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Old 03-01-2020, 06:41 PM   #1
Celestial
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Question Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

I am hoping to eventually get a new dwarf hamster, and was wondering what ideas you had for toys, accessories, and chew toys.
We're Canadian so we can't get everything that people in other regions might have.

How would the Prevue 528 Universal Small Animal Cage be for a dwarf hamster? It says it is " 32 ½’’ L x 19’’ W x 17 ½’’ H with 3/8’’ wire spacing " which would give it a floor space of 617.5 square inches(?).

I'm not the only one who will be taking care of the hamster, so she won't have to rely on one person for entertainment, and after she's totally tame we plan on giving her daily time out of her cage to get petting and run around.
We would have a hard time finding space for minimally supervised free running as our house has baseboard heating in every room, including the long hallways.... any ideas for that?

I want to put in lots of interesting things in the hamster's cage, but not so much that it is suffocatingly crowded and has no room for tunnelling and running around.

Thanks!

Last edited by Celestial; 03-01-2020 at 07:17 PM.
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Old 03-01-2020, 10:20 PM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

The cage size sounds fine.
The main things for the cage are a good wheel (at least 8") a good sized house with no base that can be placed on the substrate so your ham an burrow underneath, a sand bath with chinchilla sand (not dust) or childrens play sand that's been dried in the oven, deep enough & large enough to dig & roll around in, some additional little hideouts are good, things like coconuts work well, cardboard tubes can be fun for them, egg boxes (not the plastic ones) with a small hole cut out at either end can make a good little hideout & place to hide food or treats too.
Most of mine have shown no interest in chew toys but do love the whimzee dog chews so you could try them.
Things like millet, flax or dari sprays in the cage make a good treat for them & most enjoy stripping the seeds off.
For out of cage time it's best to have a playpen if you can find somewhere to put one of those with plenty of toys & things to explore.
If it's safe, no other animals around & care is taken to avoid falls they will enjoy just running around on a bed or sofa too.
Have a look through the lets see your cages thread for more ideas on things to put in the cage & ways to set things up.
Hope that helps a bit.
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Old 03-01-2020, 11:33 PM   #3
Celestial
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

Quote:
Originally Posted by cypher View Post
...a sand bath with chinchilla sand (not dust) or childrens play sand that's been dried in the oven...
For out of cage time it's best to have a playpen if you can find somewhere to put one of those with plenty of toys & things to explore.
If it's safe, no other animals around & care is taken to avoid falls they will enjoy just running around on a bed or sofa too.
Thank you, that does help!

What brand of chinchilla bathing sand would you recommend? I tried researching chinchilla sand... but reviews of ones I have seen in stores say that it's more like dust (for the Kaytee Chinchilla Sand Bath).

We don't have any other animals. We would put towels on the bed when we played with our previous dwarf. When she no longer was the "bullet hamster" we would let her run free on the floor with a couple people there to make sure she didn't get into anything dangerous [aka a human rectangle in a bedroom with closed doors]... but a playpen sounds much easier!

I'm curious, is there a way to set up a playpen (after supervised testing to make sure it all works as intended) so you can leave for a minute or two [e.g. doorbell, bathroom]? Or, even better, so you can do something else nearby or check every 5 minutes or more often? I am mostly asking because I want to clean portions of the cage but without having the poor hamster catch me tearing up some of its home.

Is there any truth to the stories that sometimes they can become addicted to the wheel and run themselves to death, is this totally inaccurate and / or is there a way to ensure this doesn't happen?
What would you recommend as a good wheel? Everyone gives sizes but no names are named haha.

Last edited by Celestial; 03-02-2020 at 12:24 AM.
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Old 03-02-2020, 12:11 AM   #4
Littlephodopusmom
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

Hi, I thought I'd share some things my guy likes too, we're also in Canada The best chin bathing sand I've found for us is Versele Laga, it's in a green milk like carton. For chews Bud likes his little beige whimzee toothbrushes the best also. His other favorite toys are a swing, seesaw / tipping tube, miniature paper cupcake wrappers (krinkly) and small solid wood balls from Michaels / craft store, and the little living world (seagrass I think) mushrooms. He tosses his mushroom every day without fail and I've got to stand it up again. For cages I can't add any as my hams have all been in tanks. For playrooms I have rubbermaid type bins with high sides for unattended play if I have to leave for a minute. There are nylon popup / fold flat ones also with a full bottom and high sides. I've got one but haven't used it actually because I think it's too large for my guy and he's happy with the others.
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Old 03-02-2020, 12:14 AM   #5
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

