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Old 07-19-2020, 08:31 AM   #1
wookie130
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Join Date: Jul 2020
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Default Howdy! Future hamster owner (but not a newbie to hamsters)

Hi, I'm Holly, and new here. I owned several dwarf hamsters probably around 15 years ago, and a lot has changed in my life since then. I am now the mother of a 7 year-old, an almost 6 year-old, and an energetic 2 year-old. I also have a rescue dog, Penny, and a very geriatric 18 year-old cat, Ripley. Ripley actually used to live with hamsters when she was a young.

Anyway, my oldest child, had caught hamster fever, and seeing as I am pretty experienced with them, and that I myself love the little critters, I agreed to getting the ball rolling. We're taking a 3 day camping trip toward the end of next week, returning on Sunday, and we plan on bringing a dwarf hamster home on Monday.

I have been refreshing myself on hamster care, and I'll be the first to admit that a lot has changed, and things have certainly evolved in terms of what constitutes proper care. I regret that I was keeping my former hamsters in cages that were far too small, feeding mixes that were far too low in protein, giving yogurt drops, and probably not enough enrichment toys and activities. But, after doing extensive research, I feel like we're ready to give it another go.

We have ordered and assembled the Savic Hamster Heaven Metro cage, several chews and toys, and we're going to feed 50/50 Higgins Sunburst and Mazuri Rat & Mouse blocks. Bought some dried mealworms for treats and I plan to supplement with a fresh veggie pr fruit piece 4x a week. Sandbaths are another newer concept for me, so I purchased a ceramic strawberry and some reptilian sand for this purpose. A larger wheel is on it's way to us. Huge bag of Kaytee Clean and Cozy bedding is ready to go. And who knew hamsters could use a water dish in addition to a water bottle? This is news to me, but I think we're going to try it.

So far, my 7 year-old is dead-set on naming said-hamster either Sweetpea or Marshmallow. I prefer sillier names (I used to name my hams after musicians...I had a Bjork, a Chino Moreno, a Lemmy Kilmister). So...I shall keep you posted on the name thing.

I attached some photos of our preparations. I also made some visible rules and visual supports for my kids, as they're quite young, but my older two are readera, and I figured this will help them be more responsible. They are clear that Mom is in charge of all things related to the hamster.
Attached Images
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File Type: jpg 20200718_094547.jpg (1.68 MB, 13 views)
File Type: jpg 20200718_095332.jpg (1.60 MB, 11 views)
File Type: jpg 20200718_095438.jpg (1.61 MB, 13 views)
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Old 07-19-2020, 10:28 AM   #2
AmityvilleHams
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Default Re: Howdy! Future hamster owner (but not a newbie to hamsters)

Definitely don't feed Sunburst & Mazuri. Mazuri isn't very high quality and shouldn't be fed at all, and Higgins Sunburst is not a species appropriate food as it is very high in dried fruit. The actual proper diet would be Higgins Vita Garden, which you can add a pinch of flax seed and a few pieces of freeze dried chicken(or similar high quality protein sources - look for Pure Bites, the shrimp are also a great choice).

I would ditch the reptile sand too. It has debatable at best safety, and you'll spend a lot less long term on children's play sand which is much safer as long as you rinse, sift, and bake it.

Make sure your wheel is also a suitable model. Silent Spinners are a very poor choice, as they have a safey flaw due to the design itself. They also do not remain silent, and if you get lucky enough to have one that spins when you get it they don't exactly keep being able to spin smoothly. Silent Runner wheels are a much better choice(9 inch for dwarf species, 12 inch for Syrians) or if you had to use one a Comfort Wheel would also be a better choice(8 inch for dwarf species with this wheel, 12 inch for Syrians). Flying saucer wheels are not a good choice though as they don't allow for a natural running position and often end up flinging hamsters off especially with very young smaller species!

I would recommend Small Pet Select's paper bedding for substrate instead of Clean and Cozy. It's much higher quality, has extremely low dust if any, and is made of pure virgin fiber paper with no dyes or other questionable additives - something you really can't say about Clean and Cozy, even the natural version.

