Hamster heat mat

[Petite]

Our central heating has broken down, and it seems to be taking a while to fix. As we live on an offshore Scottish island, it's rather chilly and I'm worried that my dwarf ham might be getting a bit too cold. The thermometer on her enclosure is just now registering 17 degrees C, which I think is rather borderline, and Enigma is now around 2 years old, so might need it to be a bit warmer.

I wondered if anyone could recommend a heat mat. The tank stands on a unit, so I can't put a heat mat underneath it. Some heat mats say you can put them underneath the substrate, but - in common with most rodents - Enigma is chewer, so it would have to be something that is chew proof. The tank has solid ends, so probably a heat mat fixed there wouldn't do a huge amount of good.

I would be very grateful for any advice.

[SKB_Hamsters]

I wouldn’t feel comfortable myself using a heat mat with a hamster. As with a heat mat you need to use a thermostat alongside which will require a temperature probe being used inside the cage to prevent the temperature exceeding the temperature you’ve set which this would mean a wire in the cage could be something your hamster would chew. Plus with hamster being able to burrow down there a chance your hamster could possibly get too hot. If it was me I wouldn’t risk a heat mat.

I would look into get an oil filled radiator. This use electricity to heat and I usually use one in my bedroom during winter to keep my room warm enough. I think this would be the safest option.

[Petite]

Thanks, SKB. I must admit, the probe inside the cage hadn't occurred to me - although I think you can get mats that sit underneath the cage and don't have probes, but this could be problematic with my set-up. For the moment, Enigma doesn't seem unhappy about the temperature, but I will continue to monitor it.

Thanks for your reply.