Hello i am new

Paulina · 04-12-2020, 06:16 PM

Hi everyone i am new to the forum, as well as a new hamster owner. I just brought my two furry friends home yesterday. I planned on having just one but when went to get it there were only two left and thy were siblings, both males sleeping together and sharing habitat i was reassured they wont fight but i guess time will tell. ( i did order a second cage just in case that happens will be here tomorrow) . Now they are both together in one habitat, they sleep in the same house although last night i have see one of them making his own place in a different house . There is no fighting and for most part they stay together. One of them is very curious , ventures out , i saw him eat i also seen his droppings ( in 2 places not sure why maybe he is still decided where will his permanent pee place be) any how the second one is very shy barely comes out of the house i actually was concerned as i didnt see him come out at all since i got him and so i raised the top of the house he stays in and he did poop there ( i know usually they dont poop or pee where they sleep) so i am concern weather he might be sick or just still to scared to come out and do his business outside ) there is no signs of any sickneses they have nice clean eyes , tails and shiny coats. The droppings are also normal not runny . So maybe its just stress ?

Anyhow i am looking forward to start taming then in few days fo i do that together or separately? The hamster which is very curious came to me few times smelled my hands and even put him paws on my habd , he follows my hand around the cage which is a good sign i guess . Should i do the taming seperatly start with the easy going one and give a little extra time to the shy one ? Also what kind of sand do i get for their bath, and i have heard that they might need some sort of nutrient drops ? They do have some chew toys, mineral chews as wells as salt lick... is there anything i should be getting for them ?

Petite · 04-13-2020, 10:06 AM

Hi Paulina, and welcome to Hamster Central. Hope you enjoy the forum.
Congratulations on your two new furry friends. Yes, you are right, they may get on fine to begin with but often over time they will start to fight as one becomes more dominant, so it's good to hear that you have another cage on order in case of difficulties. Hamsters are usually solitary creatures. Are they dwarves? What are they called? A photo would be great!
My current hammy, Freya, ALWAYS poops where she sleeps, but where she pees is anybody's guess. I've had her for four weeks and I still haven't worked it out, which makes spot cleaning an issue.
You could try taming them together, but give each some time alone too - especially the more timid one as it might take him longer to build up trust.
For their bath, chinchilla sand is good.
I can't help with your queries about nutrient drops and salt licks, but I'm sure someone more knowledgeable will be along soon.
Enjoy your new friends!

cypher · 04-13-2020, 01:53 PM

Welcome to the forum & congrats on your new hams.
Some will pee in the house, if the house is big enough you can put a small litter tray in there with sand which may be used, poo in the house is nothing to worry about & the shy one is probably taking a little longer to settle in.
Any taming or out of cage time should always be done together, doing it separately may well cause them to fall out & fight.
Most pairs do need to be separated as they mature & they can begin to fight or one can prevent the other from getting adequate food so do keep a very close eye on them.
It's not unusual for one to be more shy than the other & that one will usually gain confidence living alone.

Mineral chews & salt licks are harmful so remove them.
Thay don't need any nutrient or vitamin drops just a good diet, quality mix & a good variety of fresh veg daily, just a small amount of one thing each day.

Paulina · 04-13-2020, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cypher

Welcome to the forum & congrats on your new hams.
Some will pee in the house, if the house is big enough you can put a small litter tray in there with sand which may be used, poo in the house is nothing to worry about & the shy one is probably taking a little longer to settle in.
Any taming or out of cage time should always be done together, doing it separately may well cause them to fall out & fight.
Most pairs do need to be separated as they mature & they can begin to fight or one can prevent the other from getting adequate food so do keep a very close eye on them.
It's not unusual for one to be more shy than the other & that one will usually gain confidence living alone.

Mineral chews & salt licks are harmful so remove them.
Thay don't need any nutrient or vitamin drops just a good diet, quality mix & a good variety of fresh veg daily, just a small amount of one thing each day.