The swing is this one, not a hanging one
https://www.mrpets.ca/main/living-wo...und-swing.html

hope it's ok to add a link for the picture...
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Old 03-02-2020, 12:35 AM   #6
Celestial
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

A fellow Canadian! Yay!
Thank you for your suggestions Littlephodopusmom!
The swing looks so cute! Maybe he secretly likes watching you upright his mushroom?
I'll see if I can get some of your recommended Chinchilla sand.
Cupcake wrappers? Any specific thing to avoid or is anything new lying around ok?
We have some old blue plastic bins with high sides, maybe we could set up one with some toys in it. (For our previous hamster we tried: the dry bathtub, she hated it without towels and disliked it with towels; the "upgrade" cage, but she didn't like it as she would always start moping in there [we tried moving her in there slowly... but once she realized that she couldn't get to her old home she moped in her food bowl, then would keep climbing up my arm, so we had to re-setup her old cage]; the bag of her bedding / substrate (not nesting material), she hated it; and getting someone to play with her, but that either made it take way way longer or the person would call for help halfway through.)

Everyone seems to like the whimzee toothbrushes! I wouldn't have thought that dog treats would be ok for hamsters, but if I see any I'll give them a try.

Last edited by Celestial; 03-02-2020 at 12:49 AM.
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Old 03-02-2020, 01:17 AM   #7
Littlephodopusmom
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

Celestial,
Haha! yes I was surprised to see you in Canada also! Plus I think you are right and he expects me to stand up his mushroom daily! Lol. I like doing it though The cupcake wrappers are just plain brown paper, no wax, foil, dyes or anything else. The plainest you can find. I like to put a little treat in them and scrunch the end so he has to work a little to get the treat and finds it fun, but he will chew and drag them even with no treats. The sand I get from Petland if you've got one there. It's hard to find here but it really lasts forever. I never tried the dry bathtub training before but it looks and sounds like a good idea, well if the ham doesn't mind it.

I'm looking forward to seeing all you're going to get for your new boy or girl, and everyone else's suggestions too because I'm always interested in hearing what everyone's hams like and don't like.
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Old 03-02-2020, 03:22 AM   #8
cypher
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

The best wheel is probably [URL="https://www.exoticnutrition.com/Products/Silent-Runner-Wheel-9__43672.aspx"]the silent runner[/URL I'm not sure what other wheels you may have available in Canada that could be suitable but I use this wheel for all my hams (Russian & Chinese).
They won't run themselves to death! Some very young babies can get a bit carried away & overdo it a bit but generally that's not a problem with the age you normally buy hams so just let your ham enjoy the wheel without worrying.

I wouldn't recommend the swing tbh, anything like that with moving parts can be a potential hazard, little paws can easily get trapped & things like that don't really offer any benefit.

As long as your ham can't climb out of the playpen or escape in any way then it should be fine to leave them for a few minutes, if you use a large plastic storage box you could cover it briefly, I have found my Russians really don't seem to enjoy a play box though & prefer a larger playpen.

I wouldn't use the bath for taming a dwarf hamster of any species, it seems to be ok for Syrians but tends to be too overwhelming & scary for dwarf hams.
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Old 03-02-2020, 08:25 AM   #9
Littlephodopusmom
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

I agree with Cypher in that no toy is better than a dangerous toy. Sadly most hamster products in general where I live are unsuitable for hamsters really. But my next goal is to learn some easy diy's for origami toys, just paper. And I love homemade cardboard things for him. I have the swing for him but he doesn't get to play on it except but supervised in his playroom. The wheels where I am are really not safe imo so I had to buy Bud's from Amazon. Maybe you can look at one in your area https://prevuepet.com/product/936/pr...-wheel-8-90017

The reason I don't use a silent spinner is that they have a centre joining line and small holes for drainage and I have seen / online some injuries from nails and toes getting caught But I have heard of people getting a silent spinner because that's all they can find and using a strip of cardboard inside the running surface to cover those lines / holes. It's way too difficult to find safe hamster products in general I think.
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Old 03-02-2020, 08:44 AM   #10
Littlephodopusmom
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Default Re: Ideas for Dwarf Hamster Accessories?

PS..I know lots of people like and use silent spinners and am not knocking anyone just sharing thoughts. Some friends do think I am a "helicopter mom" (always worrying) but it's ok I accept that lol
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