Smokey, Our new little guy

[AliciaS]

Well, I finally got a hamster today. I did end up going to the pet store, but I think it will work out in the end. I do have to say though that Smokey has not been a real happy camper. He seemed fine at the store, but I guess the trauma of being put in a box and being driven home had him pretty freaked out.

He was doing that hamster hiss thing when I opened the lid, but I think he's just scared. I've been doing some research on how to tame him a little, and I think I'm going to start that tomorrow. Do you guys have any suggestions on what worked to tame your hamsters? Poor Smokey tried to take my finger off very first thing.

[Questions]

Well first off, If hes not happy you should leave him alone for a day or too more. It seems very unhappy. I like taming them by using food and getting it to come to me. And letting them run on my hands, legs and stomach. I believe there is some kind of tutorial on taming them on the wiki. I hope all goes well, im also sure hes cute.

[lykame]

Hello and welcome to both you and Smokey.

You're spot on - it is stressful being shoved in a box and experiencing a car ride to a completely different environment, so what you need to do is settle him into his cage in a nice quiet area and leave him be for at least two days. I know how difficult it is but you don't want him to associate you with something bad, so have patience.

What kind of hamster is he? That will help people give you some species specific advice. However, take a look at the wiki pages, they're really useful and give lots of handy tips on taming, etc. You have two days to get your reading in! Getting it right now will make it a much smoother process. Let us know what size cage/wheel etc you're using as well, as getting all these things correct will make Smokey much happier.

Congratulations!

Lydia and Artie.

[AliciaS]

I do believe that Smokey is a Syrian. He's all black with a white stripe down his middle and white on all four paws. He is currently living in a twenty gallon aquarium, and he has a flying saucer wheel which I haven't seen him on yet. He has a hidey igloo thing, two food dishes (one for fresh food; one for pellets), water bottle that is mounted on the side of the cage, chew sticks, and a tubing/puzzle box play area thing.