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Old 05-24-2017, 01:01 AM   #11
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

I'm a bit of a fan of the cork logs myself, so have a couple of bendy bridges (they make good ramps up to things and also make a good tunnel entrance to a house plus a ramp up to a flat roof on a house which can double up as a shelf then). The cork logs are big and I can imagine one would be great in your lovely large tank. They make a tunnel to run through, plus something to climb on that has an interesting texture, and can also be a ramp up to a shelf if partly under it. It's a good way of filling the floor space with ground cover in a large cage and can also be partly submerged in deeper substrate if wanted. Reptile stores often sell them.

https://www.amazon.com/Trixie-Cork-T...ds=Cork+tunnel

They tend to be a bit dusty and need cleaning when you buy them. I also freeze them for a week first to make sure there is nothing microscopic living in the cork that could hatch out (the same goes for some natural wood items). You just put it in a plastic bag and stick it in the freezer for a week. After it's out of the freezer (defrosted in an hour or less) rinse it under a warm tap to clean it out. Technically cork is waterproof but it still needs leaving somewhere warm (eg on a sunny window ledge) to dry out fully so it doesn't go mouldy after being wet. The moss and lichen stuff on the outside doesn't matter and is fine, as long as it's been in the freezer and then rinsed a bit Sounds like a lot of palaver but it's not really. Providing you have space in the freezer!

I think the advantage of a lovely big tank like yours with all that floorspace is, yes you can have deeper bedding in some areas - you don't necessarily need to fence it off - I think that can limit the digging/tunneling a bit sometimes, you can use a house side as a partial divider and just have it sloped up deeper at one end, or you can use something like the cork log as a divider as they are quite tall so you'd have deeper substrate on one side and they can run up it on the other side (and also through it).

With having so much floorspace it can be good to have overhead cover as well - lots of large-ish hidey places and a platform to sit on or under, so you have the advantage of the floorspace, plus things to sit in, on, and under which kind of increases the floorspace and adds to the enrichment.

Shoeboxes and tissue boxes with a side cut out can give floor cover and hidey places and can also be chewed or shredded for bedding (make sure there are no staples in them). A shoebox can make a good nesting box as well, as mentioned above. Cut the bottom out so it's open to the substrate underneath, keep the lid as a lift off roof (so you can check inside without taking the house out and the nest falling apart), and cut a hole in one of the long sides for a door, and then you can put a bendy bridge over the entrance hole so it's dark inside and your hammy can climb the bridge onto the house roof.

I think with a large-ish house/shoebox house, a large floor toy like a cork log that adds enrichment, and some kind of platform, it would be amazing.

Some people have made a platform/level out of just a piece of wood with square dowel pieces glued on - diy stores will cut things to the size you want usually. Or people also make platforms out of Ikea knuff magazine racks.

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Ik...w=1366&bih=608

Not sure if you have a sand bath, but a dish of sand can also be used as a potty/litter tray which means less need for clean outs. It needs to chinchilla sand (not dust) though. And with deep substrate you can mainly just spot clean as the more substrate, the drier most of the cage stays, so you'll only need to do a "big clean" maybe every 2 to 3 months, with spot cleaning in between and the odd wipe of something. It helps if you don't clean everything at the same time, so something always smells familiar or they can get stressed by big clean outs.

I think you have a very lucky hammy with that lovely big tank and nice big wheel
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Old 05-24-2017, 01:02 AM   #12
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

I certainly wouldn't say never put up bendy bridges as fences, the quality of bendy bridges does vary & I have seen some with larger gaps between the wooden pieces which are best avoided & I wouldn't use for anything but good quality bendy bridges don't have gaps for paws to get trapped in, I've used them like that many times as have others with no problem at all so while it's a good point to consider quality & check for large gaps I still think it's ok.
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Old 05-24-2017, 01:29 AM   #13
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

I think Happy is from Germany where they have amazing minimum standards and amazing cages and tank set ups The tank is bigger than many people have in the US and Uk and there are different opinions on what is an ideal size and what is a good size Not dismissing what you said Happy, I think German ideal sizes are based on research and ideally we would all have that much space, but her choice of tank is bigger than most I think the German recommended welfare minimum is 100cm by 50cm.

Following on from cork logs - have taken a photo of them in my cage. It's a different set up to yours as it's a cage rather than a tank but it's just to illustrate how they can be used. One is a big one/large size and is a tunnel rather than a log/tube (ie open underneath) and our hammy climbs up it to the higher shelf and another tunnel. The other one is the small size (similar to the one linked earlier) and is round like a tube but it doesn't roll over as it wedges well into the substrate. He runs through this under the shelf and also climbs on it to get onto the shelf. My cage is only 100cm by 54cm and doesn't have particularly deep substrate (15 to 20cm). It's not perfect by German standards but our hammy is happy in it and he has a lot of out of cage time.

It would be amazing to have 30cm deep substrate in at least part of it. Sometimes they are happy with a good big house though and a bendy bridge over the door, that mimics a burrow and tunnel entrance.



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Old 05-24-2017, 06:07 PM   #14
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Happy View Post
Hello,

More substrate (at least 30 cm) has already been said, so I will comment on the other parts not yet elaborated.

Overall, if I've calculated correctly and your aquarium is the equivalent of 120x40 cm, it is unfortunately too small. The minimum is 0,5 m². However, this is only the bare minimum. For a Syrian to have an adequate home, 1 m² or more are essential. You wouldn't want to live your entire life in a tiny bathroom just because you technically could, would you?

I recommend adding another aquarium of the same size. You can add it width-wise if you have a space-problem. 120x80 cm would be nearly 1 m² and a fairly good size. I personally have a few hybrids in 120x80 cm and they are quite content, although they are very calm and all have disabilities.

