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Pebbles82 · 07-03-2018, 02:36 AM

Hello. A cage change stresses them initially - usually reckon on 10 days to 2 weeks for her to settle. I would stick it out. Did you move her cold turkey? Some hamsters get very stressed by that (and I'm speaking from experience too!). If doing a cage change it's usually recommended to move all their old bedding across and try and put toys and houses etc in the same place/layout (also without cleaning them) so it all stills smells like home and familiar. These days I also do a transition period - let them play in the new cage a couple of times before moving over - some people do some people dont' and it can depend on the hamster but I've found it helps them settle much quicker. (Like they had a choice lol!)

I'm not sure moving her back to the Alaska now would help if it has all been cleaned out. The important thing now is not to clean anything for at least 2 weeks. Let her re-scent mark. If you have anything you took out of the old cage and didn't clean - an old toy or hide eg - then pop it in.

Now she's been in it 3 days, give her some out of cage time when she looks like she's trying to get out, as you are doing, but stick it out. Check the wheel is working ok and she can access food and water (sometimes they are trying to tell you something when they're stressed). Check the water bottle is working ok.

Also it's very hot at the moment so try putting a ceramic mug in on it's side - somewhere cooler to sit. There is a thread on here about keeping hamsters cool in hot weather.

What tends to help distract them from everything being different - is distracting things like scatter feeding - so you could scatter some food in her cage over the substrate as well as continuing to put it in her food bowl. Also something like a treat parcel to destroy so she can get at the treats. You can make one out of a toilet roll inner, or I also have a hyacinth ball and stick pumpkin seeds under the outer folds so they have to work at getting them out.

If it's a bit exposed in places she might be feeling scared as well. Does she have a house that's big enough for a nest and hoards and is dark inside? A shoebox can make a good house - cut the floor out and sit it on top of the substrate (ie open underneath) and cut a hole for a door near one end of the long side (means the other end is darker inside) and if you put a bendy bridge over the entrance it makes a tunnel entrance and it's darker inside - she may settle more if she has a large dark place to retreat to.

I had this with our last hamster Charlie when we moved him to a larger cage from a small perspex Rotostak thing. It was quite upsetting at first as he was so scared and would sit and shake. We almost put him back in the old one but didn't because he had been getting stuck in the tubes. So we stuck it out. By day 10 he was happy as larry and really enjoying the cage and the space.

07-03-2018, 02:36 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: unhappy in detolf cage? Hello. A cage change stresses them initially - usually reckon on 10 days to 2 weeks for her to settle. I would stick it out. Did you move her cold turkey? Some hamsters get very stressed by that (and I'm speaking from experience too!). If doing a cage change it's usually recommended to move all their old bedding across and try and put toys and houses etc in the same place/layout (also without cleaning them) so it all stills smells like home and familiar. These days I also do a transition period - let them play in the new cage a couple of times before moving over - some people do some people dont' and it can depend on the hamster but I've found it helps them settle much quicker. (Like they had a choice lol!) I'm not sure moving her back to the Alaska now would help if it has all been cleaned out. The important thing now is not to clean anything for at least 2 weeks. Let her re-scent mark. If you have anything you took out of the old cage and didn't clean - an old toy or hide eg - then pop it in. Now she's been in it 3 days, give her some out of cage time when she looks like she's trying to get out, as you are doing, but stick it out. Check the wheel is working ok and she can access food and water (sometimes they are trying to tell you something when they're stressed). Check the water bottle is working ok. Also it's very hot at the moment so try putting a ceramic mug in on it's side - somewhere cooler to sit. There is a thread on here about keeping hamsters cool in hot weather. What tends to help distract them from everything being different - is distracting things like scatter feeding - so you could scatter some food in her cage over the substrate as well as continuing to put it in her food bowl. Also something like a treat parcel to destroy so she can get at the treats. You can make one out of a toilet roll inner, or I also have a hyacinth ball and stick pumpkin seeds under the outer folds so they have to work at getting them out. If it's a bit exposed in places she might be feeling scared as well. Does she have a house that's big enough for a nest and hoards and is dark inside? A shoebox can make a good house - cut the floor out and sit it on top of the substrate (ie open underneath) and cut a hole for a door near one end of the long side (means the other end is darker inside) and if you put a bendy bridge over the entrance it makes a tunnel entrance and it's darker inside - she may settle more if she has a large dark place to retreat to. I had this with our last hamster Charlie when we moved him to a larger cage from a small perspex Rotostak thing. It was quite upsetting at first as he was so scared and would sit and shake. We almost put him back in the old one but didn't because he had been getting stuck in the tubes. So we stuck it out. By day 10 he was happy as larry and really enjoying the cage and the space.