Are all my hamster cages too small?

[Rach]

Snuggleham thinks my hamster cage might be too small. I own too Syrains. Fudge's is roughly 50cm by 30cm (aprox 20" by 12"). Summer's is 54cm by 32cm (aprox 20" by 13 1/2"). Sorry about poor inch translations but I don't use them at all. Are they?

These two cages are the same size as all of my friends hamster cages and they have syrains. I'm not allowed a bar cage because my Mum is really fussy and thinks the hamsters will throw the sawdust out. Summers cage had two floors but Fudge's cage has a platform.

What do you think?

[suga]

Can you post some pictures of them...

[SnuggleHam]

My critter trail cage is roughly 20 inches long by 10-12 inches deep. A ten gallon tank measures out to be the same size by length and depth. Many hamster enthusiasts (including myself) agree that this size is to small for a grown syrian hamster.

Unfortunately pet stores would prefer to sell cages that meet the very minimum of cage size standard. I assume the reason for this is to appeal to potential customers interested in purchasing a hamster that likes the idea of the rodent taking up as little space possible, as well as that animals upkeep seeming to require little responsibility. They also seem to design most hamster cages to appeal to the buyers. A hamster could really care less what color its cage is, or what fancy stickers or attachments come with it.

I usually am quite adamant about floor space being more important the tube space or level space. At least in the US I find most of these cages are poorly designed for syrian hamsters. Tubes are usually to small, or levels don't over lap enough to prevent falls, or there are bars to chew. This is just my opinion of course, I will let other speak for themselves.

Here is a picture of my critter trail...


Its was obviously intended to be designed for a syrian hamster by whatever pet company manufactures it. You can assume this based in the size of the wheel and the height the water bottle is mounted. My critter trail never came with a box, so I cant say for sure what kind of hamster the cage was targeted for. But seeing as its pretty small I would only house a dwarf hamster in it. These cages would be wonderful for dwarf hamsters.

I wouldn't house a syrian hamster in anything less then a 29 gallon tank which measure out to roughly 30 inches long by 12 deep. I also use bin cages, you can find lots of storage bins out there that equal about the same space as a 29 gallon.

My bin cages measure just shy of a 29 gallon at 29 inches long by 14 deep. I see bins like this all time when out shopping. So if you want to upgrade I recommend looking into bins. You get more room for your buck, plus they are light weight and very easy to clean.

[souffle]

If the cages have two levels and interesting toys that you change regularly and if you give your hamsters plenty of playtime, attention and free running around with you then the cages should be adequate if not perhaps perfect in size. Also some syrians are quite small so these cages can be fine for those at the smaller end of the size scale. Try not to worry about the cages and concentrate on giving your hammies plenty of attention and free play. Maybe make a playpen out of a large deep box so one can go in that while you handle the other, then swap. That way they are both out for a longer period.

[Rach]

Thats Fudge's cage. I do agree that it was designed for a syrian (wheels the big give away and the reason I bought it). If you think it's too small then I'll look around for a bigger one, but I'm unlikely to get one. That is the biggest non-tube cage I can find around. I can't get tubes because Mum says big no no. I can't build a bin cage their, I simply don't have the time.

For now I'll just keep giving him lots of hugs!

Summer on the other hand is a little harder, because shes so easily stressed and it makes me upset to see her like that, tameing her is becoming impossible. I can still stroke her though and give her cardboard tubes when ever I can now. Any other tips to keep her active? She'll need a new cage anyway because I kinda stepped right though the middle of hers... thankfully she wasn't in it and duck tape manages to keep it going for a while... It's more luck than anything that Snuggleham brought the cage being too small issue up now before I bought another one that was too small! So I guess I need to thank you Snuggleham.

[SnuggleHam]

Originally Posted by Rach

It's more luck than anything that Snuggleham brought the cage being too small issue up now before I bought another one that was too small! So I guess I need to thank you Snuggleham.

The cage size is just my personal standard. Like Souffle said, so long as your ham can have plenty of play time and interaction it should make up for the lack of space I just feel a syrian ham should be given more room then a ten gallon sized cage if possible.

[Rach]

Well, I'll try my best to make the cageup to your standards! I'll try for a cage with two levels (I know all about hamsters falling and I'll be careful), its my best bet with a fussy Mother!

[SnuggleHam]

Originally Posted by Rach

Well, I'll try my best to make the cageup to your standards! I'll try for a cage with two levels (I know all about hamsters falling and I'll be careful), its my best bet with a fussy Mother!

Rach, you don't need to find a larger cage just to meet /my/ cage standards. I'm certainly not going to think less of you if you keep your current cage situation So don't do it because of that, if thats the reason you want look into changing.

[Rach]

No, I've killed Summers cage anyway so it was going to have to be changed sooner or later, I'll just try to look for a bigger one now that I've got some sizes. I'll keep Fudges cage, since he's quite old now and I don't want to stress him out.

[Emms]

That was so funny when you killed Summers cage Rach! I was at her house holding summer and Rach stepped right through the cage
Your cages are a little on the small side Rach but I think they're ok aslong as the hamsters are given chances to run around etc.

Emma x