I guess some reassurance? HE'S BACK :)

[Mikayla]

Jager got out. I don't know how or when, other than last night. He was living in the unfinished basement with the chins. Nobody thinks I'll find him. I probably won't. We also found a giant water leak in the basement tonight. All over the basement. Does anyone think he's avoid the water? I just hope he did. I just want him home. I've never felt so hopeless before. He could be starving and freezing to death in a corner behind a ton of totes and I'll never get to him. I'm distraught and no one cares about the fact that he's out. They care that there's a water leak. No one understands thehamsters, they get the chins, but they don't and never will understand that Jager's life means just as much to me.

[gutterglitterxx]

I understand your frustrations. No one here really cares about my love for my hams. :(

Have you tried setting up some bucket traps with food? Always worth a shot.

I really, truly, sincerely hope Jäger finds his way back to you. xx

[Lougarry]

Fingers crossed for little Jäger, Mikayla. Remember, Chinese are pretty nimble climbers and can squeeze through tiny spaces so hopefully he's found a safe, dry spot xxxxx

[petal10]

Sorry to hear that and it's so frustrating when others don't care - some of my family found it hilarious when I thought Pugwash had wet tail :( really hope Jäger comes home soon

[souffle]

Aww Mikayla as long as you are doing everything you can to find him that is all anyone can ask. They have a habit of finding the most cozy spots so leave out food and somewhere attractive that he may try and nest in and check frequently.
It happens - hammies are great escape artists and they do escape a lot more often than people admit. I hope you find him sweetie x

[kyrilliondaemon]

I'm really sorry he's out somewhere, and I hope he's back safe soon

[polishrose]

Hope he comes back safe and sound

[Mikayla]

Well last night I set up three bucket traps and I sprinkled chinchilla dust all over the floor. He's also a wheel addict so I left that out as well with some food on it. This morning there were footprints all over the floor and the food was gone, but nothing in the traps. I'm a bit more hopeful cause my little man is alive and obviously well enough to have a go on his wheel. My dad's out to find some no kill mouse traps today. Any other helpful tips?

[Jessie]

leave his cage on the floor so he can get in it.. I had a hammy get loose, I left her cage down with food water and her wheel, I came back 3 or 4 days later to her sleeping in it.

[Mikayla]

That's what I just did! thanks, Jessie. :)

[polishrose]

Good luck-good tip about leaving the chinchilla sand down so you could see footprints. Definitely try leaving the cage down with some yummy treats inside.

[Mikayla]

I put out two more traps. A plastic live mouse trap, and a wire one with a pressure plate. If I don't get him today (I bet I won't cause he'll be sleeping) then I'm going to set up a red light and wait up for him tonight. I'm going to see if I can set up a couple of pulleys with boxes so I can drop them over his wheel or his cage and trap him like that.

[shiny]

Good luck Mikayla - I'm so glad he seems to be around anyway :). I'm sure he won't be able to resist his cosy nest in his own cage. He must be having a great adventure!!

[vanilla-yazoo]

oh hunny!!! i hope you find him!! sounds like he is having a great time running about down there!! i hope you catch him tonight x

[Mikayla]

I'm just incredibly worried because the basement is so dangerous. It's piled 4-5 feet high with plastic storage boxes that I can't get behind, and the water drainage room is right off the corner from it, and he could easily get in there. There are tons of holes in the walls and there's a door that leads into an apartment that's rented out seperately. I'm not sure he'd take well to Jäger running wild in his house. It's just terribly down there. At least all the water is dried up and that's not a worry, but I am terrified.

I know he got out of his Zoozone cause the bars weren't meshed. His tallest toys were probably 5 inches from the bars, but he mush be a crazy monkey :( I'm hoping he falls for the pressure plate one. Do you think that turning off all the lights would trick him into thinking it's nightime and maybe he'd come out?

[Mikayla]

Still nothing. I've got out three bucket traps, two plastic and a wire trap. I hope he decides to come out again tonight, I'd be devastated if he doesn't. And i really hope the traps catch him, because I'm downright terriified.

[kyrilliondaemon]

I was hoping the update'd be good news :( I hope he does turn up during the night. What're you baiting the traps with?

[Mikayla]

I was hoping the update'd be good news :( I hope he does turn up during the night. What're you baiting the traps with?

Peanut Butter and some regular food. I also put a yogurt drop in there. Any other suggestions?

I wish it was good. These are m favorite threads to read, because they almost always end up happy in the end, but with out basement mine probably won't :(

[kyrilliondaemon]

I was thinking maybe other smelly foods in some of them as then even if he isn't attracted to one food he might prefer another but thats just a guess

[Mikayla]

I was thinking maybe other smelly foods in some of them as then even if he isn't attracted to one food he might prefer another but thats just a guess

You got any ideas? I don't even know what other smelly stuff to put in there tbh. I just want him to get caught. I added some fresh peanut butter tonight.

