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Old 06-07-2018, 06:38 AM   #11
WretchedCake
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
I agree with Cypher. It's a lovely cage but there are safety risks for a small hamster like a winter white.

It looks like the Mayfair Gerbillarium which is about 40cm tall. With that height of cage for a dwarf hamster you ideally need a full level. But as Cypher says you can get round this by having the higher shelf lower and having the substrate up to the top of the glass. Maybe to within a cm of the top of the glass - and yes some may end up falling out - alternatively you could stick some cardboard or perspex inside the bars for about 2" just above the base and have the substrate to the top and then it won't fall out. May look a bit funny bit it'll be safer.

Hamsters are ground dwellers really and do better with more floor space and less height. They will climb bars and can even monkey bar across the top looking for a way out but they don't see well and tend to just let go and drop -if they fall from a height more than 25 to 30 cm and land on something hard (eg the edge of a shelf or one of the wood sticks at the bottom, they can break bones or die from injury or internal bleeding.

So when looking at the safety aspect you have to think of the worst case scenario, which is the hamster getting to the top and dropping, falling through the gap between the shelves and landing on something hard on the bottom. If you have nice deep substrate and nothing hard to land on (hard items can go under shelves) it cushions their fall. But there is still a risk they can hit the edge of a shelf and bounce off on the way down.

To get round all of this there's a need to reduce the height - either by making the shelves into a full level or having substrate as deep as it will go, or a bit of both.

The other thing they can land on is the wood ladders. So really the set up needs tweaking. Off to have another look at your photo to make some suggestions
Ok guys, I did as you told me (I used all the bedding I had left), lowered the shelf, gave him a small ceramic bowl filled with sand dust and added some toilet rolls, what do you think?
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:09 AM   #12
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Option 1.

- Lower the top shelf to the same level (or very nearly the same level) as the bottom shelf.
- Don't use the ladders as ladders - use them as "joining pieces" spanning the two shelves. Both across the back next to each other. This leaves you with a "hole" at the front.
- Use a tube as access from the substrate up to one of the shelves.
- Add an additional small shelf to the bars at the front over the gap and the tube. That makes it the equivalent of a full level. The hooks on ladders are a bit of a risk at present as there's a gap between the ladder and shelf where a foot/leg can get trapped.
- No need for deep substrate but at least 4" is needed anyway. Corn cob isn't really suitable for hamsters - I can't remember why but there is some health issue associated with it. Carefresh, aspen, hemp, Finacard, Fitch are all good options.

Option 2:

- Put 2" deep cardboard strips all round the inside of the bars above the top of the glass base.
- Put 6" depth of substrate in (ie to top of glass base ish).
- Leave the lower shelf in and remove the other shelf (better to fall onto substrate than bounce off the edge of the shelf and land on a ladder.
- Put the cardboard house on top of the substrate at the end where the higher shelf used to be
- Put any hard toys and the wood sticks on the shelf with the wheel
- Get some cardboard tubes as floor toys to fill up the floor space a bit (eg kitchen roll inner tubes - soft to land on).
- Don't use the ladders with the hooks as they are at the moment and the hamster could still fall on the ladder even from less of a height. A good option as a ramp which doubles up as a floor toy is a large cork tunnel sat on the substrate and they can run up the side of it. If you don't want to buy one then you could use a bendy bridge ramp and stick some hemp mat to it.

Hope that helps. I would probably go with option one.
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:13 AM   #13
WretchedCake
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Option 1.

- Lower the top shelf to the same level (or very nearly the same level) as the bottom shelf.
- Don't use the ladders as ladders - use them as "joining pieces" spanning the two shelves. Both across the back next to each other. This leaves you with a "hole" at the front.
- Use a tube as access from the substrate up to one of the shelves.
- Add an additional small shelf to the bars at the front over the gap and the tube. That makes it the equivalent of a full level. The hooks on ladders are a bit of a risk at present as there's a gap between the ladder and shelf where a foot/leg can get trapped.
- No need for deep substrate but at least 4" is needed anyway. Corn cob isn't really suitable for hamsters - I can't remember why but there is some health issue associated with it. Carefresh, aspen, hemp, Finacard, Fitch are all good options.

