New to Hamster Central

[Engel]

Originally Posted by Gazavlar

Hi There,

My name is Gareth and I’m new to Hamster Central.

I have a 3 month old Syrian hamster called Monkey but she just gets called monks most of the time. She got that name because never stops climbing and loves to try hang off the roof of the cage.

Previously had another Syrian called Bridget who sadly passed away in September last year due to a form of skin cancer in hamsters

Since adopting my first one I’ve developed a bit of an obsession
I spend way too much time researching and learning as much as I can.

Looking forward to getting more experience from others and answers for things I don’t know.

Cheers,

G

Hi Gareth and Monk and welcome to HC!

Nothing mad about researching everything hamster. I've done it myself. It actually helps you in the long run. However, still keep an open mind as knowledge changes. Things which were deemed ok 10yrs ago have been found to be detrimental now.

Feel free to ask for tips or advice. There are plenty of knowledgeable people here.

[Engel]

Originally Posted by Ootley

Hi,
I am new to this forum. I made my user name the name of my hamster - Ootley. I'm probably one of the older members but I am enjoying my new Syrian short-haired (fancy) hamster.

She loves to run in her ball at night and goes for hours on end. She doesn't like the 6" wheel that came with the Kaytee CritterTrail small cage. I am heading out to pick up the bigger one and attachments to make a larger environment for Ootley.

Here is Ootley! Hopefully you can see this link...


Thanks,
Bob

Welcome Bob and Ootley and welcome to HC. Don't worry about being an older member, we're all here for the same reason

What's your current set up like? You've mentioned critter trail and I'm afraid that they are too small. Wheel size for Syrians needs to be 11 inches. Look on Amazon or zooplus. On there they are about £8.99.

It's generally agreed that Hamster enclosures should be 450sq inches or 80x50cm although bigger is better. Hamsters can run the equivalent of 4 human marathons so they need enough room to well...hamster

[Ootley]

Hi,
Well, I just added a 2 level habitat to the one level habitat. They are connected via a tube. Ootley loves the new room to run around.

I've had Ootley for almost 2 weeks and I'll let her run in her ball for 2 - 3 hours each night before we go to bed. I will then put her back in her cage. Both cages together add up to about 300 square inches but there are 2 levels in one of them. Not ideal but great for the time being until I build something larger.

It's nice to be here with like-minded hamster lovers!

[Engel]

Originally Posted by Ootley

Hi,
Well, I just added a 2 level habitat to the one level habitat. They are connected via a tube. Ootley loves the new room to run around.

I've had Ootley for almost 2 weeks and I'll let her run in her ball for 2 - 3 hours each night before we go to bed. I will then put her back in her cage. Both cages together add up to about 300 square inches but there are 2 levels in one of them. Not ideal but great for the time being until I build something larger.

It's nice to be here with like-minded hamster lovers!

I bet! Levels add enrichment not extra space unfortunately. You could get an Alaska for £30 from zooplus and it's 600sq inches. (80x50cm).

Keep the smaller cages as travel cages so don't worry you haven't wasted your money. What are you using for bedding? Woodshavings aren't good for their respitory system. Unless you are using aspen then it's ok. Another option is paper based like carefresh or Kaytee clean and cosy.

What size ball has she got? Syrians need a 25cm+ ball.

[Kyrkogrimr]

Welcome to you and Monkey Mine both quite like to climb on things, not so much bar climbing though. Hydrogen only does that when he's upset about something.
I hope you enjoy the forum, I look forward to hearing more about you and Monkey



Ootley, as has been mentioned before, that really is a very small space for a syrian - especially a female as girls can be especially demanding (one of the reasons I chose a male). You said you're going to get something better, and I'm sure there are lots of people on the forum who can offer you advice when it comes to suitable housing. I have a Barney cage for Hydrogen which wasn't hugely expensive and he seems quite happy in, but if you're strapped for cash and reasonably handy, another option you might consider is making a bin cage. There are lots of videos on youtube that can help with that

[Vierville]

Ootley is absolutely beautiful! What a cute hamster! Welcome to the forum and no matter what your age, as Engel said, we're all here for the same reason which is that we love hamsters!

It really sounds like you have Ootley's best interests at heart and that is great. As a new hamster owner you'll be amazed at the things you learn as you go along.

Here are a couple of tips:

The best substrate (bedding) is paper-based such as Kaytee Clean and Cozy. It is compressed so a little goes a long way. You can use torn up toilet paper too for their nests. They love this. Give your hamster as deep a layer of substrate as you possibly can as they really love to burrow down underneath it.

Avoid wood shavings as mentioned. Aspen shavings are safe but other wood types can cause irritation and respiratory problems.

Avoid all cotton-based nesting material. This can be swallowed and can prove deadly.

You mentioned that you use a ball. Our hamsters like theirs but time in the ball should be limited to around 30mins per session orit can stress the hamster. Also no access to water in the ball means shorter sessions are better.

Give your hamster a backup water source. So if you use a bottle, think of providing a small bowl too or a second bottle somewhere in he cage. That way if one bottle malfunctions (which I've had) or if he tips the water bowl over, the hamster still has water available.

Any questions, please feel free to ask.