New Syrian girl - 6 weeks old

[Treacle_08]

Hi. I've been a member here since 2008 but not active for ahem a very long time. I have had 3 hamsters in the past 9 or 10 years, all Syrians, all girls and all wonderful.

After losing my girl Truffle in May 2016, I have missed having a ham and have collected a (then) 5 week old girl last Sunday (Her name is Amber). She is from a very reputable breeder in Glasgow and has been properly handled and socialised from the right age.........BUT

She made a bid for freedom after the 60 mile journey home and since has been VERY skittish. She is slowly adjusting to her surroundings but remains very spooked at noise and movement. As a baby she is very fast but is proving unbearably fast due to being weary and this is making it near impossible for me to handle her in the way I would like and actually the way in which the breeder did too!
Last Sunday I collected a calm and settled baby who would happily sit still and be stroked from head to tail. The most I have managed since is moving a very squirmy girly from play pen back to cage.

The thing that concerns me, is her being skittish and nervy is thus making me skittish and nervy when with her. I've sat in the play pen, she has clambered on me, nibbled my cardigan, taken food from my fingers etc but I find myself feeling anxious and shaky when faced with handling her as I'm terrified I'm going to terrify her! This concerns me as I've had 3 Syrians before, all from 6 weeks old and not had this issue.

What tips can people give me for making her comfortable and just as importantly, building my confidence for her?
The foundation blocks are there for her as she is a breeder ham and has been handled daily since her Mum allowed.

Any help is gratefully received!
Caroline,
Fife, Scotland. xx

[Thin Lizzy]

Hi Treacle, congratulations on your new addition Amber.
Hammies are good at sensing when we're nervous, you being nervous wil make her more.
Have you tried the tissue trick? Get a lot of unscented toilet paper and stuff it up your sleeves for a couple of hours and then place in her cage, curiosity will have her sniff it, this gets her familiar with your scent, do this everyday for a week, add to the tissue already there. Talk softly and quietly to her and praise her whenever she walks about her cage.
A lot of hammies use the tissue as extra bedding.
Also ensure she has plenty of hidey places, this will make her feel more secure.

[AprilPearl]

Just wanted to share my experience which has been gained from taming 8 hamsters (though I appreciate that won't seem like a lot compared to many members here!). By taking the following steps, most hamsters will be very tame within a week, usually less. For a more tricky hamster, I'd imagine it may take a number of weeks, however it should still work. It does require patience and persistence, but if you want a tame hamster then your efforts will pay off.

First, you will need a medium sized box with no lid. In a large playpen or bath, most hamsters will be much more difficult to catch and more likely to run from you. I'm not saying you shouldn't offer a playpen for exercise, but taming sessions tend to be more successful in a smaller container. The plastic box I use is 56cm X 40cm X 30cm.

Now, what you want to do is put your hamster into this taming box for about 15 minutes at a time. Put your hands in and stroke them - they will skitter away or bend their back downwards at first, but keep going as eventually this behaviour will stop as they realises that stroking won't hurt them. Herd the hamster into a corner and cup your hands around them. Scoop them into your cupped hands, without letting them leave the floor as they WILL jump. At this stage, do not grab them and try to pick them up all the way off the floor. What you what to do, is to force them to come into contact with your hand, ideally to run over it. At first, they will probably jump over your hand to "freedom" as best they can, but don't be disheartened. Eventually, they will get used to your hands being in there and will walk off them, rather than jumping. Be warned: this may take quite a few sessions.

The next stage is that they will slow down so you will be able to hold the hamster in your hands a few cenimeters from the floor of the taming box and have them walk from one to the other. With time, they will be so used to you that they will be following your hands around the box, trying to climb your arms to freedom!

If you are having difficulty getting your hamster to walk over your hands, lay a cup on its side in the box. When they climbs inside it, pick the cup a few cm off the floor and make a bridge down with your hand, so they have to climb over your hand to get down. Then, repeat repeat repeat. The main aim here is to get the hamster used to being ON your hand, even if only for a second. Once they learns that it is not a scary thing, and you won't hurt them, you will be able to get him to walk on your hands, or even sit in them.

