University / college students with hamsters??

[ReaJayne]

I'm a university student renting with roommates next semester and I do not own a hamster yet, but definitely looking into it. It would be great to hear some stories from current or past hamster-owning students and what challenges, if any, that they faced.

Here are some questions to lead the discussion:
My friend said that technically pets were not allowed in her suite, but hamsters and fish were fine. Does anyone else have this experience?
Along with tuition, rent, groceries, etc., does owning a hamster add unneeded financial strain? Is it worth it? Approximately how much extra per month would it cost?
Were your roommates fine with the hamster? Did they make you keep it in your room? Did any of them have allergies? Does the hamster have to get used to everyone, or be re-tamed by everyone?
Did the hamster keep you up at night when you needed sleep badly? Is a silent wheel a good investment?
Does owning a hamster (or any other pet) distract from assignments and getting good grades? Did you regret the added responsibility of having to take care of a pet?
I am thinking of getting the Detolf cage. Does anyone have experience with solving space issues?
As a student, you might move more frequently like going home for the holidays, moving back to your parents' house for the summer, trips over reading break etc. Would this stress out the hamster badly? I would not take the hamster on a trip or home for a weekend though.

Just an fyi, I am not living in residence! Most university residences do not allow any pets, nor is there the space for one. But if you did have a pet while living in residence, it would great to hear your story too!

[peasypea]

I don't know if things are a bit different as I'm a UK student but I had a hamster when I was at uni for the first time. Her cage was in the corridor by my room, and the next year when we were in a different house she was in the living room. I didn't have her when I lived in university accomodation though, only when we rented houses. My housemates were all fine with her, I made sure to move her into the safety of my room if there was a party but generally she was fine in the communal space as my friends were trustworthy!

There is no way I could have had her in my room though as she was a bar chewer. A detolf would probably be ok as they can't make loads of noise? You'd have to have a big room for that though.

I would let her run around my room in the evenings when I was studying, so she had plenty of exercise. It was a bit distracting but I'm a mega procrastinator so anything will distract me hah!

I used to take her home in a little carrier (either in the car or on the train) and had a spare cage at home for the holidays. Depends how long your journey would be but mine was up to 3 hours and Pixie always seemed fine, just slept in her little house for the duration of the journey - hiding or sleeping I don't know but she never seemed bothered when the journey was over.

Hope that helps a bit! What are you studying?

[ReaJayne]

Thank you, that helps a lot! It's good to hear that your housemates didn't seem to mind her. Having a spare cage at home is a good idea! And it's sweet that your hamster would be fine travelling for 3 hours! I'm planning on getting a BA degree in economics! You?

[peasypea]

I hope that it will work for you! I loved having Pixie at uni with me and I didn't find it was an inconvenience at any point really, only when having to worry about travelling home carrying a hamster and a massive suitcase on the train! But we managed

I'm doing a second degree in veterinary medicine now. I worked for a couple of years after leaving uni the first time and then went back to do another degree because I'm crazy hah! But I have a flat with my boyfriend rather than living in shared housing. And I have another hamster called Nelly who is super spoilt and a good distraction from doing revision.

[mountaingirl95]

Hi! I'm also a college student living in a rented apartment with pet hamsters. I have had my 2 male Robo dwarf hamsters, Nugget and Burrito, for about 4 months now and absolutely love them!

They have been very little financial strain so far, only about $15 a month or so. I buy their food in bulk from the local pet store and I buy large bags of their bedding so that it can last a while. The most expensive part was setting up their cages with all the necessary equipment (I recently separated them into 2 separate cages due to fighting so be prepared to purchase a second cage if you have multiple hamsters).

It was actually my roommates idea to get the hamsters in the first place but she has since grown bored with them while I have grown to love them very much. She doesn't have a problem with them though since I take care of them and she doesn't have to do anything. Sometimes she will ask me to move them to my bedroom if she's watching a movie in our living room and their wheels are being loud, but otherwise they haven't bothered her at all.

A silent wheel is definitely a good investment. My hamsters usually stay in our living room but sometimes I can hear them running on their wheels at night if the wheels haven't been greased in a while. I've kind of tuned it out and it's turned into white noise but one time when the wheels got really squeaky I greased them with Crisco and that helped a lot with the noise.

I have never regretted getting my sweet babies. In fact, I never realized how fun and loveable hamsters could be and now I can't imagine not having them! Owning pets really makes a house a home and hamsters are a great inexpensive and fun option for college pets. They haven't affected my studying or grades at all. They are mostly active at night so I don't have to worry about them when I'm in classes during the day and I can just spend time with them when I get home in the evenings.

As far as holidays, I have had to bring them home with me twice now. I packed their cages in tightly in the back floorboard of my car and made sure they had plenty of food and water before we got on the road. They made it just fine both times (they're actually currently home with me for Christmas break right now).

Overall I would definitely recommend getting hamsters as a college student! You need to be willing to spend time taming them and playing with them, and be prepared for any emergencies such as medical problems or fighting between hamsters. But so far I have had zero regrets about getting them and they have been a fun relief from the stress of college! Let me know if you have more questions and good luck!

[Bertiebobbins]

I was the kind of student that definitely wasn't responsible enough to have a pet ha ha!

Aside from the running costs, which aren't much after you've set the cage up (which can be pricey), you need to consider if you will be able to pay an unexpected vet bill should your hamster need it. This means either you know you have enough money as an ongoing thing, or you can put a sum aside as a contingency.