Option 2:

- Put 2" deep cardboard strips all round the inside of the bars above the top of the glass base.
- Put 6" depth of substrate in (ie to top of glass base ish).
- Leave the lower shelf in and remove the other shelf (better to fall onto substrate than bounce off the edge of the shelf and land on a ladder.
- Put the cardboard house on top of the substrate at the end where the higher shelf used to be
- Put any hard toys and the wood sticks on the shelf with the wheel
- Get some cardboard tubes as floor toys to fill up the floor space a bit (eg kitchen roll inner tubes - soft to land on).
- Don't use the ladders with the hooks as they are at the moment and the hamster could still fall on the ladder even from less of a height. A good option as a ramp which doubles up as a floor toy is a large cork tunnel sat on the substrate and they can run up the side of it. If you don't want to buy one then you could use a bendy bridge ramp and stick some hemp mat to it.

Hope that helps. I would probably go with option one.
I went with option one (kinda), have a look at the photos I uploaded in the last message, the only problem is that my hamster doesn't like tubes or ramps too much, he just uses them to get down, and he always goes to the wooden shelf climbing on the cage, it should be safer now right?
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:15 AM   #14
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

We posted at the same time

That is way better! Ok so there's still quite a drop at the front gap between the shelves and onto the ladder. I would put the other ladder across too, next to the existing one, leaving a smaller gap at the front and use something else as a ramp. But you'd still need something over the ramp.

As Cypher said, Zooplus sells all kinds of bedding you can get in Italy. Carefresh can work out a bit expensive but there are others to choose from eg the hemp (I'm sure she'd love the hemp!). She is so gorgeous! She does look a bit surprised
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:21 AM   #15
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Yes it's much safer now Just noticed the door is at the front so you can't put a shelf there.

Could you use the other ladder as joining strip as well and use the bendy bridge as a ramp up to the shelf (you could put hemp mat on it so it's not hard if fallen on).
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:23 AM   #16
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Although maybe the bendy bridge isn't long enough and might not be secure.
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:24 AM   #17
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Definitely much better though I'll have a think - have to go...
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Old 06-07-2018, 07:25 AM   #18
WretchedCake
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Yes it's much safer now Just noticed the door is at the front so you can't put a shelf there.

Could you use the other ladder as joining strip as well and use the bendy bridge as a ramp up to the shelf (you could put hemp mat on it so it's not hard if fallen on).
Sure, I'll do that as soon as possible, next time I'll go to the pet-shop I'll buy the hemp and another bendy-bridge, thanks again for your help!
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Old 06-07-2018, 08:04 AM   #19
cypher
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

That does look much better, well done!
I do agree about the drop but if you can figure something out there & maybe get more substrate in when you can get some it will be even better but even so much nicer & safer for your ham already.
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Old 06-07-2018, 10:55 AM   #20
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Do you think my hamster's cage is too cluttered?

The only place I know you can get hemp mat that's safe is from Zooplus - it's really quite big and you cut pieces off - I have one and it lasts forever and you just cut pieces off as needed. It's supposed to safe to chew unlike fabrics/other things.

I get the £4.99 one. It would slip off a sloping ramp or bendy bridge - I stuck some to a shelf once by painting it with plastikote and that stuck the hemp to the wood

Tappetino di canapa per roditori Hugro | zooplus

This is the hemp bedding they sell

Lettiera di canapa Hugro | zooplus

A lot of the substrates on Zooplus list aren't suitable for hamsters, but the Hemp and Carefresh are and some people use the chipsi classic wood shavings which are part pine and part spruce.

They also sell bendy bridges

I had this as a "ramp" for our robo for a while. Not a tube but a large cork tunnel - it's tall enough to stand next to the shelf and not hard to land on and it's light so doesn't sink in substrate. They can run through it like a tunnel or climb up the curved outside like a ramp

Attachment 45616

It's this one. It's a nice natural texture for them to run over.

https://www.rodipet.de/shop/zubehoer...-ca-25-cm.html

Last edited by Pebbles82; 11-27-2022 at 06:39 PM.
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