Is my hamster cage okay?

[Bella1827]

Thank you for taking the time to talk to me I reallt appreciate it and it’s been interesting to hear your views on hamster care.

[LunaTheHamster1]

It's not a youtuber but I wondered if this would help - all examples of cages- although i know we have a thread on here too about peoples cages.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/Austinsh...=page_internal

mangoandmimi i watch sniff the hamster too

[10Minutes]

I would suggest you mesh both sides of the bin even now, if you are able to do so. But do note that once meshed, you'd have to be careful about not leaving the lid open unsupervised, because your hamster may potentially climb the mesh to escape from the top of the bin.

It can get quite hot and stuffy inside a plastic bin like that. The fresh air is coming in from the top, but it's not exactly circulating at "hamster-level"), so it's still not fresh enough for your hamster. Also, something might accidentally fall on top of the bin while you were away (and cover the ventilation area on the top).

I'm sure you've tried your best for your hamster already, and he's fortunate to have you. There's a lot of divided opinion on floor space, but to be safe, I would say you need at least one huge bin cage that meets the minimum floor space (again, what is minimum is debatable), and you can still stack another big bin on it. I think an extra stacked bin does make your hamster happier (the whole point of floor space discussion is ultimately for its mental well-being), just that you would need one huge unbroken piece of floor space first. And two stacked big bins will be better than a series of small cages attached to one bin, in my opinion. I hope you have an easier time convincing your parents once you have a job, and hopefully you will be able to get a bigger bin/ cage soon!

All hamsters have different personalities, but in general, I read that Robos love platforms. Do ensure the bedding is deep enough and the platforms are low enough so it won't matter if your Robo fell off, and also avoid hard things within jumping distance of the platform. My Robo usually ignores the ladder she used to climb up and prefers to leap down directly. They can't judge distances very well, so it's our responsibility to make it jump/ fall safe.

I've read that Robos love burrowing in substrate and sand bath areas too. Mine doesn't do a lot of burrowing but she does visit her sand bath on a daily basis and sometimes goes to sleep there. I use Chinchilla sand, please don't get dust bath or dusty sand even if they are marketed for hamsters or chinchillas, you've got to be careful to get safe sand.

How big is your wheel? You've gotta keep a careful eye on it if you're switching to a Robo, a baby Robo might not have the strength to turn a big wheel, so if it looks like it's struggling, you'll have to be ready to get a smaller one immediately. Once it becomes an adult, you should switch back to a big wheel though. Just ensure its back and neck doesn't arch when it runs, to know when you need to switch to a bigger one.

[Bella1827]

Okay I’ll let my parents know about meshing the sides of the bin, my room can get pretty hot so I was thinking of maybe getting a fan and setting it up somewhere near the cage to make sure he doesn’t get too hot. The total area of floorspace comes to 480 square inches for each bin and I was wondering if it makes a difference between stacking cages and connecting them next to each other on the floor? And yeah when I get a job I don’t rhink theyll care what I order. My room is sorta limited on space though since i have a 5x2 c and c guinea pig cage in it, I know you can get stands for them though, so if I can find one tall enough then I might possibly be able to put a hamster cage on one of the shelves in the stand, so it doesn’t take up too much room. Or another place would be on my desk, as long as it isn’t too big in width, but length can be up to like 130cm. I’ve also been looking at the critter nation cages? They seem really good cages, but just really tall and I wouldn’t like a hamster to get hurt when climbing the bars. And yeah I’ll order a new wheel for a robo because I don’t reallt like the silent spinners, I’ll probably get a trixie wheel. As for the sand, I use to use chinchilla sand but they’ve changed the formula and now people are saying it’s too dusty and not safe so I haven’t bought it again, I have order a safe brand online though

[10Minutes]

Yeah, please try to convince your parents on the meshing first. I think it's a more important issue than the floor space now (as you say yours already does meet the minimum, and your current somewhat elder hamster isn't that keen on moving around too much).

Do be careful that the fan is just very light, and ensure that it's only at a small corner of your cage, so that your hamster can easily move to other areas of his cage if he feels cold. You can also place a ceramic cup in the fridge, and after it has been chilled, put it sideways in his cage, so that he can sit in it if he wants to cool down. You can swap between two ceramic cups so that he constantly has a chilled cup to sit in. Ceramic, aluminium, and flat stone surfaces are all rather cooling and he will seek them out if he feels hot.

I don't think stacking cages or connecting them will make that much of a difference because it's still broken up already. Besides, I think it's more space efficient to stack them, as you mentioned that space is a concern.

I don't like tall cages because I'm worried a hamster could try to climb to the top and fall. Mine is tall, but I'm glad my Robo doesn't seem interested in climbing the bars upwards though, she just uses the bars as a convenient shortcut from left to right, at low ground level. Do ensure you have plenty of soft bedding and keep hard material far away from potential fall areas.

Not sure about chinchilla sand being dusty, maybe there's a difference between brands. So far my Robo is fine with hers (no sneezing or wheezing), and it was the best I could find here. But of course, do try to get the safest brand you can find. Would you mind sharing the brand you have ordered? I might look into it and get some myself, because I really want to get safe stuff for my hamster too.

[Bella1827]

Yeah my parents have agreed to mesh the sides and I’ll give the ceramic cup idea a try as well. I can’t remember the brand I ordered but when it’s here I’ll let you know. He’s actually been coming out of his cage a lot more recently (he’s a very tame hamster and seems to like human contact) and he likes running around my room and exploring so at least he’s getting some form of exercise. I might actually be getting a new cage sooner rather than later, hopefully by September/August because I’ll have a job in a couple of weeks. I wanna get s cage that’s suitable for my dwarf now but also any future hamsters including syrians. Any ideas?