I use the taming box twice a day for 15-20 minutes at a time. Once in the morning, once in the evening (though I appreciate you may not want to get up that early just to be around when your hamster is, so once a day is fine too). It will not seem like you are making any progress at first, but within a few days they should start to calm down and you will see a big change. I tend to find that for a few days there are no changes, but suddenly one day you will see a big difference all at once.

You can transport your hamster to and from the taming box in a cup or a hamster ball, if you have one.

[BorisPasha]

Hello and welcome to HC, sorry to hear Amber is being a bit nervous. You've been given some really good advice from Lizzy and AP so hopefully Amber will settle soon

[Treacle_08]

Thanks for the responses.

We've had a good amount of progress over the weekend. Amber is now happy being picked up from her cage, play pen and a big box. She also let me turn her over and look at her belly.

She is still unsure of my hands and very reluctant to sit on them or run over them but that may be down to a bit of shakiness from me (I have diagnosed tremors that are medication controlled). I hope that she will get used to this over time, my last hams did. She did, however, show interest on Saturday when she tried to nibble me twice. Lots of sniffing prior so it was definitely down to curiosity.

I have a fabric playpen thing that I have been using to sit in with her (it's massive) but she has discovered that she can climb, and boy can she climb fast. I'm considering making her middle name Houdini. The game is to climb the side as fast as possible and if Mum catches her, climb FASTER!
I'm hoping that this is just down to her curious and adventurous baby-ness and will ebb away as she gets older?

I am pleased to report though, that she is happy being woken and will come to my hand when I present it through the cage opening. Nervousness is going, just got the last of it to go. Then we can work on her energy levels! I forgot how speedy they can be. I'd love to have her on my lap but she'd be across the livingroom in a flash.

Thanks x

[AprilPearl]

Sounds as though you are making good progress!

They do start out very active, then slow down. I got my boy Quigley aged 5 weeks and he was so energetic. Now, he is 8 weeks old and spends most of his playpen time washing lol and will sit still on your hands and let you stroke him. It is a gradual process, but it happens. Girls are generally more active litle beasties than boys who I have found are often laid back to the point of laziness, so Amber may always be fairly energetic. But, she will be less zippy than she is currently.

As for the playpen escape attempts, you might consider getting a more escape proof playpen. I find that if they don’t feel it is possible to escape, they don’t try it. I have the Skyline Arizona Ranch and it is brilliant. They can’t climb up the sides and it is big enough to sit in with them.

Skyline Ranch Arizona Indoor Run | Free P&P £29+ at zooplus!

[Treacle_08]

Originally Posted by AprilPearl

Sounds as though you are making good progress!

They do start out very active, then slow down. I got my boy Quigley aged 5 weeks and he was so energetic. Now, he is 8 weeks old and spends most of his playpen time washing lol and will sit still on your hands and let you stroke him. It is a gradual process, but it happens. Girls are generally more active litle beasties than boys who I have found are often laid back to the point of laziness, so Amber may always be fairly energetic. But, she will be less zippy than she is currently.

As for the playpen escape attempts, you might consider getting a more escape proof playpen. I find that if they don’t feel it is possible to escape, they don’t try it. I have the Skyline Arizona Ranch and it is brilliant. They can’t climb up the sides and it is big enough to sit in with them.

Skyline Ranch Arizona Indoor Run | Free P&P £29+ at zooplus!

Thanks AprilPearl!
Amber is making significant progress each day. Yesterday she let me wake her and weigh her without any escape attempts and last night for a good hour and a half, she was in and out of her cage on my hands. I let her on my lap for 30 seconds........then a minute.......then 5 and so on.
She even started what I call 'hand running' which is going over my continually moving hands.
Eventually she got a bit too excited and I put her back in her cage to wind down but she was adamant she wanted back out!
Even first thing this morning when leaving for work, she popped out of her nest and sat under the cage hatch.

I couldn't be more proud of her progress in the past 48 hours, she really has come bounding out of her shell!

Thanks again!