Peeing in her bed...

[Jude]

I have a new baby hammie (5 weeks old) from a rescue centre - she is so cute! Her name is Hamantha. My question is this: how can I stop Hamantha weeing in her bed? She sleeps in a little plastic house with shredded paper bedding, where she also stores food, and goes to the toilet. I've tried puting some of the soiled bedding on some potty sand in the corner to try and encourage her to go there instead, but she hasn't taken any notice. Will she grow out of this? Has anyone else experienced this strange habit?

[souffle]

This is very common in new baby hammies Jude so don't worry about it. It takes them a number of weeks to get used to not being with mum and having her clean up aften them. She is a baby and like any baby her bladder control might not be full developed yet. She feels secure in her little house so is using it for everything just now, a bit like us in a little caravan! She will soon work out where she would like to toilet and store her food. We find that they always do as they are clean animals at heart. Be sure to make sure the house is well ventilated so it does not get stuffy. Clean the bedding and remove wet but do not remove all of it. Always put a little bit back with the clean so her scent is always there. She may not feel they need to wee on it to scent it then. It also helps them settle more easily. We do this with our adults too. Hammies always seem to poo in bed and chuck it into a corner but as it is very dry in is harmless. As she is a baby make sure she gets plenty protein such as scrambled egg, chicken or tofu so she grows up nice and strong. What colour is she? I love the name Hamantha.

[Hana]

My hams do this too thats why I don't give them a plastic bed I just use a little cardboard box or eggbox and evertime they pee in it I just chuck it out and replac it. It is really anoying though!

[Jude]

Thanks Souffle She is a kind of pale goldy brown colour, with a lighter tummy, a dark brown patch on the top of her head and a dark matching stripe either side on her neck. She is very fluffy too. (I was trying to put a picture of her on this post, but I can't work out how)

Hana, yes I imagine that is pretty annoying! What kind of hammies are they?

[babyboos]

she sounds lovely and most likely a Golden Syrian from your description
I hope she grows out of her annoying habit

[Hana]

Yeh, They're winter whites Smokey is fine (I don't really know were he pees though) and snowy is the one who either pees in his bed or in his sand bath!

[LilaHam]

My hamsters only a baby too. she pees in her bed but im told she'll stop as she gets older

[Jill Bayles]

Hammy seems to do everything in his bed...he sleeps, eats, stashes and goes to the loo in there...so much for the potty training He also uses the opposite corner of his cage as the loo but the rest of his cage is as clean as a whistle and oh so tidy. The dried food gets spread around the cage but the fresh food is gone in a crack...I never find any of that stashed.

Hammy moved his bed from the place I put it when we first got him and twice since I've tested him out by putting it back there and every time he's moved it to where he wants it...determined little fella he is

[leigh]

Mayo was the same when I first got him, he peed in his bed for about 3 weeks, after that he decided that the opposite corner was better.
I have to make srue that I put the cage top back on the right way, as he must have his 'toliet' corner next to his wheel (it is attached to the cage).

[mrsblloyd]

We don't seem to have a problem with Toffee weeing in his bed he just likes to poo in there at the moment. He is so good since we put in a jam jar for him to do his toilet. When we take it out to clean it and he wakes up and looks for it. He will wait until we put it back before he goes. He's a great little fella and very clean in that way.