Simon!

[SkiddyFisk]

This is Simon.

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/ratsig.jpg

Simon is a 5 month old banded Syrian. When she was about a month old she escaped her cage and got into my roomate's hair dye and ended up hot pink.

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/redpaper.jpg

It was really bright then but it's faded significantly now.

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/exploring.jpg

She likes hanging out on my laptop when I want to type something. At least she's too light to push any keys.

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/kb1.jpg

When I get the camera out she likes to either move around too much for me to get a shot off, or pose for me:

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/posing.jpg

Here we are the day of the dye incident, after a thorough rinsing off to prevent the eating of debatably nutritious pink hair dye:

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/vertical.jpg

She makes effective use of the other residents of the house:

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/ride.jpg

More posing:

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/whaaat.jpg

I should remember to use "Close-up" mode on the camera next time.

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/incage.jpg

More to come!

[Jane]

Aww she's gorgeous. Not so sure about the pink though lol :shock: :?

Are those cedar woodshavings in the last picture? If so they're dangerous and you're better off changing to another bedding :D (like Carefresh, Aspen shavings etc..cos I think your in the USA because we generally don't get cedar shavings in the UK, but I could be wrong?? :?)

[souffle]

Awww she is adorable and a bit of an adventure ham by the looks of things. She is a long haired sable banded. Hair dye is not a good idea and supervise closely with cats as she could have a bad accident. Looking forward to hearing more about her.

[Holly]

She is very cute, hopefully she didn't/won't experience any health problems from getting the hair dye on her.

[pophammy]

Aww. she's sweet! Be careful about letting her near hair dye and other animals in the house, she could get injured.

[suga]

what a character! Looks fab but not sure about the taste in fur colour :-P

[Hana]

Aw shes gorgeous! Hope the dye didn't effect her in any way, I like the colour though! :lol:

[SkiddyFisk]

Yes, it's cedar bark. I couldn't find anything else last time I ran out of bedding, and she's been living in it a couple weeks and doesn't seem to mind.

[gizmo]

very cute. :)

[SkiddyFisk]

Waking up, as demonstrated by Simon:

http://www.genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/lazyham.jpg
"ZZzz...."

http://www.genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/mrg.jpg
"zfchscdghwuzzit 6 already?"

http://www.genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/unawake.jpg
"grr imup imup COFFEE NOW"

[Jane]

Awww so cute :D

She needs a new wheel though - that wheel is very dangerous because she could get her legs caught and end up with broken legs...she needs a solid wheel, atleast 7.5" ;)

[SkiddyFisk]

My Amazon queue is full of hamster accessories, including a new wheel and ball. Just a matter of available money.

[Jane]

Until you can afford a new wheel you should weave cardboard through the wheel :wink: (the thickness of cereal box cardboard is good)..it's not a permanent solution but it will stop broken legs ;)

[babyboos]

she looks great a real character and obviously a well loved member of the family

[SkiddyFisk]

I did the cardboard thing to the wheel, and now she pokes her head out the side so she can see where she thinks she's going. So cute!

I treated her to some pizza crust today:

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/hasbred2.jpg

http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/ihasbred.jpg


Then she decided to show off her bum for the camera:
http://genericus.org/puppies/rodentia/bum.jpg

[leigh]

That one cute ham.
I use silent spinners for my syrains and Minnie pokes his head out of the side of the wheel to see where he is going too. I am suprised that he does not have a neck crink. :roll:

[SkiddyFisk]

I found Simon stiffed up in her cage today. Must have been from the heat :( Today was a bad one.

[souffle]

Oh no Skiddyfish that is awful. Poor Simon, she was such a sweety. As your new house seems to be too hot for hamsters I would advise you not to get another one until you either move to a house with air-con or a cooler area. You would not want another hamster to suffer the same fate as Simon.
R.I.P Simon and play happily at the bridge :cry:

[Minicooper]

That's so sad :cry:

R.I.P Simon

[SkiddyFisk]

I'd already made arrangements to adopt some baby dwarf hamsters when they're old enough, which won't be for a month or so. My AC should be working by then.

[suga]

RIP Simon :-(

[pophammy]

Oh no, poor Simon. R.I.P little one.

Make sure that you keep your Dwarfs away from hairdye and other dangerous items, as you wouldn't want them to fall in it like Simon. Also be sure to give them a low sugar food as they can sometimes be diabetic.

[souffle]

Be sure you get them properly sexed and keep them in separate single sex tanks. Sibling breeding is a bad idea and be aware that they will not always live together as they mature so make sure you have enough cages for emergency separation.

[Holly]

Poor Simon, RIP little girl :(

[babyboos]

a nice cool area can be provided in the form of a ceramic tile which you place in the fridge
get two so you can rotate them
you will find your hammies lie prone on the tiles cooling their tummies
Syrians overheat very quickly sadly
sweet dreams little one

[SkiddyFisk]

I have two cages, and I don't intend to let them breed with eachother. They are from an inbred pairing themselves, I found out, and adding another generation to that wouldn't end very well at all.

I suppose I could consider the bright side, I don't have to buy a bigger wheel now. :/ Littler hams should be fine with the 6 inch wheel.

Is there anything else I should change to transition my syrian housing to dwarf housing? Are the same seeds and pellets good for them? I never fed Simon much sugary stuff anyway.

[souffle]

It is best to provide multiple toys if you have more than one in a cage eg two wheels, sleeping boxes, tunnels etc and give them as much space as possible. Don't use a food bowl but scatter the food on the floor as they can get territorial over the bowl. Any good quality hamster food should be fine and dwarfs like small seed things like millet spray. Avoid honey treats and things with sugar in them.

[babyboos]

I saw a gimmick tile today in Pets at Home - does the same job as a cheapy one from the local garden centre/building yard/diy store - place it in the fridge and then under a section of the cage or animal house.