Hey! Need advice! Caring for a hamster for the first time in 13 years :)

[RenW]

Hello, My name is Ren and i have recently got a new russian dwarf hamster named Winston. He is currently in a cage that he seems fine in (no bar chewing or climbing) but is definitely too small and i want to upgrade ASAP.

I have been looking at different options online and feel that i definitely want to go with something that is glass so we can see him playing as well as feel happy that he is not going to squeeze through the bars etc. The only problem is that finding anything of a suitable size online that delivers to Scotland seems to be an issue.

I have been keeping my eye out for any 2nd hand aquariums going on gumtree etc but was hoping people on this could share their cages/setups so i could have a look? Or even just the name o the cage and the rough dimensions? Anything you could share would be greatly appreciated.

if it comes to it i can get an ikea detolf but unfortunately this could not be until December as ikea is not near me and 'unessential' travel is not permitted with the pandemic.

Anyway, would love to see your cages and setups!

[cypher]

welcome to the forum & congrats on your new ham!

Have you had a look at this thread yet?
Let's see your cages - New thread - July 2017
You can get lots of cage ideas there.

Personally I prefer barred cages as they allow better interaction & with the right bar spacing you wouldn’t have to worry about your ham escaping.
There seem to be very few hamster cages or tanks around at the moment but you might get lucky if you’re going for something second hand & prefer a tank style.
Two good barred cages that are still available are the hamster heaven (best used without the tubes & penthouse) from Amazon or the grosvenor hamster cage either of those would be suitable for a Russian ham.

[RenW]

Thank you so much for responding so quickly! I will definitely check out the ones you have mentioned! And of course check out the thread. I'm still trying to figure out how to navigate this site so thank you for linking it for me

[LunaTheHamster1]

Hi and welcome.

There is the Marrakesh cage which is expensive at around £129 from Zoolpus.
This is one video of my setup in that cage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S0szVnl7IM&t=15s
and I have a whole thread about the cage on here
Skyline Small Pet Terrarium Marrakesh

I also have the living world eco habitat which is bigger, height wise and width wise, again expensive at £134??
video of me setting it up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYUtUq9eqzU&t=4s
and a thread all about the cage
Living World Eco Habitat Cage

There are also the zoozone type of cages. You would want to be looking at the large which is 100cm x51cm x 37cm
Viovet are currently out of stock (normally £58 but they seem to have it at £48.69 at the moment)They are hoping to have it back in in a couple of weeks, everywhere else on line seem to be out of stock or have it at expensive prices.

https://www.viovet.co.uk/Zoo-Zone-Cr...ck_find=320532

Jolleys also sell it at £55 if there is one near you and they have it in stock - you can't order it online,

There is also the Maxi duna multi - normally around £100 I think but this place seems to be selling it for £70 with £5 off
https://www.zoomalia.co.uk/pet-suppl...m-p-11750.html

You will need to mesh the lid on the zoozone and the duna mulit, and possibly the eco habitat, depends how you set it up.

There is the Rodipet cages
2 sizes- 100cm and 120cm - but even more expensive than what I had already listed

https://www.rodipet.co.uk/cages-runs/laola-nagarium/

There are a few companies such as this one on ebay that make tank like enclosures
https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/libar-905...p2047675.l2562

There are pawput cages if you don't mind the risk of getting a wooden type cage
https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/PawH...4-A6A769C74485

Other than that I think you are looking at tanks like you say or an ikea hack - detolf/linnmon/billy

there is the Barney cage, but you said you didn't want barred

Hope that doesn't overwhelm you I have been doing a lot of research for Robos for a friend!

[LunaTheHamster1]

There is also this company - but again expensive - I should have checked to see if you had a budget
https://www.hamster-homes.com/browse...all-pet-cages/

[RenW]

Thank you so much! That is so much information! I will look into all of them and see

[Engel]

Originally Posted by RenW

Hello, My name is Ren and i have recently got a new russian dwarf hamster named Winston. He is currently in a cage that he seems fine in (no bar chewing or climbing) but is definitely too small and i want to upgrade ASAP.

I have been looking at different options online and feel that i definitely want to go with something that is glass so we can see him playing as well as feel happy that he is not going to squeeze through the bars etc. The only problem is that finding anything of a suitable size online that delivers to Scotland seems to be an issue.

I have been keeping my eye out for any 2nd hand aquariums going on gumtree etc but was hoping people on this could share their cages/setups so i could have a look? Or even just the name o the cage and the rough dimensions? Anything you could share would be greatly appreciated.

if it comes to it i can get an ikea detolf but unfortunately this could not be until December as ikea is not near me and 'unessential' travel is not permitted with the pandemic.

Anyway, would love to see your cages and setups!

May I ask what cage you have? Can we see a pic (and one of your hamster too)?

I'm just thinking if you have to make do for the time being due to the pandemic, we can give you ideas on ways to provide enrichment within the space given. Obviously its not ideal but not the end of the world considering the current situation

I've attached photos of my Syrians cage. It you go onto my 'meet niko' thread you'll see my setup for my roborovski

[RenW]

I have the Pets at home wire hamster cage which is under the minimum. I couldn't believe when i was doing my research that a pet shop, a shop which 'specialises' in animals was not just selling but recommending a cage this much smaller than the minimum (and it says its ideal for 2 dwarfs!)

In his cage i have put his bedding as deep as possible, deeper on one side underneath the level, which he definitely appreciates as he is an avid burrower. i have his 8 inch wheel, a couple of hides, a bendy bridge and a little bridge like toy. i have also buried a toilet tube in the bedding under the ramp so he can hide in that. He then, of course, has his food and water bottle and then a couple of random chew toys. It is definitely on the busy side of the scale for the size of cage but i thought more was better.

i unforunately am not very tech savvy and so dont know how to post pictures on this yet. I will have a tinker with the site and update with pictures once i figure out how.

Enrichment ideas are greatly appreciated!

[RenW]

Also, your cage looks great! And i will definitely go check out your little Robo

[cypher]

Have a look at this thread it shows you how to upload photo.
How To Embed Photos