Great thread Ria, I adopted my first hamster when I was about 9 I think. I was at a local bonfire night put on by my dads work. Long story short one of my dads colleagues was fed up of being late for work because the hamster kept escaping because the kids didn't put the lid back on properly (in hindsight it was probably also because it was a crappy cage with a crappy lid). So, the hamster came to live with us and I put heavy books on top of the cage, no more escaping. This has always made me laugh as the girl whose hamster it was went on to be an RSPCA inspector. I honestly can't remember his name (the only animal I have ever had that I can't), possibly because I just kept the original name.
Then, when i was about 11 I got Danny the hamster as I had been really ill and wasn't allowed to do cross country running competitions anymore and I was so upset my mum said i could get another hamster to cheer me up (cringe). What is beyond baffling for me is although the cage I got this time was on two levels, it was probably way bigger than some of the cages still on the market today. But like Serendipity said, a very empty cage, a house to sleep in, a wheel and some food and water. Poor bored hamster. I also used to wake it up when I got home from school (cringe again). I did get books out of the library (pre internet) on hamsters but they didn't really have much in terms of proper care, I even created a booklet on hamsters with my best friend at the time for an English Assignment, I drew a hamster on the front with glasses on. Then that was it, no more hamsters for a long time, I think it was possibly because I got so upset as they don't live very long.
Then in 2018 I had the thought of getting a hamster, I have a chronic illness and pretty much housebound, bedbound at times. I wasn't 100% sure if I could manage looking after one, but I also knew I couldn't bring myself to get one from the pet shop, so stopped thinking about it. Literally, a week later a friend of mine posted on facebook, did anyone want a hamster. An acquaintance of hers was looking for a home for her hamster. So, I said I would take it, if my landlord said yes. As luck would have it my friend was driving up to the coast pass my house in a few days so it gave me enough time to do some research, and order a load of stuff from zooplus before she dropped Luna off. I had no idea what she looked like when i agreed to this, but fell in love as soon as I saw her. My friend sent me a photo of her cage and I took one look and said is that it, it was a £22 cage aka prison from pets@home, it didn't even fit a wheel in, she is the biggest hamster I ever had and she was on a tiny flying saucer as that was all that fitted in the cage. The few days my friend had her she went and got her a little tunnel and strawberry hide and some treats.
I guess I was lucky in one way that I started off with an Alaska and zooplus items, but I still got the wrong sized wheel, as she was a big girl and I had her in the silent runner 9 inch wheel for a few months, before I looked at her one night and thought she about fills that wheel, I don't think it is big enough, so got her the 12 inch version.
The rest is history as they say, another 5 rescue hamsters later, I joined the forum (made friends on here), started a YouTube channel which has got way out of hand
(made friends on there) and started an Instagram account (made friends on there too) Honestly, hamsters changed my life and I just love all the friends I have met along the way, even if most of my friends/family think I am absolutley nuts.
Didn't mean to type so much - lol - my life story