New Hammy behaviour

[JoanneRobbo]

Hi. We've had our Syrian Hammy for just over 2 weeks. He has a Savic hamster heaven cage and has decided to sleep in one of his tubes rather that the houses. This means he has no bedding around him and I worry that although our house is quite warm he may not be cosy enough. I'm assuming he has chosen the tube as he feels safe in there but am worried about him.
He also sleeps until after midnight which means it's difficult on weekdays to interact with him. Should I be trying to wake him earlier? I've tried gentle rattling of the bars and shaking his food jar and although he stirs he seems in a very deep sleep and reluctant to come out.
Any advice would be appreciated thanks.

[Shannonmcn]

Not an uncommon issue at all, you're right that he's sleeping in the tubes because he feels safe there and you're also right that it's not very good for him. The simple solution is just to take the tubes away, either permanently or until he gets himself properly settled in a proper nest! The hamster heaven should come with tube blockers or end caps?

You can get him into an earlier routine but it's best to do it gradually so it might take a while, if he's usually up at midnight feed him at 11.45, then maybe 11.30 and make sure he's getting things he WANTS to get up for like fresh veg, a bit of pasta, a tiny bit of cheese etc. Though he should also be weaned slowly onto regular fresh foods if you haven't done that already as giving them too much suddenly can upset their stomachs. He's having some very typical young hammy problems, nothing to worry about you'll just need to be a bit patient

[JoanneRobbo]

Thanks for the advice