Little Pico - Page 3

Pebbles82 · 04-21-2022, 07:50 AM

Sorry - just noticed there is a sand bath already. The sand looks very orange! Assume it's safe sand? Maybe it's childrens play sand?

heidii · 04-22-2022, 02:59 PM

The sand is a Reptisand without any calcium. Very safe for hamsters and the best I've tried personally. Bit on the more expensive side but has been reliable for me.

His wheels coming tomorrow, and he has quite a few hides in his cage now.

arnoldshirl · 04-22-2022, 05:49 PM

Pico is a adorable!!
What you're using for sand IS safe. I have used it prior and my Roborovski Dwarf Hamster enjoyed it. Now I'm using Zoo Med Reptifresh White and it contains no chemicals or dyes either and she seems to enjoy using it in her bath house. I'm never going to use children's Play Sand ever again because it is way too dusty and caused her one eye to crust shut.

heidii · 04-23-2022, 04:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arnoldshirl

Pico is a adorable!!
What you're using for sand IS safe. I have used it prior and my Roborovski Dwarf Hamster enjoyed it. Now I'm using Zoo Med Reptifresh White and it contains no chemicals or dyes either and she seems to enjoy using it in her bath house. I'm never going to use children's Play Sand ever again because it is way too dusty and caused her one eye to crust shut.

I'm sure SOME childrens play sand works well for hamsters, but it's SO widely recommended and people don't talk about the effort needed for it. Reptisand/Exo Terra sand is safe for hamsters for as long as there is no added calcium or dyes, despite its red appearance.

Ria P · 04-23-2022, 05:41 AM

Pico is so cute. Just look at those ears!

heidii · 04-23-2022, 06:37 AM

Yes, I can't help but gush over him. I really thought my heart laid with Syrians but this Robo may be a bit hard to "rehome". Though, not sure how good of a hamster-rescue I'll be doing if the first hamster I take in ends up as a foster-fail.
I've noticed he loves his sand bath, but I'm not sure if that's because it's easier for him to do his little spins on, over the fluffy paper bedding. Neptr had trampled his paper bedding down, so his burrows hold better, but I think little Pico might just be too little to do that. Pico seems to also want to burrow "into his sand". I have a little sand bath from Trixie, which would hold a bit, but I would worry about him not being able to climb back out.

Ria P · 04-23-2022, 06:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by heidii

Yes, I can't help but gush over him. I really thought my heart laid with Syrians but this Robo may be a bit hard to "rehome". Though, not sure how good of a hamster-rescue I'll be doing if the first hamster I take in ends up as a foster-fail.
I've noticed he loves his sand bath, but I'm not sure if that's because it's easier for him to do his little spins on, over the fluffy paper bedding. Neptr had trampled his paper bedding down, so his burrows hold better, but I think little Pico might just be too little to do that. Pico seems to also want to burrow "into his sand". I have a little sand bath from Trixie, which would hold a bit, but I would worry about him not being able to climb back out.

Haha, i ended up with a house full of adoption failures.

You could add an access ramp, twig, bendy bridge to the sand bath if you think he couldn't climb back out.

heidii · 04-23-2022, 06:58 AM

I'll definitely do that. He seems to just be spending all his time hiding behind the little coconut hut that I have in his sand bath.

Ria P · 04-23-2022, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by heidii

I'll definitely do that. He seems to just be spending all his time hiding behind the little coconut hut that I have in his sand bath.

He's probably traumatised from his previous home and hiding. He may well take a long time to start to relax and trust humans. He had been there for a while and a hamster ball alone is awful but getting chased by a dog must have been extremely stressful and scary.

Took our Rodney six weeks to learn to trust. He was also traumatised by his first home but luckily he hadn't been there for long so recovered.

heidii · 04-23-2022, 12:45 PM

I am still a bit worried. Put his new wheel in and had intentions of just leaving him at about 1PM. He woke up because of all the noise, crawled out of his bedding and then went straight over to his sand. He hid under his coconut hide in the sand bath for a while, but would spin a bit.
Came back from work at about 8:30PM, and he is still in his sand bath, circling. I think I might get a baby camera just to see if he's none stop doing it.