Switching cages for my winter white.

Zireling · 04-02-2017, 12:34 PM

So yesterday I bought my winter white hammie however we bought a rather small cage with multi level for her. After doing some research when I got home I decided to buy a fish tank. It's bigger on the bottom and so I bought new toys to put in this house as well. I was wondering if it's safe and OK to switch back and forth between houses. I ask this because the fish tank has no top cover and wouldn't feel comfortable keeping her in it at night when I sleep. Or should I just use the bigger fish tank as a play pen? If I do the play pen approach, how often should I put her in it? It does have more room and more toys. In her multi level cage she had a plastic wheel, feeder, a wooden fence with wood chews, with a toilet paper tube. The fish tank has a wooden play house. A big stick/hay like ball, a saucer wheel, seesaw, a hide out, wood chews, and a toilet paper tube. I also just bought her apple wood sticks. She actually took that and a sun flower seed from me today.

If anyone would like pictures let me know. I'm on my phone so I'll have to figure out how to post them.

cypher · 04-02-2017, 12:39 PM

Switching from one to the other wouldn't really work as it would be upsetting for her, they need to have one home as their territory, you could make a lid for the tank & then use it as a permanent home, multi level cages really aren't suitable as they need one good size level & plenty of substrate in the base so if you can make a lid that would be ideal.
You could give her some daily out of cage time in the tank while you get the lid sorted, it's early days if you only got her yesterday so give her time to settle first then begin slowly when she's ready, if need be let her climb into something like a tube (with your hand over the end!) mug or box then transport her that way to the tank for some interaction & out of cage time.
Playpen time can't compensate for a good size cage though even if they are in it every day or even more than once a day.

alpacassei · 04-02-2017, 12:48 PM

Switching cages will make her stressed

Can you make a lid using mesh or a lid from something else? Is the tank deep enough that she can't climb out?

You could use it as a playpen until you can buy or make a lid for it but the smaller cage isn't really good to use as a permanent home even with a large playpen.

Zireling · 04-02-2017, 11:15 PM

Thanks so much guys. So we officially moved her out the cage. I put her old things in the new fish tank as well as her new stuff. She doesn't seem to like the saucer as much as the traditional hamster wheel so I think tomorrow I'm going to try and take it back and buy her a traditional wheel. Her old one is attached to the cage. I can't tell if maybe she is upset or stressed. Last night she spent her entire time on her wheel and tonight she is staying in her little hide out I made. I did handle her today to move her from cage to the tank and she didn't seem happy with me handling her. So I gave her a treat which she did take from me. It was a sun flower seed. I'm gonna leave her alone for the next few days because I felt like all this moving was to much for her and she doesn't feel like she has a place of her own. As for the lid, it turns out she's to small to get out. Thanks everyone.

AmityvilleHams · 04-03-2017, 12:05 AM

Order a 9 inch Silent Runner,they're much better than any wheel you can buy in store.Flying Saucers aren't appropriate wheels anyways since they don't allow for a natural running pattern,so don't feel bad about that,just know that you have a very smart hamster

A lot of wheels bought in store are either extremely overpriced for the quality or just don't work(sometimes both).For example,Silent Spinners are extremely expensive and barely work for a few months if you're lucky while other times they just don't work at all and never remain silent.Or in the case of the Comfort Wheel,they're painfully loud and not worth buying to begin with despite being cheap(cheap isn't always good).

Silent Runners seem expensive at first,but really the cost is reasonable.They're an investment,but they last a long time,and they're much more durable than any wheel on the market.They're also the safest wheel on the market,due to a unique design with a solid(extremely durable safe metal)stand and no axle.

Silent Runner 9 inch - Silent Runner Wheel 9 inch (SMALL)

The enclosed design is definitely a good thing.It's much better for nervous hamsters as they feel more secure,and for their safety it's also better since they can't go flying out.The size is perfect for robos,Chinese,hybrids,etc but will not last for Syrians,however the size range is definitely a good thing since you'll get a lot of use out of it.It really is a matter of spending more for a quality wheel and getting your money's worth vs either paying a ridiculous amount for a low quality wheel or going cheap and getting yet another type of low quality wheel

cypher · 04-03-2017, 12:28 AM

It does take them a little while to settle after a change so she should be fine soon enough.
I would never assume a ham is too small to escape a cage without a lid! You would be surprised at how ingenious they can be.
Most tanks aren't all that high really & once you have about 15cm/6" of substrate in there it can be quite easy for them to climb on things or even move things & make mountains so they can get out!

Zireling · 04-03-2017, 08:41 AM

We are going today to buy a mesh top from the craft store so I can add more bedding because I have noticed my hamster really enjoys this new space by making her nest and burrows in the bedding. She has two houses. A plastic igloo type one and then a wooden two story little house. She originally began nesting in the wooden house but then I moved her wooden chew garden from the old cage to the new one and she has built her nest under it. So I'm definitely adding more bedding when I clean her cage. Does anyone know how often I should clean it? And how can I do spot cleaning? I can't really tell whats dirty except for when I see a little poo in there.

AmityvilleHams · 04-03-2017, 08:57 AM

You can't use just any mesh unfortunately.It must be specifically for animal use,not any sort of wire shelving and such,as those are not safe

You really need to build your own lid if you can't get something premade for reptiles,using hamster safe wood and properly spaced mesh.

JLPrairie · 04-03-2017, 09:25 AM

You'll just need 1/2 inch or 1/4 inch hardware cloth, 4 wooden pieces, and 4 mending plates (I think Home Depot sells them in a pack of four), nails, bolts, washers, and nuts to make a lid.
Usually, hamsters pee in their wheel, so I clean that during spot cleaning. I also wash out her food and water bowls, take a "census" of her chew toys to make sure they aren't soiled and/or magically disappeared under the substrate, clean her sand bath, and replace her soiled bedding. I do this every week, and then do an overall cleaning every 3-4 weeks.

cypher · 04-03-2017, 10:09 AM

You don't really need to do much in the way of cleaning, don't worry about poo for now, they need to eat some of that.
I've found Russian hams very easy to litter train, if you can get some chinchilla sand (not dust) & find a small dish to put it in then place that close to her nest or if she already has a pee spot put it there & she will probably continue to use that & you can just remove any damp sand or substrate as needed.
Some do pee in the wheel but not all, if she does then don't over clean as that just makes them do it more! A wipe down with a paper towel & water once a week at most is all it will need if she does pee in it.
You can do partial cleans maybe once a month replacing a third to a half of the substrate depending on the size of your cage.
If you clean the nest area always put some of the old nest back & always put the food hoard back or replace with fresh mix, only remove any fresh foods like veg if they get hoarded, they don't normally hoard veg if you just give small pieces anyway.