[Lougarry]

Some baby food? Cat meat? Xx

[Queen Of The High Teas]

Can you sit or stand in the basement and just listen? Hamsters are great at hiding but their not very good at staying quiet!

[Lougarry]

That might mean taking all the chins out though...

[kyrilliondaemon]

My only ideas were cheese and cat food. Even dry cat and dog food stinks quite a bit :)

[GhostsInSnow]

Was going to suggest perhaps some cat food or something? It's quite smelly and I know some hams love cat food. Even if he doesn't, the smell might be enough to tempt him out.
Can hams eat fish? Like a little tuna or something cuz that has quite a strong smell to it.
I really hope you find him :(

[Lougarry]

My hamsters have fish on Fridays and enjoy it.

[Mikayla]

Thanks for all the ideas guys. If I can't get him tonight I'll run to the store for cat food tomorrow. They have regular dog food at part of their mix, so that's already in there. Maybe I'll find some cheese tonight. My plan tonight is to turn off all the lights early and sit on the stairs and wait. I have a red light, should I use that to watch?

[Lougarry]

Sounds like a good idea. It would be frustrating to hear him but not be able to see to catch him. Good luck, Hun xxx

[Mikayla]

Sounds like a good idea. It would be frustrating to hear him but not be able to see to catch him. Good luck, Hun xxx

You don't imagine that even the red liht would put him off?

[Lougarry]

I've heard of people using red lights in tanks/hacks so they can see their hams playing at night. I think it's worth a try at least. If it seems to put him off, extinguish it.

[Mikayla]

stakeout has begun....Maia is being obnoxious, aol I hope he's not put off...

[vanilla-yazoo]

Red lighting should work, even red bike light will be enough to
Get an idea of him moving about. I hope you catch him soon!

[Mikayla]

! ho0ur in: Seen him a ton. He's sneaky. Crossed to the bad side of the basement about 20 minutes back, not sign of him again. He'll be back. I'm sure. He's safe. He's thirsty though, I can tell, I have a water out, I hope he finds it.

[Lougarry]

Sounds promising...

[Mikayla]

last saw him maybe 35 minutes ago. He went to the death side of the basement with all the danger.... Wish he'd come out and at least go to the other side. I'm scared to death.

[strawberrysmom]

Oh my gosh. Anything new? I'm just catching up on this thread.

[Biscotti]

Good luck in getting your little man back Mikayla, I know how hard it must be to wait for Jager to come back. Fingers and paws crossed for you.

[GhostsInSnow]

Every time I see a new post I hope it's good news. I really hope he comes back and you can catch him x

[kyrilliondaemon]

Sounds like he's being a real little pest, good luck getting him back

[polishrose]

Any more news?

[Mikayla]

Nothing. I ended up throwing in the towel last night because everyone refused to be quiet upstairs and he wouldn't come back over. However, I'm fairly sure I know where his nest is, so we're going to block off that part of the basement and hope for the best. I will be sitting out again tonight, and tomorrow night and every night until I find him. Luckily, I'll be alone for the next few nights so he might come out.

He so effing intelligent. He won't fall for the traps and he won't climb anything. I left one little tiny bit out food out besides what was in the cages, and that was gone this morning so I know he's positive I won't let him starve. I'm also fairly sure he was in the blue cage, because there was a small amount of water gone.

It was nice to see him last night. The way he stalked around like a wild animal made him look beautiful.

[vanilla-yazoo]

Oh hun! At least you know he is doing ok! I hope you catch him tonight! Sounds like he is enjoying it too!

[racinghamster]

The only thing I can think of is to take his cage, which will smell familiar to him and place a fleece or a towel up and in through the cage door with some small seeds leading up into the cage? If he`s smart, he may just climb up the towel, into the cage and once you see him go in and he`s away from the cage door, you can slowly approach and clip the door closed?

It`s great that he`s still in the house so hopefully if he smells his belongings, he will take the bait.

[Mikayla]

I've got his cage laid out :( He never went into it. The thing is, I cleaned it the other day so it doens't have much of his smell. I'm hoping that he wakes up for a toddle about today and he's in one of the traps this afternoon. I'm going to sit up again tonight, but I've got back/knee/feet problems and sitting still doesn't feel too nice.

[IzzyBee]

Fingers crossed that he decides to come home tonight, and that nothing happens to him in the mean time!

[Mikayla]

Biggest fear is that he decides that he wants to leave and then stops coming back :( I think tonight will be the night. I'm going to set up two or three more traps for him. and hope that helps...

[IzzyBee]

If he's still around then hopefully it means he does want to come back, he's probably having a rebellious teenager phase and once the novelty wares off he'll want to come back to his safe, warm home!

