Aggressive hamster, can't tame him - Page 2

Hammymad · 04-07-2012, 10:05 AM

Try and figure out where he's peeing if you can.
If he's comfortable taking the treats,I'd continue to do that,he seems to like taking them out of your hand.
If you are feeling abit stressed,anxious etc he will pick up on yor emotions,so try and be as calm as you can around him.
Just keep at it and he will respond to you

StarlightSerenity · 04-07-2012, 10:12 AM

Have a read through these two pages -

Taming tips - Hamster Central WIKI
Taming handling hamsters

They will help you with taming. Don't give up, you've only had him for a week, my Syrian who is from a breeder so partially tame when I got her and has a very good temperament, took two weeks to fully tame.

You don't need to watch him to figure out where he is going to the toilet, just find the wet substrate. If you think it might be water rather than pee, smell it to make sure. If you can, provide a toilet, filled with toilet letter, that will make spot cleaning a lot easier and reduce any smell.

sever2 · 04-07-2012, 10:21 AM

Thank you all for your answers. Any more advices are greatly appreciated!

MommaHammie · 04-07-2012, 04:16 PM

Don't give up hope >_<
I've had my dwarfies for 6 months now and they are all not tamed but doesn't matter because they are still entertaining when they round around and go on their wheel or saucer (blurry feet! haha)
The one I had separated before has just finally allowed me to stroke it for more than 5 seconds yesterday! (He was eating a nut so he probably was too busy nomming so he allowed me to touch him!!!! So rewarding lol)

Hopefully you'd have better luck than me!

racinghamster · 04-08-2012, 01:36 AM

Try taming a six month old male roborovski who has never been tamed!

But seriously, take things slowly, offer the little seed treats (things like half a dried meaworm or a little sprinkle of budgie millet) from your hand or placed in front of your hamster and just sit there while he eats it. Tell him he`s a good boy and just let him dictate what he wants to do. If you move too fast or attempt to lift him all the time, it will just set you back again. You want to avoid any unecessary stress on the hamster. If you keep thinking you want him tame within a cetrain time, this won`t help because you might rush things.

If your out during the day, he will be sleeping anyway, which hamsters do as they are mainly dawn and dusk creatures, so your time with him should reflect this and not waking him up to play. I never, ever do that. If I don`t see my boys during the day, I usually see them later in the evening anyway, so I just wait until they emerge in their own time.

Lynternette · 04-08-2012, 03:25 AM

Hi sever and welcome. I have a Syrian. I've had him for about 16 months. He's just started to come out of his cage by himself. Its been a trial as he's painfully shy. Never ever scratched or bitten but he's very good at hiding. This week he's started to climb onto my arm. It was a fantasic break through. I'm besotted with him.

racinghamster · 04-08-2012, 04:09 AM

That`s exactly right Lynternette. It`s all about allowing the hamster all the time it needs to decide when the time is right and wants to explore more. Sometimes we just need to stop and think about why we take on a hamster or other small pet because it isn`t always going to be an easy ride. Some hamsters just don`t want to know and will take a long time to settle, while others are more up for playing and attention seeking. I personally take in rescue hamsters, so I already know that they will need much more settling in time than perhaps a baby hamster who has came from a good breeder and has been handled from an early age.

My syrian is 17, going on 18 months now and I still don`t attempt to pick him up because he doesn`t like it. he loves to come out of his nest, wander over to me or his food dish and I lean over and give him kisses on his back! He turns his nose and I have my face in his dish!

So we have little syrian whiffle kisses and then he tells me in no uncertain terms he`s had enough and he goes back to his nest! Usually with a little slice of apple or a treat. He`s very content with his life and I never force myself on him because I know he`s not a `hands` hamster, but he tollerates me in other ways, which I`m fine with. It suits us both really because he`s not a bar chewer or attention seeks like some syrian can be. I would rather have a hamster that isn`t hyper all the time, but is more chilled in his or her own little world.

sever2 · 04-08-2012, 05:07 AM

Hello and thanks for your answers guys. You helped me a lot. I will take things slowly and be very patient. So, I want to ask you guys something else. Can you please tell me what the ideal temperature for hamsters to live? I put the hamster outside because it was doing a mess in our living room, throwing the bedding outside the cage etc. Here in my country, this days the temperature is at like 15-25 Celcius. Will this be a problem for him?

**kyrilliondaemon** · 04-08-2012, 05:19 AM

Er... I'd never keep a hamster outside unless in a heated shed with electricity and lights and such.
If mess is a problem there are solutions that don't involve the ham living oudoors. If the temperature changes too drastically you'll end up with an ill ham, and its more likely to happen outdoors then indoors.

racinghamster · 04-08-2012, 05:49 AM

I agree. It`s not wise to put a hamster outside because the wind can change or it can end up too warm, especially if the cage ends up with the sun shinning down on it.

If mess from shavings is an issue, can`t you just put up with a little mess under the cage? Just use a small dust pan and brush every now and then to sweep up any shavings that fall out. Unless the hamster is housed in a perspex tank or a glass aquarium, barred cages will allow for some mess to sometimes fall over the cage base. It`s unavoidable really. What were your other hamsters kept in?

But please, don`t put your hamsters health at risk because of a little bit of mess. Otherwise it`s not worth having the hamster.