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Old 07-23-2016, 12:33 PM   #1
michyLS
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Default Moving hamster to a new cage

Should I keep the set up similar to what he has now ? He's currently in a savic Bristol and I've just ordered a Alaska cageand a little hamster house. I'm not sure how to set it all up ?
He currently has a pile of paper bedding in a corner which he sleeps in which has a bendy bridge over it. Shall I put that into his new cage along with the new wooden house I've bought ? The alaska has a little house on the shelf doesn't it, so that would be 3 houses or doesn't it matter ?!
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Old 07-24-2016, 02:50 AM   #2
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Moving hamster to a new cage

Hi. It can help to keep a similar kind of layout if possible (not always possible) eg wheel at the same end, house in the same corner. The main thing though is to move over all the current substrate and don't clean any current items when you move them over That means things still smell familiar and it really helps with the settling in process and avoids stress. As the Alaska is a bigger cage I would suggest filling the base with new substrate to around 2cm from the top of the base and then sprinkling all the old substrate from the Bristol on top of that. If there isn't quite enough to put a layer over the whole cage then put most of it near the house area.

The house on the shelf in the Alaska isn't suitable really. It's not good for nesting (better to have a house that sits directly on top of the substrate) and the holes in it are a bit small for a Syrian. If you have quite a large Syrian I would just take the white cat house out - the shelf is fine without it. If you have quite a small Syrian you could just leave it in as a hidey place. Personally I would take it out.

He may decide to nest differently in the new cage. I would put the new wood house where you would like him to nest and put his current bendy bridge over the door of it so it's nice and dark inside - that way he is almost certain to go in there and nest Providing the house is big enough. If it's a bit small he might ignore it and nest in the white house on the shelf or make another bedding pile somewhere. If he does that, or the wood house isn't big enough you could always make a slightly bigger house out of a cardboard shoe box with a hole cut in for a door and pop it over the top of his nest pile!

If you think the wood house is big enough, then it might be an idea to put some of his old nesting material in there. But still put a big pile of new nesting paper (ie tear sheets of plain white toilet paper into strips and put a big pile somewhere in the cage so he can pouch it and take it to where he wants to nest).

If you can put the house and wheel in a similar layout it can help with settling in, but if there's a slight variation it shouldn't matter too much.
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Old 07-24-2016, 03:46 AM   #3
cypher
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Default Re: Moving hamster to a new cage

It does help to keep at least some of the layout similar but I wouldn't worry too much about that as long as he has his familiar things in there with his scent on.
If you move all the substrate from his current cage & put it on top of the additional substrate you'll need in the alaska that will help make him feel secure in there too.
I agree about the house that comes with the alaska, I took one look & binned it lol! I don't think it's good for anything really.
I don't even use the shelf that comes with it, large wooden houses with a flat roof & bolt on ledges, lava ledges or small wooden shelves can work well if not better.
If you find you have lots of space you can just fill it with things like egg boxes or cardboard tubes so it's not too open, it's not a huge cage though so he should settle easily enough & I'm sure he'll love it.
I don't think you can have too many houses or spaces suitable for nesting really, he'll make up his own mind once he settles in. It might be an idea to keep his bendy bridge separate from the house with his usual pile of tissue as that's what he's used to, I find that unless a house has a huge door they just stuff it with substrate if they want it dark in there, you don't generally need to cover it over or at least I haven't really needed to with any of my russians.
If you're unsure about your set up you could post some photos for suggestions.
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Old 07-24-2016, 06:31 AM   #4
michyLS
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Default Re: Moving hamster to a new cage

Brilliant thank you. I have a dwarf hammie though he is quite big so may or may not fit in the house that comes with the cage. I quite like the idea of making my own level though , saw someone on here used the ikea magazine holder so may try that. I'm on holiday at the moment, due home tomorrow and I'm keen to get to the petshop to buy more toys !
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Old 07-24-2016, 09:19 AM   #5
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Moving hamster to a new cage

That's a good point Cypher makes - they do tend to stuff their doors up to make it dark inside. Me putting the bendy bridge over the door was a wily bit of temptation to make our hammy go down the tunnel and use the house lol. Which he did. Plus it made a useful ramp/bridge to the roof of the house.
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