Hamster Pees, Poops, and Store Food in corner

WeezyBee · 03-04-2018, 01:53 AM

Hi! I just adopted my Syrian hamster today and he is very active. I just got him and he's my first hamster so I'm a bit paranoid at his behavior. He would store food in one corner (a tight space next to his wheel) and do business there at the same time! I notice that this is the place he frequently goes to. Is this sanitary? When do I clean it and how? I have a sand bath with critter litter on another corner and am planning to buy a proper hamster potty and placing it in the corner he pees and eats in, but I just got him and I'm not sure if it would stress him out.

I would also like to note that I placed his food bowl on another platform with a bendy bridge leading up to it. His cage is quite large, 877 sq inches. I really hope he isnt stressed. Other than this, all he does is burrow and run on his wheel. Hopefully he explores the rest of his cage

cypher · 03-04-2018, 02:01 AM

That all sounds totally normal behaviour for a new ham so don't worry!
I would get rid of the potty litter as it's not safe, just put sand or substrate in the tray.
I wouldn't do any cleaning just yet as that would upset him, you could try taking some peed on substrate from his corner & put it in the litter trays or move the tray to the corner where he's peeing to encourage him to use it.
Peed on food will be ok for a few days, I've had new hams pee in the food bowl to begin with! If he keeps doing it you could take some of the old food out of his store & replace it in the same place with some fresh but for now I'd just let him settle & not interfere unless you have to.

WeezyBee · 03-04-2018, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cypher

That all sounds totally normal behaviour for a new ham so don't worry!
I would get rid of the potty litter as it's not safe, just put sand or substrate in the tray.
I wouldn't do any cleaning just yet as that would upset him, you could try taking some peed on substrate from his corner & put it in the litter trays or move the tray to the corner where he's peeing to encourage him to use it.
Peed on food will be ok for a few days, I've had new hams pee in the food bowl to begin with! If he keeps doing it you could take some of the old food out of his store & replace it in the same place with some fresh but for now I'd just let him settle & not interfere unless you have to.

Oh the Kaytee critter littler is not safe? They look like little white pellets. I will definitely remove them if they are unsafe. For his potty, is a shallow cardboard lid with chinchilla sand good enough? Or is an actual potty with a lid over it for privacy better? Thank you for the quick reply!

cypher · 03-04-2018, 02:21 AM

I don't think litter pellets are safe fo hams, just in case they decide to eat them! You don't need them anyway.
The card tray will be fine for now, you might want to replace it later with ceramic or plastic so it last. If you think he might want somewhere more private you could try putting a large bendy bridge over it.

WeezyBee · 03-04-2018, 02:32 AM

Thank you!