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Old 10-01-2018, 06:52 PM   #1
ANI
 
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Default Desert landscape for robos?

Greetings!
So I've been thinking of getting robos and I wanted to go all out with the cage. Robos are supposed to be from the deserts of northern China and southern Mongolia. Thus I was wondering if they could have an entire level of the cage be a sandy desert landscape? The idea was to cross some of the German cage ideas with a more accurate terrarium feel.
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Old 10-02-2018, 08:41 PM   #2
SnoWolf
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

Your idea seems really cool! I would suggest that you can have a fairly large portion be sand, but I wouldn’t have the whole bedding be just sand only. I’ve seen some cages that have their sand portion be as large as one third of the cage, so I think it’s perfectly fine. Although cleanup can be quite a hassle, so I suggest making sure you have at least a small vacuum on hand. Buying children’s play sand or reptile sand should be good since they come in large sizes, and at cheaper costs.
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Old 10-02-2018, 09:53 PM   #3
cypher
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

Robos so love a large area of sand so it's good to do that if you can but you do still need lots of deep substrate for digging & burrowing in too.
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Old 10-03-2018, 12:05 AM   #4
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

They do appreciate large sections of sand but I personally find it much more hassle than it’s worth, it’s really difficult to keep clean when it’s not in a container. I think a roast dish of sand is a good way of going about it or just have multiple sand baths. If you can deal with the cleaning though go for it!

Edit: Just noticed you said robos - firstly I wouldn’t advise getting a pair at all as the risk of a fight is high, but if you did get a pair it would be best to keep them in a single level cage to try and reduce the risk of a territorial fall out. Robo pairs are adorable but they really don’t gain anything from living together so just the one would be best.

Last edited by mangoandmimi; 10-03-2018 at 07:28 AM.
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Old 10-03-2018, 02:28 PM   #5
MeganAndMisty
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnoWolf View Post
Your idea seems really cool! I would suggest that you can have a fairly large portion be sand, but I wouldn’t have the whole bedding be just sand only. I’ve seen some cages that have their sand portion be as large as one third of the cage, so I think it’s perfectly fine. Although cleanup can be quite a hassle, so I suggest making sure you have at least a small vacuum on hand. Buying children’s play sand or reptile sand should be good since they come in large sizes, and at cheaper costs.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure that reptile sand isn't safe for hamsters.


If you do decide to put sand in their cage i'd definitely go with children's play sand
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Old 10-03-2018, 02:42 PM   #6
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

As long as it’s a quartz sand and not a calcium sand, reptile sand is okay to use. I know zoo med repti-sand (not vita-sand) is a popular option, because it’s a good consistency.
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Old 10-03-2018, 11:04 PM   #7
adrien
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

robos LOVE sand, and contrary to what someone else said, they can be kept together if they were introduced young and are shown to get along. some people even say they thrive better in pairs, but honestly, robos are such a handful that even one was enough for me.

i think this could be a good idea, but you'll have to prepare for the possibility of, like in my case, a very sensitive robo who loved sand, but sand did not love him, and i had to replace it with uncooked rice. i'd recommend play sand, as long as it's clean.
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Old 10-04-2018, 02:13 AM   #8
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

Actually, it isn’t really true that robos pairs can ‘thrive’ living together, in most cases it’s the complete opposite. Hamsters unlike gerbils or guinea pigs, are not really social animals (contrary to popular belief) and do not need company, they don’t bond in the same way at all. In fact they will adjust to living alone quite happily in usually a matter of days. In the wild they would live in a mixed sex colony for protection and to reproduce, neither of which is necessary in captivity. So living in a same sex pair in an enclosed area really isn’t natural and can be quite detrimental. It can be difficult to know when the pair isn’t working out too as not all signs are as obvious as a loud fight, so I don’t think a pair should be recommended for first time robo owners. A pair needs constant behaviour monitoring to make sure both are happy and healthy. In the event you had to separate, you’d need two large cages which if you’re wanting to go all out for a robo setup, doesn’t sound ideal.
This isn’t to say robo pairs don’t work out at all, I’ve had one successful pair myself but if you weigh the pros and cons of keeping them, it’s quite clear which is for the best. If you find a mature pair for adoption by all means you can try keeping them together, but to get two in place of one for the sake of it doesn’t make a lot of sense.
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Old 10-04-2018, 08:32 AM   #9
adrien
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

i honestly wouldn't get two myself, i had simply heard some people say it was a good idea. i'm 100% sure my robo would hate it if he had company. i also wouldnt particularly agree they thrive together, but rereading my post, i can see it seemed as if i was coming off as very pro-pair and combative, which was not my intention.

i apologize for any tone issues. not to be that harsh, but i'm autistic and i am quite famous in my friend group for sounding like a complete snob when i'm just having a casual conversation. i almost never catch it, i have no idea what i do to sound that way or how to stop it despite trying for at least a decade, and as you can see, it gets me in some sticky situations.

i'm not really up for a debate, and didn't mean to seem like i was. i'd seen some people say it was fine was all i meant. i know hamsters are solitary. really did my research before getting my own, and i still do whenever i try something new (literally just googled if broccoli is ok for hams before i give them some). i wouldn't do it, as i said, but it's possible, and some people think it's beneficial.

to be extra clear for anyone skimming: i've seen some people say robo pairs are a good idea and that they benefit from it, so i wanted to share this fact. that said, i think even just one robo is a handful, and i wouldn't do it, if just for practicality's sake.

Last edited by Fluffagrams; 10-04-2018 at 10:00 AM.
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Old 10-04-2018, 11:30 AM   #10
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Desert landscape for robos?

Don't worry adrien absolutely nothing wrong with anything you said. Keeping pairs is quite a debatable topic anyway, it really is up to everyone to research the topic for themselves and draw their own conclusions. My post wasn't so much aimed at you adrien, but for ANI and other readers, just so it's clear that robos do great living alone and that keeping a pair requires a lot of thought. I'd recommend reading behaviour studies on pairs before making up your mind anyway as that information is a lot more accurate than the majority of what is on the internet.
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