Sputnik Hamster House

[KDcow]

Hey all, a few months ago I adopted my latest Syrian hamster, Hammy. He has outgrown his original cage so I have had to buy him a new one, it is still on the way.
He also needs a new house as he completely destroys any cardboard house I put in there! I am thinking of the Sputnik hamster house but am not sure whether it is good or would be too big for the bottom of the new cage (50 x 37cm). I want it to be placed, not hung as he isn't the best climber!
If it is too big or not very good, would you recommend a better house for him? He is quite large!!
Thanks

[SinNyx]

Is there any way you could get him a new cage? Syrians should be in one at least 75x40cm, you don't have to pay much to get ones of that size either and he would be happier with the space

The Sputnik house is probably a little too small for him, I have two for one of my Syrian girlies and she just sits in them to groom, with a larger house for more permanent use.

Most of my hamsters have open nests. You can even just get cardboard boxes and remove the bottom so it's more enclosed. I really liked the little cottage style house from P@H, but being wooden, it just got soaked in wee and chewed, and they are hard to clean.

[KDcow]

The cage is a lot taller rather than length ways, and I am going to eventually add on extra bits to expand outwards as well. I would just let him have an open nest but he gets very nervous and would prefer to sleep under the wheel for safeness, which is a bit of a cramp! I will have to look around for him! Thanks for the quick reply

[NiceCrocs]

Unfortunately, a 50x37 cm cage is far too small for any hamster, especially a syrian. They really need a cage with a least 360 square inches of floor space to live comfortably, and yours comes out to about 286.

As for the Sputnik, it's a fantastic toy, and the perfect size for a syrian, but my hamster will not use it as a nest; it has three holes to go in and out of, an she prefers to nest in a house that has only one entrance, for security I assume. But she loves climbing on it and sitting in it to groom.

[KDcow]

As I said previously, it is taller rather than longer and I am going to add lots of extra bits eventually. I will probably go to the local pet store and check its size, thanks for the help

[nibblet]

Height doesn't count, unfortunately. The part of the cage with the most space is what counts. This is usually the base. Even if you add up the space of all shelves, it still doesn't count.

The Alaska cage from Zooplus is only £36.90 and has 621 sq inch of floor space.

[NiceCrocs]

Originally Posted by nibblet

Height doesn't count, unfortunately. The part of the cage with the most space is what counts. This is usually the base. Even if you add up the space of all shelves, it still doesn't count.

The Alaska cage from Zooplus is only £36.90 and has 621 sq inch of floor space.

^yup. Nibblet beat me to it.

[KDcow]

But like I said, I am going to adding on extra parts

[jemmalg]

Even with extra parts, they still need one big space to run around in. Think about it, would you rather have one big room to live in or lots of tiny ones?

[KDcow]

So adding the same size cage next to it wouldn't give it more space?