Hammy won't leave the tubes

SweetPurple · 03-26-2018, 11:13 AM

Hello guys!
I got my first hamster a couple of days ago. In the pet shop he was the calmest one, he didn't mind to be handled at all, I even held him over there, and he was fine with it. He's a young Syrian,and he's living in 2 cages connected by tubes. As soon as he got home, he was making a lot of noise (as my mom said, something in between a pig and the devil noise lol). I figured he was really stressed out so I put him in the cage as soon as I got home. Since then, he decided to live in the tubes.
I watched a ton of videos to learn how to make this transition smoother, and less stressful, so I am leaving him be in the cage. I heard him using the wheel at night and all the treats I left around the cages are gone . So I know he's leaving the tubes when I'm asleep.
I want to know how long I should leave him be in the cage before trying any contact. Only once I was able to see him outside of the tubes but he ran back to them as soon as he saw me.

The tubes are starting to smell and look nasty since his pee in leaking on the floor through the tubes and he's pooping, peeing, sleeping and storing his food in the same place. Can I close the tube and leave him in the main cage during the day to force him to sleep in the house? Should I wait more time to that that?

SunnyOy · 03-26-2018, 11:37 AM

I see that your hammie has been through a lot of stress recently and definitely he is too scared of his new environment.
My hamster, called Dumpling, used to do that a lot when he just came from pet store and that has lasted for a month.
Living in the tube is a really bad idea for hamsters and the longer they stay, the more reluctant they become to move outside.
The only thing you can do right now is to give him a lot of non-dust beddings so he could make his own burrows and create a sense of security from there. I would simply remove the tube so he has no choice but to make burrows from beddings. Meanwhile, rub part of his beddings in your hands to make your scent stay in his beddings. He will become used to that soon.
In the evening, you could try to wake him up by some delicious treats around his wake-up time(not too early, since he will be annoyed. Not too late, since the more conscious he is, the more defensive he becomes.)
Hamsters are like kids and sometimes they do need your appropriate actions to guide their behaviours.

SecretlyDying · 03-26-2018, 12:30 PM

Hi, this is actually a common problem for new hamsters and it's really not healthy for them to nest, pee etc in tubes as the lack of oxygen inside the tubes can also lead to condensation build up and bacteria growth due to the pee etc. i'd advise you to take the tubes away completely as its not a problem that just goes away unless they're removed. Can i ask how big his cage is? Ideally they should have a large cage of around 80cm by 50cm - a large continuous floor space is better than smaller connected cages or tall cages.

Hamsters will take up to a week or two to fully settle in however i tend to talk to mine around day 3. Just sit near the cage and talk gently or talk as you're doing water bottles, food etc just to get them used to your voice before initial contact. A good taming trick to use is to get some plain unscented tissue paper and put it up your sleeve for a few hours or just rub it between your hands or on your arm and then shred it and put it in the cage - he'll use it for his nest and also get used to your scent. When it comes to taming just take your time, have patience and it'll pay off.

SweetPurple · 03-26-2018, 12:49 PM

I know they prefer big cages than 2 smaller ones connected by tubes, but this was the only solution I found so he wouldn't stay in a small one. Each of them is 50x40 cm, so I'm afraid if I take the tubes out completely it would be too small for him. I live in Brazil and it's pretty hard to find decent cages and the aquariums are way too expensive. My friends hamster made a hole through her bin cage, so the cheapest option was to buy two cages and connect them for now. Any idea if he would eat the cage if I were to build one made from mdf?

SecretlyDying · 03-26-2018, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SweetPurple

I know they prefer big cages than 2 smaller ones connected by tubes, but this was the only solution I found so he wouldn't stay in a small one. Each of them is 50x40 cm, so I'm afraid if I take the tubes out completely it would be too small for him. I live in Brazil and it's pretty hard to find decent cages and the aquariums are way too expensive. My friends hamster made a hole through her bin cage, so the cheapest option was to buy two cages and connect them for now. Any idea if he would eat the cage if I were to build one made from mdf?

