Family member getting hamster

[cookietiger]

So I've heard through the grape vine that my cousin is getting her child a hamster for christmas (he's around 8 and I think having a pet would be really good for him tbh).

Obviously because of all the misinformation out there about hamster care I want to make sure she has the correct info but because I don't talk to her often and stuff I'm unsure how to inform her without coming across as rude and stuff.
I don't know if she's bought a cage yet or anything.
I don't know how I should approach this?

[pinkpixie]

Could you tell her about this forum and say that you are a member and ask if she would like to join? Explain to her that it's a great place for usefull hamster info.

[Fluffagrams]

I tend to find that personal recommendations and experiences go down better than telling someone what is right and what isn’t as I tend to feel that it comes across more gently and less of a lesson or a lecture.

For example if you wanted to approach the subject of caging I would just say something along the lines of...

‘Have you chosen a cage yet? My hamster has a x which I managed to get online/secondhand/from the pet shop for £x and she really loves all the space she has to play in’

[Pebbles82]

I am sure she would appreciate some help on what to get from someone who has hamsters I think I would just say what I usually tell people - choosing the right cage is important as so many people end up wasting money being sold an unsuitable cage and on top of that it stresses out the hamster and sets back taming having the wrong cage. You could ask her what her budget is and suggest a couple of popular cages that are suitable (eg the hamster heaven). Or let them know what cage you have and why it works well (as mentioned above). At least if it's a boy they're not going to end up with pink and cute! Although stepson was 6 when we got Charlie and he instinctively went for the bright colourful cages in the shop with tubes and little cute plastic houses etc. At eight they are a bit less into cutesy stuff.

I think the best advice could be saying a straightforward cage that's suitable can be personalised with fun things and toys etc. As it's so near Christmas they may just buy the first cage they see in a shop so it would be doing them a favour to offer a bit of money and stress saving advice! If done nicely of course, which I am sure you would

Focus on the taming aspect being easier with the right cage and how it saves on substrate when a cage doesn't need a full clean every week because the base is deeper.

[Pebbles82]

Do you know where they're getting the Hamster from? If it's pets at home you could email her a list of the suitable cages they sell - I can think of 3 or 4. A bit late for Zooplus at this time of year. Could you ring her for a chat? I would just say you wouldn't want anyone else to have the mistakes and hassles you had and so are sharing how to avoid that.

[Sasha04]

I agree with what everyone has said. I would approach the subject easily. Fluffygrams gave a good example.