Housing Help

[Hammy_pie]

Hello, I'm a newbie here, this being only my second post. I've been reading through old posts; there is so much information to digest! My new Syrian hamster is such a joy, and so cute! I want to give her the best life possible. As I read here, I'm finding out the pet store clerk may not have provided me with the best suggestion for the cage and proper care. All this is to say, I have a couple of questions I hope you hamster lovers can help me with. First of all, what is the appropriate size cage for one Syrian? I'm afraid the aquarium I bought is too small (10 gallon Zilla Critter Cage). This was recommended to me and definitely bigger than what she was in at the store. Also, I'm confused about sand baths. Some say potty, some say bath. I want to get one, but the right one. Also, I purchased nesting material online. It is made by Exotic Nutrition. It says all natural 100% non toxic USA grown cotton. I've read here that cotton is not recommended. I haven't used any yet in the cage. Please tell me what kind of nesting material should be used. Lastly, I'm a little confused about cleaning. Should I clean the nest, or no? She likely has food stores in there. I occasionally give a piece of carrot, should I clean out food stores? I apologize for asking so many questions. I just want to care for Hammypie the best I can. Thank-you in advance for any help you can offer.

[LunaTheHamster1]

Hi,

Fellow Syrian owner here. Yes, it does sound like the clerk has not given you the best information, but at least you are now learning and don't worry, so many people go through the same thing as you.
It's good that you are trying to learn for your hamsters sake.

I will try and answer your questions

1.) Bedding - stick to paper based - if you have nothing else handy at the moment, just rip up some plain tissues or toilet roll paper. That exotic nutrition one you mention is like fluff I think and can get tangled up inside your hamster, I am sure you do not want that to happen.
2.) cage size - for a syrian I wouldn't go smaller than approx 80cm x 50cm, personally I wouldn't go smaller than 100 x 50cm but that's because I like to cram a lot of things into my cages. Are you in the USA? If so maybe a bin cage would be a good thing for you to look into or the prevue 528 cage. A 10 gallon is definitely way too small for any hamster - if you get a new cage, maybe you can return this and get your money back?
3.) Sand baths - do you mean what type of sand to get? If so, I use this one
https://fetch.co.uk/supreme-tiny-fri...E&gclsrc=aw.ds
Some people think there is an issue with this brand so you may come across negative comments about it, but I have never had an issue with it. There is a whole thread about it on the forum.
Other people buy play sand and cook it - what you don't want is the dust type. That is bad for hamsters.
4.) Re cleaning, the bigger the cage, the longer you can leave it in between cleaning.
In a 10 gallon tank, I think that would need cleaning quite often, which is more stressful for the hamster.
Re the nest cleaning, you want to spot clean it, is her nest in a house type thing? You want to try and keep it so it looks like you haven't been in there... so if you are getting rid of old stored food, put a little bit of food back there. Try and not disturb the nest that much, but eventually you will have to replace soiled bedding. I sort of replace a bit of bedding as and when it gets dirty, but always leaving some of the old bedding behind.
As to how often, I go by my nose! If it smells bad, I get in there - this maybe once or twice a week to spot clean poos and wee areas along with old stored food, when I first got hamsters I used to do it every other day, but now I only do it once or twice a week, less stressful on the hamsters.
Have you worked out where the toilet area is yet?

If your hamster is new, I would be leaving all of this alone for a week or 2 so they feel safe.

Did I answer everything, I hope so.

Goodluck.

[AmityvilleHams]

Do not use the cotton at all in the cage. USA grown or not, it is very harmful not due to toxicity but due to the inherent risk of limb loss, intestinal blockage, and much more. Exotic Nutrition marketing it as non toxic and safe is disappointing to say the least, but it's not entirely surprising. They do sell the best hamster wheel(12 inch Silent Runner for Syrians, the 9 inch version for dwarf hamsters of any species) but other than that they're not the best source of food, care information, etc.

A 10 gallon tank is extremely small for any hamster. While an 80 cm x 50 cm cage is widely recommended here and we have no official minimum, there is evidence that for Syrians at least we should be aiming somewhere in the 1000 square inch to 1550 square inch range if not even more. This is uninterrupted floor space, not counting any floors or levels and such or any sort of modular compartments or additions added by tube or similar small hole type entrances(though one could potentially expand bin cages for example by removing a side of multiple bins and securely zip tying bins together).

For nesting material, toilet paper/loo roll is what you'll want. Tissues are typically far too thick and won't properly break down in a safe manner, which is the same reason you'd want to avoid heavy duty or otherwise thick toilet paper. The cheap and seemingly awful stuff is often the best for hamster nesting, though it must be unscented regardless! To test for suitability just see if it easily falls apart with water, and if it does it should be fine but if it doesn't then definitely do not use it as nesting material. My personal recommendation is the cheap Great Value toilet paper from Walmart if you happen to be in the US(they might also have the same product in Canada).

