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Old 01-12-2019, 10:45 AM   #1
Pinklizzy
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Default Housing for a syrian?

Hi,
We don't currently own a hamster but are doing research into what is needed. I have found a cage that was for sale on a local selling site-they didn't know what the make/name of the cage is but after googling it looks similar to a zoozone, I've measured it and it's 100cm long and 50cm wide and from my measuring could fit a 12 inch wheel in there. We would have to put extra mesh over the top but that shouldn't be too much of a problem hopefully.
I have messaged the rescue we are hoping to be able to adopt from, to check if it would be suitable but just wanted some opinions from all you experienced people too!
I'm still totally confused re choosing bedding/substrate to use and how much I'd need to properly fill this kind of cage too so any advice on that would be amazing too
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:21 PM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

The zoozone is a good size but I think the height can be a problem, it may be high enough to fit the large wheel in but you do need to allow for a good layer of substrate under the wheel ideally, you can work around that by using bendy bridges or something to separate an area for the wheel from the area of deeper substrate.
You want to aim for a minimum depth of 15-20cm of substrate, more if possible so your ham can dig, burrow & build a nice nest under the house.
Substrate can be confusing! I would normally recommend Fitch as it's about the best but is is out of stock at the moment another good paper based substrate is Kaytee clean & cosy (only the white one), wood shavings can also be used if you're in the UK, some hams can be allergic to them although it is uncommon & some can be a bit too dusty but they are safe to use.
The only extra bedding you need is plain white toilet tissue shredded up a bit & just left in a pile for them to collect up, you can also put some in the house on top of the substrate.
Hope that helps.
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:21 PM   #3
alpacassei
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

I’m not sure where you’re from but Carefresh and Kaytee Clean & Cozy are both good paper substrates and available worldwide. In the UK, Fitch is the best value paper substrate. Pine/softwood shavings are safe in the UK and some other European countries, aspen is safe worldwide but harder to find in Europe. I like soft woodshavings because they hold burrows well and look good in natural set-up. You’ll need atleast 15cm of substrate throughout the cage but more is better. You can add layers of soft hay throughout the substrate to add enrichment and help create more stable burrows.

For bedding you can use strips of plain white toilet tissue and paper substrate. Avoid any kind of fluffy bedding, including natural ‘safe’ cotton and kapok bedding. They can get caught around tiny hamster paws, claws, and teeth causing serious injuries as well as possibly causing fatal blockages.
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:26 PM   #4
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

I agree a zoozone isn’t exactly ideal for a Syrian, I struggled with it just fitting an 8 inch wheel in. I don’t know about 12 inch wheels fitting in, 11 inch ones can just about. Hamsters often like to burrow beneath the wheel so I really don’t think bedding a couple of cm deep (if that) is ideal, even if it is just in a small area of the cage. With shallow bedding like that it’s very difficult to build up the rest of the bedding to a good depth too. But it can work as a decent cage, it’s just be quite limiting and difficult to set up.
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:33 PM   #5
Pinklizzy
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

Thank you!
I hadn't thought about the depth of substrate under the wheel when measuring so I'll have to figure out whether we can work around that or not.
I'm in the UK and have used aspen type bedding and woodshavings for my guinea pigs so might go down that route again,so many things to try and figure out!
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Old 01-12-2019, 05:04 PM   #6
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

You can section off an area around the wheel with bendy bridges to keep deep substrate away from the wheel but you’ll still want to choose a wheel with a low stand so that it fits properly.
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Old 01-13-2019, 02:17 AM   #7
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

Here's an example of a lower substrate end with an 11" wheel Partly fenced off with a bendy bridge on its side to have deeper substrate one side and sand in the other.

Obi's natural set up is complete!

Also, if you're in the Uk or Europe - have a look at Zooplus - they have a good selection of cages at reasonable prices. Free delivery. The Alaska, Barney and Alexander are good and popular for Syrians. The Barney and Alexander have narrow 7mm bar spacing so also good for smaller species of hamsters, if set up carefully to avoid fall risks from a height.

As it's for a Syrian, my first choice would either be the Barney, Alexander or Savic Hamster Plaza (which is being sold for a good price at the moment!). All of which easily fit a 12" wheel and with the shelves and option for more levels, give a lot of scope for enrichment. And have doors at the front. The Savic Plaza has a lovely big front opening door - good for access and interaction with the hamster. I prefer cages due to the ventilation and because you can attach things to bars and the roof to add to the enrichment.

If you prefer the tank style, and they do look very nice, then the 100cm Zoozone is good - I believe the lid can be a bit fiddly, and needs meshing, as you say.

https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small.../hamster_cages

Edit - Hamster Plaza gone back up to standard price now of £75 - it was reduced a few days ago.

http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pe...r-and-rat-cage
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Old 11-25-2019, 09:29 AM   #8
Pinklizzy
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

We did adopt our hamster, little Moomin, back in February this year. He came from Pets at home in the adoption section and has always been a very nervous boy who hates to be handled/picked up but is happy to interact and take food etc from a hand.
We did initially set him up in the zoozone, with sand under the wheel to ensure it fitted and lots of bedding etc. I moved him into an Alaska back in the summer as I was concerned that he really didn't like all the open space in the zoozone and just seemed to spend all his time hiding behind the wheel.
This did seem to really help and he has lots of extra cover with hammocks, grass hidey house, bridges etc. My daughter has done loads of taming with him in the holidays and he's a much happier little guy now, at least I thought so!
The last week or so however I've noticed he's bar chewing and climbing to the top of the cage, something he never did before and I'm concerned he might be stressed/bored and this is why he's doing it?
Should we move him back to the zoozone and see if it helps having more space? Ideally I'd prefer not to as I found it very difficult to manage taking the lid on and off-the noise just made him panic and run and the alaska having multiple doors is helpful as he will come to the ledge we have next to the side door and allow the children to stroke him (under supervision of course) but want to do what's best for him.
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Old 11-26-2019, 01:31 AM   #9
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

Hi again. Glad he is doing ok. It sounds a bit like stress if he is bar chewing and climbing to the top of the cage. That is one slight issue with the Alaska - the height for a dwarf hamster, if he falls from a height. That can be avoided if there are enough shelves etc to prevent him falling too far or landing on anything hard.

What has happened in the last week? Any changes? Has his cage moved to a new location, or have you recently done a cage clean? (Partial cleans are better so something always smells familiar). Other things that stress them are their nest or hoard being removed - I leave those unless they are pee'd in.

Does he have enough nesting material/house big enough to nest in now it's getting colder? I wouldn't move him again just yet as that could increase the stress.
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Old 11-26-2019, 08:18 AM   #10
Pinklizzy
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Default Re: Housing for a syrian?

Thank you for your reply Serendipity! Nothing has really changed in the last few weeks, his cage has always been in the same place and is just about due for a clean but maybe I'll leave that for a while as I'd hate to worry him more. He's in our playroom/dining room which can be quite busy but a lot of the time it's nice and quiet and it means we can leave the light out at night for him.
We did give him some more paper bedding at the weekend and it was from a different bag than the rest as we'd run out but the original stuff is all still in there too. I do have another hammock that I could put under the position where he's mostly been climbing,in case he did fall.
I will leave him as he is for now and see if it helps, thank you again.
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