[Mikayla]

I just hope he stays in the same place, and comes out again tonight. I'm planning to put an ice cream bucket upside down, and have it held up by a wooden peg? And then put some food under it. Then I can tie a strong around the peg and when he goes under trap him...I also want to section him off into one area of the basement, so that he can no longer go to the side of death. I wish he was treat motivated :( He doesn't even like treats, so getting him to go for the traps is proving difficult in that aspect as well.

[sully]

Have you any of his dirty cage contents that you took out when you cleaned his cage, that you could put in his cage now.Also what about a whole peeled banana, that smells.

[Queen Of The High Teas]

How about some warm scrambled egg? that smells a bit. In fact warm food always smells more than cold does, so I'd try using stuff you can heat up. Hot dogs are good too. Also if you know what side he's in, try and block off the other side so you have far less space to look. Maybe a live catch mouse trap would help, if he goes in one of those he won't be able to get out again, unlike his cage.

[Mikayla]

Started my stake out prematurely tonight...hoping to catch a glimpse of him so I can separate him off.

[Mikayla]

EEEEEK! Seen him! I've got him seperated off from the death side of the basement, so he's at least easier to catch :D So excited.

[kyrilliondaemon]

Awesome, well done :D

[Mikayla]

I GOT HIM. HE'S MINE, I TELL YOU. MINE. I will relay the story after everything is cleaned up and I have finished my dinner properly :)

[kyrilliondaemon]

Awesome :D Congrats on getting him back :D

[Mikayla]

SO. HERE GOES:

I started my stakeout SUPER early tonight, 5:30. I wanted to part off the basement so he couldn't get to the scary part of the basement. At about 6:45 I spotted him and hurried to part off the basement. Once that was finished I went to eat. Then at about 6:55 he came out from BEHIND the block. I was like, "WTH?" and then I realized he was under my falling box trap. He was right on the border but I cut the string anyway. SLAM! and he was caught. From there I couldn't figure out how to get him out of the box! So I pulled the correx around the box, and let him out. I had to chase him a little bit, but eventually I scooped him up and plopped him in his cage. Then I put him into the carrier. Then I moved him into a slightly bigger carrier. He's now nomming and having a drink :D

I feel pretty awesome ATM...nobody thought I could catch him at all, let alone with my falling box. Mwahaha. I'm genius. (There's been a bit of an ego explosion in my house tonight...)

He is truly shocked, so I've left him alone for the most part, but I did grab a few pics.

[kyrilliondaemon]

Awesome! Way to go you :D

[Mikayla]

Thankies :) I can finally rest easy.

He's seriously freaked out right now. Pretty much is stuck in one spot of his cage and staring straight ahead. I hope he's just scared and he didn't get into anything, but I can't do anything but hope for that one.

[strawberrysmom]

So glad to read this good news!!!!!

[Biscotti]

I'm so happy that you got him back finally, great job with the trap. *thumbs up*

[Lougarry]

Fantastic, Mikayla - I'm so happy and relieved! :D :D :D

[souffle]

YAY!!!!!!! What a star you are Mikayla and congratulations of getting him back :) Delighted for you. It just shows how persistence pays off. Now make sure you secure his cage won't you as he has a taste for freedom now!!!
Well done :)

[evel_lin]

Yay well done you!

[shazzy]

phheeewww! I was so hoping your story was going to have a happy ending! Well done you!

[racinghamster]

A happy ending indeed. :)

[Womblehands]

Im so glad hun, Ive been looking at this thread and hoping he comes home. He will be a little shell shocked for a few days but hopefully be back to his usual self.
Lets hope he doesnt ever do this again.. x Stay put little dude

[vicky1804]

Congrats, glad he is home all safe and sound.
He might just need a few days to recover and get back into his routine

[sully]

Thats good news! :)

[gellerbing]

aww thats so great :)

[SammyJo]

What a great story! Well done for finding him and I'm so impressed you did it with a bucket trap that sounds like it's from a cartoon!

[GhostsInSnow]

I'm so glad you got the little guy back!!!
I can't imagine how relieved you must be feeling

[polishrose]

So glad you got him back :)

[gutterglitterxx]

Very happy to see good news. Welcome back, little man! xx

[GemmasMom]

Just reading this! Awesome news :) Mommies know best and never lose hope!

[suga]

Wonderful news! So glad you caught him in your amazing trap.

[petal10]

Such good news, well done for persevering and I'm so glad you got Jäger home :)

[Queen Of The High Teas]

Aww Mikayla I'm so glad you've gotten him back! Been to busy to get on here the last few days, last I read you were still trying to find him. Now's the first chance I've had properly and I'm really pleased this has a happy ending. Well done you, what an awesome trap!:D