A sand bath doubles as a potty, as gross as it may seem to us humans. You could offer multiple of them, but that's not necessary. A simple glass baking dish would be a great choice for a container, since unlike anything plastic glass won't hold the odors which could contribute to cage odor. The best thing to use is children's play sand, no dyes etc. You can find information on the baking process on the forum, but you must rinse, bake, and sift sand even if it says sterilized.

For overall cage cleaning, in a properly sized cage you just need occasional spot cleaning and very rare(every 3 months for example) small partial cleans where any substrate is removed. Full cleanings, especially with any cleaning product, are best avoided unless absolutely necessary such as for medical reasons. For the nest though you don't want to clean it too much, but you can and should remove fresh foods before they go off for obvious reasons along with heavily urinated on stored food(replace with fresh food).

Speaking of food and substrate, if you're US based which it seems like you are the best food is Higgins Vita Garden(not Sunburst) which can be fed on its own with no extra lab blocks etc - the only protein boost you need will be some Pure Bites chicken/shrimp/turkey or other safe meat options as well as a pinch of flax seed for overall health benefits. For substrate, the best options in the USA will be either Oxbow Pure Comfort or Small Pet Select paper bedding. Both of which are completely dye free virgin fiber paper and are extremely low in dust, which isn't the case with Carefresh(known to be dangerously dusty among other issues) or Kaytee Clean and Cozy(lower in dust but still not dye free and there are other benefits that just don't come with this).

I know it's probably a lot of information to take in especially with this being added to the whole ordeal, but I don't often find myself capable of the less is more approach when it comes to information.

[sarahbutterflies]

Hi there! I hope I can help you with your questions and definitely feel free to ask more. In the US the recommended minimum size for a hamster cage is 450 square inches, that being said it is always better to go bigger than the minimum if you can. I looked up the aquarium you got and with the dimensions listed it comes to 212 square inches of floor space. People typically go for a 40 gallon breeder tank. With Syrians being the larger of the species they typically need much more space than that. Some people say 800 square inches for males and 1200+ square inches for females. Others say to shoot for 1000+ square inches for Syrians in general. A large bin I would say is anywhere between 500-600 square inches of floor space. I will also say that most Syrians will need a 11-12 inch wheel as well. If you have a baby or a smaller Syrian the minimum size is an 8 inch wheel. Just make sure their back doesn't curve.

As for sand this can be an enrichment for a Syrian as it is really not required for them like a dwarf. Mine uses her to dig in and she also uses it as a toilet which can be convenient for cleaning. You will just need to get a large dish of some sort, about 2-3 times larger than your hamster is and fill it with sand. You want to avoid anything dust related or anything with calcium in it (you would see this in the reptile section). People either chose to use reptile sand which is very fine and soft. Other people use childrens play sand which you can get a 50 pound bag for under $5 at your local hardware store.

Safe beddings include anything paper based (unscented) and aspen bedding. Cotton is unsafe because it can get caught in your hamsters teeth and could get wrapped around your hamsters leg cutting off circulation. You want to avoid the soft woods which are pine and cedar shavings as they can cause respiratory issues.

Typically with cleaning you want to spot clean every few days. Depending on the size of your enclosure you can get away with doing a full clean every 1-2 months. Poop isn't a big issue for hamsters because when it dries it becomes hard and basically scentless. Hamsters also will eat their poop so don't be alarmed if you see yours doing that. You basically just want to get rid of any soiled bedding so anywhere you see poop and especially where your hamster has peed. Since your hamster is new I think it's recommended to not do much cleaning for the first 2 weeks or so. Cleaning can be quite stressful for a hamster and others react differently. Some will totally freak out if you disturb their nest but if you need to clean it it would be okay, just try to put everything back to normal (don't remove her hoard). I would just say to remove any fresh food (the carrot) if you see it in her hoard the next day after you have given it to her just because it can spoil.

I also want to mention for a Syrian (and I guess hamsters in general) it's recommended to have at least 6 inches of bedding but try to shoot for more, 8-12 inches because hamster are burrowing animals. I hope this all helps!

[Hammy_pie]

Hello! Thank-you for all of your detailed responses! Good news! I did it, I bought a 40 gallon tank today for Hammypie. I am about to put together her new home with the right amount of space and depth of bedding. I hope she loves it, fingers crossed! It takes up a bit of space, but it will be fun to watch her explore.