If you didn't already know, definitely keep the cat and dog out of the room the hamster lives in. This is really important for your hamster's safety as even seeing a predatory species(which all cats and dogs are even if they seem very sweet) can be extremely stressful to hamsters and many other prey species. Stress inevitably lowers the immune system and can lead to hamsters or any other species for that matter being more prone to illness, parasites, etc.

ETA after reviewing the setup pictures I would remove the plastic bits. They're not very safe for hamsters as they can end up being chewed which is really dangerous for various reasons, and plastic tubes in particular are notorious sources of behavior problems and odor issues as well as potentially contributing to poor respiratory health overall due to the lack of ventilation plastic has in general even with holes in it. Toys with chains should also be removed since those are a potential source of injury - feet can get stuck, falls can happen, etc. I also saw a ladder in one picture which is quite dangerous due to the open rungs which are dangerous for similar reasons as chain toys.

I also think I saw a hamster ball in one picture which you really should never use as an actual hamster toy. They provide no enrichment value but have many serious issues. They force hamsters to run even if they don't want to, they have extremely low ventilation which contributes to poor respiratory health, they inhibit hamster senses, and the holes for ventilation can and have lead to serious hamster injuries which really need to be avoided especially with current events.

Last edited by AmityvilleHams; 07-19-2020 at 10:35 AM.
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Old 07-19-2020, 10:56 AM   #3
LunaTheHamster1
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Default Re: Howdy! Future hamster owner (but not a newbie to hamsters)

Wow, you have done your research. I love the visual you have done for your kids, that is brilliant.
I was just wondering what country you were in as I think there is better food than what you listed unless you are in a country such as USA where I believe it is hard to get decent hamster food. I only ask as sometimes videos/blogs suggest these things but it is because there is not a better alternative in that country.

Kaytee clean and cosy is fine to use, lots of people on here use it or have used it in the past. I have just tried it for the first time and was really impressed how soft it was that I ordered another bag, the 2nd bag turned up and for some reason wasn't quite as soft, still useable though.

I normally use megazorb or aubiose -obtainable if you are in the UK. These come in huge bags, so need somewhere to store them but work out cheaper than Kaytee clean and cosy, especially if you have an equestrian shop near where you live and you don't have to pay postage. A lot of people also use fitch.

Like Amtiyville says lots of people have issues with their hamsters sleeping and peeing in the tunnels on top of that particular cage you have purchased, so you can see how things go, but you may need to remove them. Just something to be aware of.

Welcome to the forum and if we can help with anything else just ask I am sure someone will come and help, it is always very exciting welcoming a new hamster into the family.

Enjoy the camping trip.
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Old 07-19-2020, 11:02 AM   #4
wookie130
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Thank for your advice, Amityville Hams! I certainly welcome any and all suggestions. I still have much to learn, and relearn! The rules and visuals I have created for my children were created with the purpose of specifically NOT allowing our cat and dog any access to the hamster whatsoever. The hamster will be living in the girls' bedroom on a tall desk, and there are signs posted on the inside and outside of their door to keep that door closed at all times. I have also included rules where if the hamster is going to be handled outside of the cage, Penny will have to be in her crate, and the cat in our bedroom, and the kids are to always ask permission first if they want to handle it in any way. The whole thing is going to be adult-led, for sure. And I will absolutely remove the chain toys, and ladder - very helpful recs, there!

Thanks again!

Thank you, Luna! I am in the U.S., actually. A very popular U.S. pet YouTuber recommends the Higgins/Mazuri 50/50 mix, and someone else I read about removes the raisins from the mix to kind of lower the sugar. I used to feed a mix called "Harry Hamster", which at the time was like the best food out there...I have since learned that it is actually really poor quality food, and I haven't even seen it available in stores or online, either.

I will remove the tube above the cage. I have read a lot of people say that their dwarves struggle to even get up into them in the first place, but I have had some pretty acrobatic dwarves in the past who probably could have managed it.

Last edited by souffle; 07-21-2020 at 06:31 AM.
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Old 08-05-2020, 03:51 AM   #5
ConfusedSyrianHammie
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Thumbs up Re: Howdy! Future hamster owner (but not a newbie to hamsters)

Hey Future Hammie Owner! Glad to hear you aren't new to this.
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