I see, i dont know much about mdf but i dont personally think id use it to build a cage with just in case the ham did decide to chew it. Could you source plain pine wood? Or perhaps make a bin cage? i know you said your friend's hamster chewed out but i think that is more to do with the hamsters personality really as well as the bin size - i have a ham who was previously in a bin cage and is an avid plastic chewer however she never chewed the bin cage, she's now in a diy wooden furniture hack cage and she chews the wood. Alternatively could you order from zooplus? [url=http://www.zooplus.co.uk/] - im not too sure about where they ship to but thought i'd see if it was an option for you

SweetPurple · 03-26-2018, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SecretlyDying

I see, i dont know much about mdf but i dont personally think id use it to build a cage with just in case the ham did decide to chew it. Could you source plain pine wood? Or perhaps make a bin cage? i know you said your friend's hamster chewed out but i think that is more to do with the hamsters personality really as well as the bin size - i have a ham who was previously in a bin cage and is an avid plastic chewer however she never chewed the bin cage, she's now in a diy wooden furniture hack cage and she chews the wood. Alternatively could you order from zooplus? [url=http://www.zooplus.co.uk/] - im not too sure about where they ship to but thought i'd see if it was an option for you

I just took his tubes out, he's in only one of the cages for now. He has the essentials with him in the cage cause it has 3 floors (water, food bowl, wheel, house and a chewing toy). Despite being only in one cage he's A LOT more okay with me being around the cage and exploring (even grabbed a sunflower seed from me through the bars). But you guys don't worry, me and my brother (he has a mouse pet) are planning on building a wooden furniture for them. Separate cages, of course. I'm gonna give him a few days like this and try connecting the second cage to buy me some time until I can make it happen with the furniture. As soon as I can take a decent picture of him, I'll introduce him to you guys on the proper thread (but just saying, he's adorable! ).

Pebbles82 · 03-27-2018, 05:22 AM

That sounds much better

Agree with everything the others said about the tubes. 50 x 40 is small but should be ok as a starter cage if it has levels. However I'm a bit concerned that you said it has 3 levels as that sounds like it is quite tall and falls from a height are a big risk and can lead to injuries. They shouldn't be able to fall further than 30cm from the roof except onto something soft like deep substrate. Usually with tall cages there are gaps between the shelves and they can fall right through from the top.

Could you rearrange the shelves maybe so one makes a full level? I'd also have the substrate quite deep or heaped up in a mound at the bottom. If you have a photo of the cage, can make some suggestions to avoid fall risks.

SweetPurple · 03-27-2018, 06:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serendipity7000

That sounds much better

Agree with everything the others said about the tubes. 50 x 40 is small but should be ok as a starter cage if it has levels. However I'm a bit concerned that you said it has 3 levels as that sounds like it is quite tall and falls from a height are a big risk and can lead to injuries. They shouldn't be able to fall further than 30cm from the roof except onto something soft like deep substrate. Usually with tall cages there are gaps between the shelves and they can fall right through from the top.

Could you rearrange the shelves maybe so one makes a full level? I'd also have the substrate quite deep or heaped up in a mound at the bottom. If you have a photo of the cage, can make some suggestions to avoid fall risks.

I put A TON of toilet paper that I rubbed all over me last night in the bottom of the cage to help with him being comfortable with my smell. And I really think he loved it cause I couldn't even find him this morning under of all that toilet paper (he rearranged a good amount in the corner and I'm guessing he was under that pile). I was worried he was going to jump from the third floor since he jumped out of the second one. But it seems like he learned how to use the ramp to go down now. But I'll be checking if I can rearrange the floors to make it more suitable for him and so he won't get hurt.

Pebbles82 · 03-27-2018, 10:56 AM

The trouble is you don't see what they get up to at night - he could monkey bar across the roof looking for a way out and just drop. You could make a "full level" with two shelves at the same height, then have something spanning them so the only gap is where an access ladder goes up and have another shelf over the access ladder so he can't fall down the hole from the top. If that makes sense.

So if you had two shelves at the same height opposite each other and less than 30cm from the top and maybe a piece of wood or stiff cardboard sitting over them or attached firmly to them going across to cover the gap at the back and in the middle, then a ladder or access going up to that level at the front where the gap is. Then something attached to hang or sit over that gap - either another smaller shelf or similar.

SweetPurple · 03-27-2018, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serendipity7000

The trouble is you don't see what they get up to at night - he could monkey bar across the roof looking for a way out and just drop. You could make a "full level" with two shelves at the same height, then have something spanning them so the only gap is where an access ladder goes up and have another shelf over the access ladder so he can't fall down the hole from the top. If that makes sense.

So if you had two shelves at the same height opposite each other and less than 30cm from the top and maybe a piece of wood or stiff cardboard sitting over them or attached firmly to them going across to cover the gap at the back and in the middle, then a ladder or access going up to that level at the front where the gap is. Then something attached to hang or sit over that gap - either another smaller shelf or similar.

I can't move the shelves at all

I just measured the cage, from the top down, if he does monkey bar and end up falling, it's going to be aroung a 45 cm drop (it does have toilet paper all over the bottom floor, but I'm not sure how much that would help). From the third floor down it's a 30 cm fall ... Not sure what I can do with this cage to make it safer ...