Worried about my hamster :(

[Narque]

I got my 2nd ever Hamster yesterday and put him in and old space cage I had from when I had one as a child.... but he's not eating or drinking. Today I built him a massive cage with a 62 gallon tank but all he does is try to escape he try's to dig holes in the corners to get out. He try's to climb up the sides. He still wont drink or eat he has everything he need's toys bedding water and a wheel.

Any tips? thanks.

Also my hamsters name is Buck :D

[Biscotti]

Don't worry too much, it will usually take a hamster a few days to settle into his new home. Once he knows that it's his home, he will start exploring the cage. Just leave him be for a bit. :)

And wow, 62gal tank must be huge! Would love to see some pics of your set up. Buck is one lucky hammie!

[shiny]

If he's digging he is probably keen to find a little space to hide away until he is sure of his surroundings.

What sort of hamster is Buck? Have you given him any sort of hidey house? What type of substrate are you using? I'm asking this because we find our Chinese Dwarf hamster loves to dig & makes lots of little tunnels etc in his cage which is a really great natural behaviour. We give him a really deep layer of Megazorb (a bit like Carefresh) & he loves it.

I expect Buck will calm down after a few days, he is probably quite stressed out right now with moving house etc, make sure he has plenty of peace & quiet and opportunity to rest & hide away and I'm sure he will be ok. We find our hamsters do most of their eating at night when it's dark. Try to offer some really tempting little morsels, again this depends on what sort of hamster he is. Both our hamsters (a Chinese & a Syrian) seem to find little bits of boiled egg irrisistable so that might be worth a try.

Best wishes :)

[Gibbs&JackBlack]

I agree with the others.

Regarding drinking-do you have a water bottle or bowl of water? Is it different from what he was used to before? You might put a small bowl of water out since it's easier to access. Just a thought.

[Linlou]

Don't worry, your little guy just needs time to get used to it! Give him space to readjust to his new home, he is probably quite scared! He has a new family and a new home to get used to! :)

Try him with a piece of cheese, normally does the trick :)

Good luck, and welcome to your new little home Buck! xx

[Cupcake]

First of all welcome to the forum :) Buck is a really nice name!
Hamsters need a few days to get comfortable with their new environment. In this time they mark the cage so that they recognize what is "theirs" through smell as they do not have very acute eyesight. Do not worry, just give him a few more days to calm down and soon enough he'll take an interest in stuff other than hiding :)