My new (nameless) hamster! PICS

Cat-J · 06-24-2009, 08:12 AM

So the hamster heaven cage arrived today (in a box almost half the size of my door), it took about an hour to set up. The water bottle that came with it dripped constantly so I had to put my old one in. (I noticed this in the review before I bought it).

So then went to the shop and they had 3 boys, so I picked out this one, he's a ginger colour with white in the middle.
Hammy (needs a name!) has been climbing right up the bars, then either walking back down them or jumping off. Also been jumping off the ladders after going up. He seems fairly crazy and inquisitive, but has just started sleeping.

The woman said he was 6-7 weeks old but hesitated, so I think going by his size he's older than this, any ideas?
I'll get some better pics up when he comes out tomorrow! Excuse the bars in the photos.

**However for about 5 mins he was staring into space shaking slightly after having some carrot and taking it back to his bed. Is he scared and just needs to settle in?? He's just gone back to sniffing around the cage now.

HarveyHamster · 06-24-2009, 11:24 AM

Aw hes lovely! Mine looks very similar and is called Harvey... I liked the name Cinnimon (sp?) too!

Cat-J · 06-24-2009, 01:18 PM

I think I'm going to call him Wally as he's slightly on the daft side!

...now I feel too bad calling him Wally, any ideas?

Oh and he loves his rolly wheel

I'm leaning towards the name Milo now, don't know why! Here's a vid of him

souffle · 06-25-2009, 04:21 AM

Aww he is so cute. He is a probably Cinnamon banded hamster but need a wee bit closer piccie to be sure. The do that freezing thing when they are unsure of things and as everything is very new to him he will take some time to settle.
He will likely grow as name as you get to know him better. He looks somewhere between 6-12 weeks to me.
Names... there are so many! Spice. Rolo, Waffle, Polo ...I don't know

Cat-J · 06-25-2009, 04:59 AM

I edited the above post of mine and put a video up, I'll get him out tonight when he wakes up for a few minutes.

I'm thinking Milo maybe...?

I've got another film of him climbing up the cage then flopping off, but I can't rotate it on my laptop as my phone makes them into daft files. I'm working on it, but there's the wheel one for now

Their bums are so funny on wheels I think!

Cat-J · 06-25-2009, 07:32 AM

He's just woken up, so I took the lid off as he's been here a day now and put food in my hand. But he's just hid in his bed and made odd noises (like a rough squeaking) whenever I speak softly. Is he not ready to come out? He races around like a mad thing, climbing and in his wheel but sometimes seems very timid.

shazzy · 06-25-2009, 08:54 AM

Hi Cat,

as he is a pet shop hamster, he will not be used to humans and will have not had very much interaction from humans in the early stages of his life, so he will be very timid to start with.

The rough squeaking sounds like the noise they make when they are scared.

I think you'll need to take things a bit more slowly with him - maybe not take the lid of the cage as yet as he will startled and insecure. Talking to him through the bars so he gets used to your voice, then start introducing your hand into the cage once you feel he has settled a little.

It's good to start taming early, but a day is not long for him to be in this new envirmoment and you cant expect to jump in and be able to handle him straight away.

My little Mo took a little while to tame, but with patience and quiet perseverence she is a lovely friendly little girl.

Just keep at it - but quietly and gently - good luck!

Cat-J · 06-25-2009, 10:07 AM

Hey, thanks for the advice!

They didn't let me handle him in the shop which I was put off by, as they said they've had incidents where people had been dropping them - slightly off if you ask me. They put him in the scales so I could stroke him and have a look, gave them the benefit of the doubt has my last hamster from them was lovely and tame. Will take it slowly from now, he's merrily chewing away on a toy at the moment!

internet_nobody · 06-25-2009, 10:17 AM

You could call him Walter...and Wally could be an affectionate nickname

Cat-J · 06-25-2009, 10:38 AM

I think he's going to be a Milo! One suggestion I had was "thick" from my mother, nice!

I'm slightly worried about a spot on his fur actually, I thought he was cleaning a lot yesterday, he's in his sand bath/toilet a lot! There's a spot by his back leg where the fur looks matted and maybe longer than the rest, like he's been pulling at it or something. He was in a cage with 2 other hamsters at the shop. They were all sleeping together but I imagine they must have not got on all the time, so wonder if something happened there. I'll try and get a photo but not had him out yet, he's just sniffed around my fingers so far. Getting worried

Update: I've had him out via a box and his ball, then put him in a sectioned off area and had a towel on my lap, but he won't let me touch him at all without shooting off and being twitchy. It's making me nervous, as he is so fast and the potential for him to escape then is greater, which I'm sure is making him worse. I've already had a few tears now, I seemed much better at this when I was 11

I know it's early days but previous hamsters have been very easy, so I don't know if this is normal or worse? Even if I try to stroke him he completely flattens himself against the floor and moves away. I don't want to hold him and have to be too firm to stop him from moving in case he gets scared, as he clearly doesn't like being touched, and ends up panicing/having a stroke or something.
I don't know how to try without frightening him. Help?

Oh, and he's started bar chewing on the back corner of his cage. I blew on him slightly then he flipped over onto his back, got up and carried on. I swear he hates me. I know it's completely irrational getting upset because my hamster who i've had for a day won't let me stokr him, but logic isn't helping right now!