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Old 01-14-2020, 07:53 PM   #1
HamsterGirl669
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Default Smelly hamster cage!

Hi, I have a russian cambells's dwarf hamster. His cage smells VERY bad, even after spot cleaning, removing his wheel and completely cleaning it. (he likes to use it as a litter box) I also removed a wooden ledge that had been trapping a lot of urine in it. The smell still won't go away. His cage is half aspen shavings and half paper based bedding. The only other wooden object in there is a 2 chamber hide out, which he rarely uses except for climbing on top, where his food and water dishes are. He has a fairly large cage-an IKEA detolf. I don't know what else to do to reduce the odor! I sometimes have to leave my room to get away from the smell. Any advice?
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Old 01-15-2020, 12:58 AM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

How long have you had him? Sometimes they will scent mark a lot & pee in lots of different places just to get their scent around the cage especially when new & the more you clean the more they do it.How often do you clean the wheel? That will sometimes make the whole cage smell but if you clean it too often they tend to just pee in it more!
A healthy Russian hybrid shouldn't be peeing much at all so it is unusual for the cage to smell, does he drink much?
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Old 01-15-2020, 04:41 AM   #3
HamsterGirl669
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

I’ve had him for about 3 months. I refill his water dish every two days and it’s about half way 1/2 way full. I’m very new to having hamsters so I’m not sure if that’s a lot or not.
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Old 01-15-2020, 05:34 AM   #4
cypher
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

Can you measure how many mls of water the bowl holds, that will give a better idea of whether he may be drinking more than a normal amount, most probably drink no more than about 5ml a day, some less.
You do need to give fresh water daily too.
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Old 01-15-2020, 06:20 PM   #5
HamsterGirl669
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

Quote:
Originally Posted by cypher View Post
Can you measure how many mls of water the bowl holds, that will give a better idea of whether he may be drinking more than a normal amount, most probably drink no more than about 5ml a day, some less.
You do need to give fresh water daily too.
So I did some measuring. It holds about 20 milliliters (or 4 teaspoons) in it (it is just a glass tea light candle holder from ikea). So he must be drinking 5 ml in one, which is a normal amount? Also I apologize if my math is off, it is not my forte.
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Old 01-15-2020, 11:47 PM   #6
cypher
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

That doesn't sound excessive so there's no problem there.
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Old 01-16-2020, 08:40 PM   #7
Dessi
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

If you spot clean, then whatever wooden object you have in there must be the problem, or the cage itself, if it’s made of wood. I would get rid of anything in wood or in any material that can absorb urine and just keep plastic or other non absorbant material and bedding around. For my dwarf, I have a flying saucer and my hamster also pees in it every night. So I clean it every day. Also, when he spins, the urine splashes on the walls of the bin cage so I need to clean the walls daily as well. I have a very sensitive nose and his cage doesn’t smell at all.

Do you provide a sand bath a. If not I would add one, he will keep himself clean this waiy.
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Old 01-17-2020, 03:27 PM   #8
WiildSunflowers
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Default Re: Smelly hamster cage!

depending on the type of cage you're using, the smell will build up more.

for example, my mother uses a bin cage for her hamster, and plastic is always going to trap in smells more than my rat cage that has entirely wire walls. ventilation is key when cutting back on rodent smells! if you have a wooden or plastic cage, you can usually cut holes in them and attach mesh (hardware cloth works great imo) to the tops / sides to allow more air circulation, where you can't do that if you have a solid glass tank.

depending on what you clean with or how frequently you do it can also help! i recommend deep cleaning your hamster cage once a month with a 50/50 mix of water and white vinegar to really get out any smells, as well as spot cleaning every day while replacing the bedding weekly.
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