Substrate depth

[huri ur]

Hey fellow hamster owners
I house my Syrian hamster peanut in a 40 gallon tank
I have 3 inches of kaytee clean and cozy mixed with aspen
Is 3 inches enough ?
Thanks

[AmityvilleHams]

3 inches is not good for a Syrian unless you have a tiny baby Syrian.Even then more is much better,preferably just using straight paper substrate and nothing else.Wood isn't as good as it can be very sharp and isn't as cozy for burrowing,plus it can be incredibly dusty and there are hamsters which have allergies to aspen

For the depth itself,aim for at least 4-6 inches depending on how big your Syrian is.Some won't even begin to burrow until you offer more substrate though,so keep that in mind.

[cypher]

I would say 5 inches would probably be a better depth, some hams use the substrate more than others for digging & burrowing but 3 inches is probably a little too shallow for most hams & deeper substrate also gives better insulation in winter.

[CMB]

Having deep substrate will make it easier for your hamster to reach the top of the tank, making bar chewing more accessible or even escape.

You may have to compromise on substrate depth to fit the wheel in, but this could be placed on shallow substrate and fenced off.

Go with what your hamster likes. If it doesn't enjoy digging/burrowing you don't need deep substrate.

[Pebbles82]

I think 3 to 4" is the minimum recommended. With a tank you have the opportunity to have it quite deep. I would put at least 5 to 6" in. In Germany they recommend a minimum of 12"!!!!! With deeper substrate hammies can burrow and dig tunnels, which are normal behaviours so good for them. I personally think 3" isn't quite enough - and with 6" you will waste less substrate - and have less disruption for your hammy. You could spot clean mostly and only need to do a big cage clean every 2 or 3 months - even then at least half of the substrate will be dry and can be mixed with new substrate, so it still smells familiar, which reduces the stress of a cage clean.

[Hammy992]

I have experimented with both deeper and shallow substrate, and have found the only place my hammy really seems to burrow is in his nest, as he loves to bury his food hoard right at the bottom
I would say use at least a few inches minimum. If your hammy likes to dig but you can't afford to take up so much of the base with substrate you could try putting in a large deep container in a corner for them to use as a burrowing box. Then you could fill it with about 6-10 inches of bedding to dig and tunnel through to encourage their natural behaviours. I haven't tried myself but I think I remember seeing on here that you can mix in hemp bedding to hold tunnels better, but some hams are allergic and get sneezy so perhaps only in the box first to test for any reactions.