How big is that wheel? Its diameter doesn't look to be at least 29 cm, but I could be wrong. If it isn't, I recommend wooden wheels. The wheel also must be on a platform/level to avoid your hamster burrowing underneath it and seriously injuring itself in the process.

Also, your hamster needs a sandbath filled with chinchilla sand (not birdsand). 30x30 cm is a good size.


Never put up bendy bridges as "fences".

It is incredibly dangerous and can cause deadly injuries as your hamster's paws can get stuck in the cracks between the logs.


The entrances to these houses are much too small for a Syrian. They must be at least 8 cm wide and tall, or else your hamster will get stuck, especially with filled pouches.

Your hamster needs a proper house with at least two chambers and a removable roof, like this: https://www.hamster-wohnwelt.de/tl_f...er-Ranch-5.jpg

You can easily make it yourself out of plywood (poplar, beech, birch...).

Lastly, add some enrichment: Cork tunnels, grass nests, wooden hideouts etc.
Oh of course! I am on a limited budget and saved up. I had $120 for the tank, and $80 for his basic supplies. I get paid soon and have already added a sand bath and more toys to my shopping list. I am mentioning this so its not misconstrued that I think this amount of toys is good. I intend to provide a lot more stimulus soon.

I converted the size to centimeters, its 121cm x 38cm. His wheel is 12inches or 30cm. I feel a bit bad, US minimum is so much smaller and I thought I did good getting above the minimum...

As for the home, it is indeed going to be too small. He's 6 weeks old and it looks like a tight fit already. Might give it to my friend who has a robo!

Thank you for the input!!
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Old 05-24-2017, 06:15 PM   #15
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
I think Happy is from Germany where they have amazing minimum standards and amazing cages and tank set ups The tank is bigger than many people have in the US and Uk and there are different opinions on what is an ideal size and what is a good size Not dismissing what you said Happy, I think German ideal sizes are based on research and ideally we would all have that much space, but her choice of tank is bigger than most I think the German recommended welfare minimum is 100cm by 50cm.

Following on from cork logs - have taken a photo of them in my cage. It's a different set up to yours as it's a cage rather than a tank but it's just to illustrate how they can be used. One is a big one/large size and is a tunnel rather than a log/tube (ie open underneath) and our hammy climbs up it to the higher shelf and another tunnel. The other one is the small size (similar to the one linked earlier) and is round like a tube but it doesn't roll over as it wedges well into the substrate. He runs through this under the shelf and also climbs on it to get onto the shelf. My cage is only 100cm by 54cm and doesn't have particularly deep substrate (15 to 20cm). It's not perfect by German standards but our hammy is happy in it and he has a lot of out of cage time.

It would be amazing to have 30cm deep substrate in at least part of it. Sometimes they are happy with a good big house though and a bendy bridge over the door, that mimics a burrow and tunnel entrance.



Oh that's awesome! I have seen a few setups using cork or chewable wood logs/toys and they always look so fun (especially in video when you can see the hammy happily exploring)

Yeah I felt off put by Happy saying that, I had hamsters years ago in only 20gallons and I feel so guilty about it, now i saved money for a big 50gallon tank for my new ham...I'd love to have a 1,000gallon tank but...I need the space and money for that. Hammies deserve the world! I totally understand German mentality. I see some people in FB groups in america with 12inx12in cages and it breaks my heart

I saw a video of substrate slowly getting deeper as the cage goes on (left is 5 inches, building up to about 9 inches) is that a good idea?
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Old 05-24-2017, 07:49 PM   #16
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lauukin View Post
Oh that's awesome! I have seen a few setups using cork or chewable wood logs/toys and they always look so fun (especially in video when you can see the hammy happily exploring)

Yeah I felt off put by Happy saying that, I had hamsters years ago in only 20gallons and I feel so guilty about it, now i saved money for a big 50gallon tank for my new ham...I'd love to have a 1,000gallon tank but...I need the space and money for that. Hammies deserve the world! I totally understand German mentality. I see some people in FB groups in america with 12inx12in cages and it breaks my heart

I saw a video of substrate slowly getting deeper as the cage goes on (left is 5 inches, building up to about 9 inches) is that a good idea?
I cannot recommend cork enough. It's so aesthetically pleasing and hamsters just love it too! The more natural you can make your cage, the better it is for your hamster. They enjoy foraging around and when you have lots of crevices and stacked pieces of wood in there for them. Check out serendipity's link if you can, I promise you won't be disappointed in the cork bark

I love German minimums, I wish the whole world could follow them. I personally strive for German minimums, but it's unfortunately not realistic for many people in other parts of the world. I think your cage is just fine for your hamster, obviously bigger is better, but I think your cage is much bigger than many I've seen

This would be okay for a dwarf species, but 5 inches really isn't enough for a Syrian. I recommend 12 inches minimum for a Syrian (scientifically they need 15.75). Plus, deep bedding is tons of fun! Your hamster will create awesome burrows, you'll have to clean less, and (though maybe it's just me) I think it's so fun to dump in bags of bedding

Overall your cage looks really good, good job on it!
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Old 05-25-2017, 08:22 AM   #17
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

If you have deep substrate at the right hand side end of the tank as a digging area and less at the other end.

The wheel would need moving to the area with less substrate, so it doesn't pose an escape risk or gets blocked from spinnning properly. If it went along the long side of the tank you could also see your hamster in the wheel from the front of the tank.

Your cage is bigger than lots of people's cages. So don't feel bad.
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Old 05-25-2017, 12:46 PM   #18
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Critique my new cage! :)

50 gallon is pretty big for the US! Don't feel bad. I used to feel bad that I didn't give our hamster 30cm of substrate to dig and tunnel in, but I think enrichment can benefit them in different ways - making it as interesting and varied as possible with different levels and textures is all part of enrichment.
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