Hamster advice for newby

[Guinea Slave]

Hi

I am wondering if you can help me? I am looking after a little Syrian hamster (male, 18 months old) for my step daughter. She has gone on holiday and was let down last minute so with just 5 minutes notice I now have a little hamster for 2 weeks.

I have got 6 guinea pigs so I am used to small mammals however I am painfully aware that I have absolutely no knowledge whatsoever.

What I really need to know is the following:

What hard/dry food do I feed him? She did not leave me any hard feed (he has some muesli in his bowl but thats it).
What fresh food can he have and how much? (BTW I had NO IDEA they could eat meat!!)
He is on shavings at the moment, I use flax bedding for my guineas, can he have this when I next clean him out (no bedding left either)?

He is very friendly, and in good health but I just want to make sure I keep him this way! Any ideas on toys as well would be great, I have given him a toilet roll so far.

Many thanks in advance!

[racinghamster]

Hi. Are you in the UK? This would help members advise on which food and beddings to use.

First of all, your step-daughter should have made better provision for her hamster leaving it with someone! Dear oh dear....she did`nt leave any food or instruction?

Never mind though, your in the right place for advice! Trouble is, if you don`t know what he`s been fed on, changing his diet suddenly could cause him tummy issues, but two of the best hamster mixes in the UK are:

Burgess Supahamster Harvest. This is a lovely, muesli type mix and all the hamster needs in terms of a daily meal. A good tablespoonful a day is plenty, but don`t overfeed if he`s only picking at it. They do a dwarf mix aswell but if he`s a syrian, you just want the normal mix.

Supreme Harry Hamster: Another mix that readily available in pet shops. Larger extruded biscuits than the Burgess mix but fine all the same. I prefer the Burgess mix though because of the variety it has.

Hamster don`t NEED meat, so if he`s not used to it, don`t feed it. Especially as he`s an older hamster and meat will be higher in protein which he does`nt need at his age.

The Flax bedding (is it Aubiouse?) bedding/litter should be fine for him. I use a mixture of Aubiouse and shavings just now, but mainly aubiose.

Bedding should just be paper based. Ripped up plain white toilet roll sheets will be fine. I would`nt give him hay or straw incase these jag his eyes or pouches.

You can offer him a small piece of apple (remove the pips first) as hamster enjoy a little piece of apple. Don`t go mad with other fruit and vegetables though if he`s not used to these as they can give him an upset bowel.

Hope this helps in the meantime. Oh and hamsters (especially syrians) like to sleep all day, so I would leave him alone through the day to snooze or he may be angry if woken up. Hamsters mainly like to play in the late evenings.

[Guinea Slave]

HI Racing Hamster (dare I ask how you came upon the name!!)

Thanks for much for your reply. Yes I am in the UK.

Re step daughter not being prepared. Something I am used to sadly, she is a nightmare at sorting herself out hence the last minute requirement for a holiday home as well! Poor little thing. However, he is a nice size and very friendly so she's looked after him all bit in her disorganised way!

Good news re the bedding as I buy in bulk and much easier to use up what I have. Re the food, off to get some now. He's so far had a runner bean, dried bananna piece, bran flake and a small section of broccoli which he absolutely loved. I just cannot get over how everything gets stuffed in the pouches (except the broccoli clearly that had to get eaten then and there!).

I'll just keep it to small amounts but everything seems OK healthwise so his tummy is fine.

The Flax is Hippo Flax, not quite Aubiose but similar, I stopped using Aubiose as it was'nt as absorbent (and when you have 6 guineas you can only imagone the mess!).

I have also sterilised with Milton's his exercise ball and water bottle so I know he's all clean now!

Quick question re the exercise ball, he absolutely adores being in it but is it OK for them? I just do not like the apparent unnatural way they run with their bodies bent what seems to me, in the wrong way? I know they are pretty flexible but it looks so uncomfortable! (I know guineas must'nt use them but they are a bit more cumbersome I guess)..

Yes, he also sleeps for England! What I love are his ears. When he first wakes up in the evening and he is still sleepy, his ears are floppy and not that upright. Later on in the evening they are completely upright and he looks so cute! He even watches the telly.

Ahh, I hope she decides she does'nt want him anymore...I have my eye on some lovely cages for him already!!

Thanks for your advice!

[Redame]

Oh gosh! I see someone falling in love!
Great that you found the site to look after him.
Concerning the ball, it depends on how big it is. Some people do not like to use the ball at all, some do as they hamsters can grow attached to it. The ball for a syrian should be big: at least 20/25 cm in diameter. If the ball is smaller I suggest you could let him run in a confined space. Myself I let them roam in my big hallway, with all the other doors to other rooms closed so they can't get lost.

Have fun!

[Guinea Slave]

Oh yes, I am for sure!! I have just bought him a little log bridge, a chew ball made of wood and a chube with wool in it. He has now woken up and just does'nt know what to play with first! He's taken the wool out of the chube and placed it in his sleeping quarters...very organised if I may say so. He is currently attacking the log bridge and trying to devour it... I did try to be very quiet and not wake him but he's having a ball now!

The exercise ball is a good size about 20 cm maybe slightly bigger so I guess its OK. I think if he was mine I like you, would probably not use it but he is definitely hooked on it. I don't think I'd dare let him loose, we lost him in the exercise ball yesterday, he managed to make his way through three rooms whilst I was out feeding the guineas. We 'lost him' down the sofa the day before...whats going to happen today! (he is quietly chuckling away to himself planning his next exploit).

All the time I am telling my guineas that 'noooooo there is no one else in my life ...I promise' LOL! I did also make sure they got a toy or two as well....it was an expensive trip to the pet shop!

[racinghamster]

Glad my advice helped a bit and he does sound as though he`s going to be spoiled while with you! Maybe you could drop a hint that you want to keep him.

I never use hamster balls as I feel they are not a natural thing for any small animal to encounter. I just don`t like `gimmicks`and prefer to allow my rodents free-range. If they have a large enough cage, they don`t really require too much floor time since they tend to use their wheel to run off any energy through the night! But it`s nice to give them some `out time`.

Have a read through some of the other sections on here for some ideas.

[shazzy]

Aww sounds like this little guy is such a charmer! Glad he is enjoying his holiday, and hopefully you can steal him and keep him.

Just a word of advice though, I read that the chube you bought him has the wooly stuff in it - this stuff is actually dangerous for hamsters for many reasons, so best to sneak in and take it away from it when you have the chance.

[racinghamster]

shazzy is right. I would take away the woolly stuff and replace it with paper based bedding. Even though they stuff these chubes with it, it`s not safe. It can get tangled around limbs and caught in claws that might be over long or curled.

[Guinea Slave]

Thanks both you, appreciate your advice.

Unfortunately he does'nt use the wheel in his cage, apparently he's got too big for it (he is actually quite big) but I am sure he could if he wanted to. I am not surprised re the ball, when you see their backs inverted like that, gives me back ache just watching him!

Just taken out the wool stuff....THANK YOU for the advice, I'd hate something to happen to him.

And yes, I'll make sure he enjoys his time and will be dropping lots of hints!

Am learning loads thanks to the forum, it has been incredibly useful and opened my eyes to these wonderful little fur balls!

[supermum]

Oh ohhh you got yourself all attached hehe, its hard not to fall in love isnt it? When we picked Bluebell up I wasnt sure if we were keeping her or rehoming her, until I saw her and thats it instantly she was mine!!

I hope you get to keep him, sounds like he will be sooo happy at yours, it would be sad if you have to give him back