me and eventually she was happy to let me pick her up from her cage.

Congratulations on your new addition by the way.
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Old 11-10-2015, 10:54 PM   #9
cypher
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

I don't generally wake hams up but if you want to try you could do a noisy feeding time, rustling the food bag, to tempt her out.
It does sound as though she's gaining confidence so I would be inclined to just approach her when she comes out of her house & start to introduce your hand or if you want to try taking her out for some time in a taming box, play pen or whatever you have that's safe to use see if she'll climb into a tube or a little box, mug or something similar.
Just take small steps, don't try to do too much at once & she'll probably make steady progress.
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Old 11-11-2015, 06:52 PM   #10
Ann
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Default Re: Chinese hamster questions

Well, she was doing really well until yesterday. She didn't come out at all until after I went to bed. I think my 6 year old scared her. He picked up her house so he could see her when I wasn't in the room (because he knows he's not supposed to do that). I walked in right as he did it so I put her house back right away. One thing I noticed though was she's been peeing in her nest and it smells really bad. I know I shouldn't really change anything in her cage yet, but should I go ahead and clean it? She seems to really like the sand and the wheel. I have clean the poop off her wheel every morning and she seems to like digging in the sand. I just wish I could see her do some her exploring.
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