Hamster Home questions - airing cupboard?

[ScaryLibrarian]

Hi! I am about to welcome a new furry friend to our house, I will be the grannie as it will be my 12 year old daughters hamster. I haven't had a hamster since I was under 10 (I am now much more than 10....) and have some questions about hamster homes and where to put them.
We have bought a cage and it is all set up. It will be in our living room for now but I am wondering if it could go in the airing cupboard in my daughters room? She would love to keep her new friend in her room. There is a combi boiler at the back hidden behind a curtain. There's no door on the front so there would be plenty of light and ventilation but will the noises from the boiler be too stressful? The location would be perfect in every way otherwise. I promise I am a normal and normally rational person, I just want the best place for our new family member :) I would be very grateful for the wisdom of the forum!

[Amethyst_ice]

Hello and welcome,

Boilers can be noisy so personally I wouldn't put a cage there. Does she have a desk or chest of drawers the cage could go on?

Where do you plan to get your new family member, have you decided which hamster species? A syrian will need different housing and diet to dwarf species,


Looking forward to hearing about your new family member

[ScaryLibrarian]

Thank you, I was thinking it would be too noisy. Her room is very small, so the only other lace would be right next t her bed which wouldn’t be good either. We’ll stick to the living room for now

We will be getting a Syrian, my daughter is busy reading all the advice she can find. We want to make sure it has a happy home and my daughter really wants to tame it have a sociable friend. I will be on this site loads I’m sure, asking for advice!

[Pebbles82]

I am trying to imagine . If it’s basically an open cupboard with a shelf it shouldn’t get too warm. Boiler noise tends not to be too bad. And they do get used to things. Our hammy is in a room with a freezer that makes noises when it goes on and off. I’d be more concerned about restricting air flow to the boiler for safety concerns. Instruction books usually say they need a certain amount of space around them. But if it is say at floor level and the boiler well above it that would be ok - so the cage would be in a kind of alcove?

My only other thought is - is the cage big enough if it fits the width of an airing cupboard (although realise airing cupboards come in different sizes.

You need a cage at least 80cm by 50 cm and no more than 46 to 50 cm tall for a Syrian or 38cm ish tall for a dwarf hamster.

80 x 50 or 75 x 45 is a good size for a dwarf hamster. Most people go a bit bigger for Syrians with something like the Hamster Heaven being the minimum suitable really.