A few quick questions :)

[Robodwarfs18]

Originally Posted by cypher

I'd agree with Artisans about the fruit, you don't need to worry about the sugar content with robos as you do with hybrids & Chinese but all fruits are fairly acidic & their digestive systems aren't really made to deal with much of that so veg is better, they all seem to have different tastes so just experiment with lots of different veg, there's a safe food list in the wiki section you can check if you're unsure about anything.

Okay I'll just stick with mainly veg. Plus my hamsters never really are the raspberries I put out. Thanks x

[Pebbles82]

Originally Posted by Robodwarfs18

Hi, so I have a few questions about different things and I would really appreciate it if some body would take time to answer them. Thanks!

• What treats or food brands do robos or just dwarves like and what do you recommend?

• Is Carefresh a good brand of substrate? Reviews?

• Can I just switch bedding straight away? What should I do? (Switching from sawdust to Carefresh)

• Are wire playpens okay for dwarf hamsters or can they fit through the bars?

I need all the help I can get and once again, I'm grateful for all answers. Thank you!

Fitch is like Carefresh but without the dust and a lot cheaper! I've started using it recently and I just started mixing it into the shavings when I spot cleaned. Charlie would then pick all the bits of fitch out and take it to make his nest bigger because it's nice and soft and softer than the paper bedding he had. So I'd put a bit more in and he'd pick that out too. When it came to a full cage clean I took the top third of the substrate out and mixed Fitch in with the remaining substrate. I've done another cage clean since then so now it's mostly Fitch and he really likes it both for substrate and for nesting. I found Carefresh a bit dusty but it's fine as well.

If you want to get Fitch you can buy it online. They sell it in 10kg or 20kg - there's only about £1 difference between the two sizes so the bigger one is more economical, but I didn't have space for it so bought the 10kg one and it's still 3/4 full! It lasts for months. Which means you can be really generous with it in the cage as well and not worry about running out or having to buy more regularly. Our bag fits in a corner of the bedroom between the wardrobe and the chair because you can squish it to fit into different shaped gaps lol.

Fitch Recycling - Single Smaller Bale For Smaller Critters - 10kgs £16.99 inc delivery - Fitch Pet Bedding - Animal Bedding

I'm not an expert on robos or playpens and you've had lots of info on treats, but can add a few more ideas for treats and chews.

Charlie loves these Rosewood naturals little hearts, which are flavoured with vegetables. They were really helpful for taming when I decided Rotostak chocolate drops weren't good for him!

Rosewood Naturals Little Hearts Treat 100 g: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies

They also do some good herbal treat sticks. Charlie likes the dandelion ones and the mini rodent ones with cheese in (the dandelion ones last longer though). He's just dragged the remains of his dandelion one into his house.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rosewood-Nat...R16434QT932FBE

Rosewood Rodent Mini Sticks 80 g: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies

He tends to ignore a lot of toys and wood chews but his favourite thing was this carrot log. He chewed all the bark off it, sat on it and spent ages trying to get all the carrot out of the middle every night - good for his teeth.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rosewood-Bor...1J56RCMHK21VJ0

As an extra special treat he gets one of these shrimp cookies - not very often - I got them for his Christmas stocking!

Rosewood Shrimp Cookies 80 g: Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies

I also got some pumpkin seeds. The ones I got were really sharp at one end so I snap the ends off.

About once a week I'll give him half a brazil nut or a monkey nut. I only give him half the brazil nut and eat the other half first to make sure it isn't one of the off ones!

He gets fresh every day so that's not a treat, just part of his diet. I try and give him something different most days in about a 4 or 5 day rotation so it doesn't get boring. Broccoli, carrot, cucumber, celery, baby corn, green beans - depending what we have in. Just two small 1cm size pieces. He goes potty for veg.

I also followed a tip of Cypher's and about once a week I'll scatter his hamster mix in the substrate (still leaving a bit in the bowl) so he forages to find it and he looks really excited when he suddenly finds a bit of food in the substrate!