Nails

[pinkneon]

Yesterday the vet said she wasn't "too concerned" about Sweep's nails and that they "were normal for a hamster" ... However they are very very sharp! They look quite long to me, but I'm not really an expert on that! I'm too afraid to trim them myself but when I asked the vet about it yesterday she said they seemed ok ...
He has his sand that he likes to dig in, and everything in his cage except his sputnik and wheel are made of wood. Oh except the "edible" cube and coconut! And of course the cardboard things! Anyway, he doesn't seem to like the cup much?! I could get him a bigger one but am unsure if he would actually use it or not! So far I haven't found any suitable rocks/stones and I don't think he would use them anyway ... I don't know what to do! It doesn't seem to cause his ny problems but it hurts when he walks up my arm!

[cypher]

It's quite unusual for a ham his age to have long nails & syrians nails don't usually grow too fast so I would think they probably are ok, can you get anything terracotta, a little flower pot to dig in or a flower pot saucer somewhere he'll walk on it fairly frequently? That's probably better than most stones. I don't think wood really helps much either really but the sand bath should over time.

[souffle]

It would be unusual for a young active hamster to have long nails. They will likely be just fine. They always prickle on bare skin so I would just wear a long sleeved top if he is walking on you.

[Pebbles82]

Sometimes they stick their nails into you if they feel a bit unsafe (eg on an arm)! Charlie rarely does it but he does it when little boy picks him up sometimes. It's like they can extend them a bit (not sure if that's what happens). I usually have my dressing gown on by the time I get Charlie out at night and it has thick sleeves Terracotta plant pot base sounds like the way to go - under his water bottle maybe.

[cypher]

I wouldn't put terracotta under the bottle, it's very porous & absorbent so it would be wet all the time!