Habitrail Ovo Dwarf cage.

SpecjalBradley · 07-20-2011, 03:39 AM

Hello. I brought my girlfriend a White Winter hamster and cage for our one year anniversary from a local garden centre that hand rears them. I brought all the equipment and cage( Habitrail ovo drawf) for Tazmo ( The name of our hamster) on saturday and then set the cage up for the sunday. Tazmo seems more then happy in the cage while its horrizontal ( she cant climb the tunnels Verticaly LOL). But I am now wondering if the cage is ok for my little dwarf as I have read some bad reviews and opinions from people on here. I only have the basic set with the tunnel, Den and carrage pod. I have also brought the mini maze which has arrived today. I just want to know if this cage is good or should i purchase a new one. Thanks for all the help!

BTW this is my girlfriends 1st hamster and my second If you have any extra tips to give our hamster a happy life I am more then willing to read them.

purple_x · 07-20-2011, 11:21 AM

Hey and welcome to HC.
That's sweet that you got your gf a hammy for your anniversary

The ovo is.....rubbish. I wont say any more or I'll go off on a rant about it!

I have 1 of my dwarfs in a mini duna. You can get these very cheaply from ebay and amazon.
And I have 1 of my dwarfs in a zoo zone 1 which is bigger than the mini duna but is just all on one level.
So I'd recommend either of these cages. They are excellent as you can fit lots of nice toys in them!

Make sure your hammy has at least the 6.5" silent spinner or some dwarfs need an 8" wheel if they are on the bigger side.

**Ham Ham Hamstery** · 07-20-2011, 11:38 AM

dont bother

SpecjalBradley · 07-20-2011, 01:38 PM

Only problem is she's already in it and seems to enjoy it :c

Pomegranate · 07-20-2011, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ham Ham Hamstery

dont bother

That just about sums up my thoughts on Habitrail too. It's all very small, so you'd have to spend huge amounts to get a large enough setup, and then there's still the issues of bad ventilation, the ease of escape, and the difficulty of taming and cleaning. You did the right thing making the setup horizontal though - dwarves have furry, slippy feet so they're not all that adept at climbing.

A Mini Duna would be a nice option for a single dwarf, and a Duna Multy would be even better. A Zoozone 1 is basically the same size as the Multy but quite a bit cheaper, though it's sold for guinea pigs so the grill does require meshing to make it secure for hamsters which puts some people off. Whether you can afford to spend more or would prefer a cheaper option with a bit of DIY is completely up to you.

SnickersTheFirst · 07-20-2011, 01:49 PM

Personally, I'd swap it for a Mini Duna or Imac Bingo. They are both £30 but the Imac is a bit bigger.

If you read reviews on the ovo you'll find the reasons for such a hatred.

**Ham Ham Hamstery** · 07-20-2011, 02:03 PM

could just make a bin cage instead

DoomSlave · 07-20-2011, 02:11 PM

Well, I think if the ham is happy in it then that's good but you see, the Ovo has very poor ventilation and they are lacking corners, as you know hams like to usually hide stuff in corners or just otherwise go into corners to stock food or what have you. I think that you could attach the Ovo to another cage of some sort to still make use of it. Seeing as how your ham likes it in there I'd say you don't have to be in a huge rush to make a bin cage or get a larger cage

fluffymunchkins · 07-20-2011, 02:49 PM

Some hamsters do genuinely enjoy cages like the OVO, but I do think that extra open space for toys and to run would be much appreciated.
As already said, to get a decent sized set up it works out more expensive than just one bigger cage.
You could however, if you want to keep the OVO, connect it to a bin cage

AliKati · 07-20-2011, 03:02 PM

A bin cage extension is pretty easy to make, and the bin itself isn't expensive. There are plenty of guides here as to how to make one, just do a search or ask folks for more details.