Hi! Hamster Hiatus

[Hanrutmoe]

Hi!

I grew up caring for many pets as a child/teenager, mainly rats (8 in total) but also 1 syrian hamster, 2 chinchillas, 2 gerbils, 2 mice, and finally many dogs and cats. Since I moved away from home (7 years ago) I've really missed having animals around. Finally I own my own home now at 27 and would like to start caring for a pet again.

I work full time during the day Mon-Fri, so I wanted to be responsible and ensure I chose a pet that would be happy with this arrangement, so hamsters seemed to be a pretty great choice being nocturnal/crepuscular.

At the moment I'm in the research stage, starting with choosing a cage/tank to buy/make, so I'm sure I may hassle you all with questions over the next few weeks.

Once I have a full home set up I'll start looking for syrian rescues and breeders in my area (London)

[dreamtree1234]

Hi and welcome to Hamster Central! I can definitely understand and appreciate the need and desire to have a wonderful animal being part of your life. They definitely add so much to your life and it is the greatest to give back to them and fill their lives with love. Good luck in finding your beloved Syrian friend. I absolutely ADORE Syrian hammies.

Definitely feel free to ask questions and look at previous threads. There is a lot of useful info. that members share with everyone.

I look forward to getting to see pics and reading about your new Syrian hammy whenever you get him/her.

[Drago]

Hello and welcome aboard!

Congrats on deciding to get back into hamsters. If you ever have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask Hope to see you around!

[cypher]

Welcome to HC

Well done for doing all your research first, I'm sure you're going to give some lucky ham a lovely ham soon.

[InkyPen]

You sound rather like me Mid 20s, missed having pets but work full time - so a hamster works pretty well for us!

To answer some of your questions
- the best cages are Zooplus Alexander / Barney / Alaska, and the Savic Hamster Heaven Metro, or you could look at going down the bin cage route
- the best food is Harry Hamster, supplemented with things like whimzee dog chews (for their teeth) and dried mealworms and a little safe fresh fruit and veg as treats
- the best (and very economical) bedding is Fitch (has to be ordered online)
- for rodent rescues in London, have a look at
https://www.facebook.com/MimisRodentRescue/ (Stratford)
Animal Rescue and Care (Richmond)

Breeders are a bit thin of the ground, but I did come across this in Croydon recently - I haven't visited them, so please don't take this as a recommendation, but they do breed their own hamsters on site and occasionally have rescue hams for adoption Scallywags Pet Shop and Grooming Parlour - Our Animals

P@H, for all their sins (and I wouldn't buy one of their babies) do also have hamsters for adoption in many of their stores, under the Support Adoption for Pets brand.

[Hamsterita]

Hi and welcome to HC!

a lot of things have changed since them, but it's easy to catch up! and this forum is very useful