Input appreciated

[louise_81]

http://smallpawshamsterrescue.yolasite.com/
I am not going to ask what you think, as it is so in development it is untrue. I am hoping to do more work on it tonight.

What help/advice/sections do you think there should be?

Obviously I am thinking of pages relating to rescuing hamsters, common reasons why people rehome and how to overcome some of the most common problems and my contacts if people are feeling the need to rehome thier hamster.

But I was thinking of adding pages on general hamster care, generally accepted accomodation, diet etc Is there anything I have missed out?

[Emz]

Ohhh yay you're going ahead with the rescue idea! I can't think of anything in particular at the moment to add, I'm about to rush off to uni though so I'm not being much help. I'm just excited that you have decided to go ahead with it and wish you all the best of luck!

Oh you could always add links to useful pages, such as forums.

[annie81]

yeah...sounds good. i would definitely put up some pages about what a hamster needs, how to care for the hamster... but you already mentioned that anyway. maybe some information about common diseases like wet tail, diabetes, ... so that people know they have to got to the vets if the hamsters shows certain symptoms. I would suggest a "how-to-handle-a-hamster" section as well. you can give advise how to tame a hamster or that people should play with their hamsters 20 mins a day and stuff like that....

...these are things i would want to know if i wanted to get my first hamster

oh yeah...and maybe point out that hamsters are probably not the ideal pets for small children coz they (the hamsters of course ) sleep during the day

[Hope]

Looking good so far Louise! I'm really pleased that you are going ahead with your idea! You are brave!

Expanding on annie's idea a bit, I think it would be good to have a section explaining about the different types and breeds of hamster, and their suitability for beginner, child, or experienced owner. I say this because I was in my local P@H yesterday where a mum and her little boy came in wanting to adopt a robo that was in the adoption centre. I stood and watched while the P@H guy tried to coax the lil' hammy out and it was quite clear by the conversation that the boy and mum were having that they did not know too much about hamsters of any sort. So I volunteered that robos were more of a 'watching them play' pet rather than 'a getting out to cuddle pet' as they are so quick and jumpy. And sure enough as soon as the P@H guy got his hands on the little robo it wriggled and squirmed and leaped into the air and fell to the floor, thankfully the hammy was recaptured and not hurt. But the young boy was bessotted with this 'exciting' pet and I felt like begging the mum to reconsider! It's only natural that a child will want to get 'hammy' out and play regulary, but there are more suitable types of hamster than others, for this.

Sorry for the long story! And i hope it makes sense I can't think of any other ideas for the moment apart from having a look at other rescue websites and seeing what sort of information they put on their sites. I have looked at rescue sites that put sort of 'shock' pitctures on of rabbits, gunnies, rats etc, etc that they have rescued and are in a bad way, to try and show people that these are animals not toys to be bought on a whim and need care and attention for as long as they live, this is quite a hard line though, not sure if you would want to do this, but I just thought I'd mention it. Good luck with the rest of the idea!! Hope to see more updates soon!!

[Fidgetthefirst]

Lovely looking site! Maybe you could have like, a little Question and answers page, i dont mean a full on forum, but maybe when people get to know your website it the next few months- years! People may have just a few questions they might need an answer to

[suga]

Care instructions - food, bedding, cages etc. That you can produce so that it can be taken away with the hamster when its going to its forever home.
Are you going to ask for donations for the hamsters that are re-homed - just a thought as you will need a fund of some sort for vet fees etc - unless you have a friendly vet that will assist and do for nothing or very little if needed.

Good for you for going ahead though

[fluffymunchkins]

Wow thats great, looks really professional so far!
Everyone seems to have mentioned everything i could think of to add so i'll just say best of luck

[Tish36]

This looks amazing Louise

I think it will look even better upon completion - congrats

[louise_81]

Thanks Guys. Busy working on it now. I keep uploading new bits, so give me a couple of days to get it into some sort of order.

So annoyed with myself though, got through a good bit on hamster breeds, navigated away from the page and, puff, all that hard work gone

ETA Thats twice it is done something when I have been doing the hamster breeds

[louise_81]

Hi Guys I have done Enrichment and the rehoming/taming service

Going to do the hamster breed and care tonight