I had no idea in the sotre as well when i researched it it suggested mineral chews and salt lick ( the mineral chews suppose to help with their teeth growth ,but i will definitly remove them I actually saw them chewing on these today. I have seen both hamster come out today both ate pooped seamed fine around each other until i saw them squabbling and i am sure it wasn't rea fighting as one came up to the other and turned himself on his back then went under the other onw they the one on too started grooming him... it wasn't at all aggressive altough the one on the bottom squeked pnce or twice but they weren't biting each other then they went their seperate wasy and were fine around each other ... i will keep close eye on them and if i see it continue will definilty separate them

Paulina · 04-13-2020, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petite

Hi Paulina, and welcome to Hamster Central. Hope you enjoy the forum.
Congratulations on your two new furry friends. Yes, you are right, they may get on fine to begin with but often over time they will start to fight as one becomes more dominant, so it's good to hear that you have another cage on order in case of difficulties. Hamsters are usually solitary creatures. Are they dwarves? What are they called? A photo would be great!
My current hammy, Freya, ALWAYS poops where she sleeps, but where she pees is anybody's guess. I've had her for four weeks and I still haven't worked it out, which makes spot cleaning an issue.
You could try taming them together, but give each some time alone too - especially the more timid one as it might take him longer to build up trust.
For their bath, chinchilla sand is good.
I can't help with your queries about nutrient drops and salt licks, but I'm sure someone more knowledgeable will be along soon.
Enjoy your new friends!

I have seen them squabbling today so definitly one is showing dominance , my second cage was suppose to arrive today but its delayed hopefuly they wont have a real fight until i get it. As of now they kind of poop all over the plce i see dropping everywhere so maybe they need time to figure it it, and i have not yet discover their peeing spots either , hopefully it will be soon. I am heaitant to clean their cage as i only have then for 2 days i dont want to stress them out , but i can smell the pee thete so not sure what to do any advice ?

Paulina · 04-15-2020, 06:37 PM

Update

So its day 3 with my furry friends , thye squabble from time to time but it doesnt look aggressive . I got the second cage connected to the first one i had and now its the first night I actually see and hear one of the hamsters active ( he has been running in his wheel for an hour now....his name is Sparky and he is very active see him even during the day venturing out and exploring but he is still very scared of me, he comes and smells my hand nibbles on my fingers ( not aggressively at all just as if he was trying if it was food ) ...
My second hamster Snowball ( kids named them) is very friendly he has been walking on us since yesterday eats form our hands and its very social. But when ye is in the cage he sits in the house at all times, he wont come out he even pees in there i have cleaned it today what looks like he isnt getting out almost at all. Even now as Sparky is running like a crazy snowball is nowhere to be seen ... is that normal that one is more active than other ... could it be that sparky is dominant and scares snowball thus he isn't coming out ? Almost everytime i see him out he goes straigh to sparky and goes on his back showing his submission.... they groom each other and then go their way ... they still sleep together most of the time ... not sure whay to do should i separate them ? Or give them few more days to get used to their new home ??! They are both winter white Campbell dwarfs

Vierville · 04-15-2020, 07:04 PM

Cypher, I'm interested that you say that salt licks are harmful. I never knew that and have provided my hamsters with them. What harm do they do?

AmityvilleHams · 04-15-2020, 10:25 PM

Salt licks are harmful because they allow hamsters and many other pets to consume far too much salt. The same applies to mineral stones, mineral chews, etc - they all cause serious problems long term and should be avoided at all costs. There are implications with the bladder and kidneys among many other things when it comes to salt licks, so toss any and all you have now Vierville and do not ever use them again(sounds extreme but they are very harmful)!

As for the OP's question on separating hamsters goes, definitely separate them. Hamsters would not be living together in the wild for social purposes so it is quite unnatural for them to be living together in captivity. As a result this can and pretty much always will end up causing some level of issues - some are worse than others and even the least obvious issue of stress is a serious problem as it does negatively impact health and makes your hamsters far more likely to fall ill due to a constantly weakened immune system(as stress lowers the immune system and we always want to avoid unnecessary stress).

Kyrkogrimr · 04-16-2020, 02:32 AM

Hey, I have a dwarf girl who I have never managed to stop peeing in her nest, so I don't think it's all that unusual for them to do it. Fortunately, she usually has 2 nests so I can clean out soiled bedding without completely disrupting her living arrangements. It's worth trying giving them somewhere specific to do their business but Cadmium has always been resistant to any interference in that regard lol

TinyBubbles · 04-17-2020, 01:43 PM

My WW has always opted for an enclosed space to pee. We got him a Kaytee bathroom that he uses most of the time but also uses a corner of the house we made him from a shoebox. It is wonderful because that means I can clean the toilet every day and then that spot in his house once a week (along with the area in front of his wheel) and the room with his cage stays fairly smell free! All that said he chooses to poo on his shelf, which is super unattractive but again easy to clean so I roll with it. (as if I have a choice)