Cage help needed for confused Syrian owner... [EDIT]

[capricorn30]

Hey guys, as the title suggests I could do with a hand concerning housing for my first, newly aquired hamster, Rosie.

I got her and the cage from my cousin, and she's currently in a starter-type cage, but after browsing round HC I'm wondering if it's too small for her.
It's a Coopet Buckingham hamster cage (http://www.coopet.co.uk/uk/files/smallainfo.php?id=10) measuring L 50cm X W 36cm X H 29cm, with a wheel diameter of 6".

I'm supposed to be getting her some toys at the weekend which might give me chance to get a larger cage, so any suggestions would be much appreciated.

[EDIT] I've come across this one (http://www.ukpetsupplies.com/Details.as ... entId=179#) which is supposed to be for a rat or chinchilla, but could it be converted to be suitable for a ham? Would the bar spacing of 1.7cm be alright for a Syrian?

[Hanlou]

I would say yes, it's too small for a Syrian (well, I personally wouldn't keep any hamster in it really including dwarfs). Some may not agree but generally Syrian hamsters are very active and so need as big a cage as you can afford / have space for. In the wild they would run miles and miles at night so you really should invest in a good quality cage which allows for space for your hamster to move around as well as space for toys etc.

A real luxury cage is the Savic Hamster Heaven but it's out of the budget of many hamster owners. The Savic Cambridge is another popular cage but I feel it's a *little* on the small side though it's one that is freely available and at £40-ish it's well within the budget of many hamstery people. The shelves are very fiddly though I will warn you of that! :P

If you decided to opt for something without bars you could go for a Zoozone one or even a Zoozone two (nice and long at 100cm) if you have room for it. You can buy these from ebay though I think some Pets At Home sell the Rody Rabbit which is basically the same so that's worth thinking about too. You have to make good use of the space in these kinds of set-ups though with shelving etc as there's none provided.

Have a look at the Cage Reviews on here and if anything jumps out at you ask us about it, lol.

Another great cage which comes with tons of accessories is the Jack Cage from Zooplus - the wheel is too small but the rest of the accessories are fine for a Syrian and it's a lovely medium sized cage.

About the wheel - it's too small I'm afraid. The minimum sized wheel for a Syrian is something in similar size to a Wodent Wheel - really the only other suitably sized wheel for a Syrian is the largest Silent Spinner but I love the Wodent Wheel Junior for Syrians. It's nice and quiet and they seem to love the style of it.

Hope this gives you some pointers!

[haziebabie]

I didn't think it was a bad cage myself... With a few toys it will be fine. All my hams are out of their cages everyday for ball playtime and time in a playbox so that's good for them too. You will definitely need a bigger wheel and the wodent ones are great but mine have all got Savic Jumbo Rolly's (8") and they are fab with a little oil on the spindle and around the £3 mark to buy, so much cheaper. You would probably be able to adjust the shelves around to accommodate it.

I guess it depends what you can afford. I had the same dilemma with one of my hamsters cages (viewtopic.php?f=25&t=6206) but I have decided it fine for him just now and he gets lots of exercise outside of his cage and in his wheel. Let us know what you are going to do. I shouldn't panic though, it really isn't that bad a size.

[capricorn30]

Thanks so much for the info! Could you possibly give me a guidline for the minimum cage size I should go for? And as far as the wheel is concerned, there's no way of taking it off the cage that I'm aware of so she'll have to keep it until the weekend =/

I've heard good things about Imac Fantasy - would that be of adequate size, or do you think the extension would be needed as well?

[Hanlou]

I literally sat here with a tape measure and checked the dimensions and I really don't think it's big enough... obviously it will 'do' for the time being though. :P

haziebabie - I feel very strongly about cages - think about it; even if a hamster has one hour every single day of free range time they still spend 23 hours a day in their cage. They are stuck with the space that we choose to give them, they don't get to choose for themselves. So isn't it absolutely vital that we give them as much space as we possibly can and not the bare minimum we feel is adequate?! Especially when you further consider that they are most active at night, when we are asleep.

Many cages are sold as being 'hamster' cages when they simply aren't big enough for any living creature to live happily in.

capricorn30 - for a Syrian hamster long is better than short and high really, so I'd always go for something 70cm and over if possible. The Imac is a nice cage but I don't feel it's really and truly long enough for a Syrian that likes to go round the 'borders' of its territory. They aren't cheap and if I had a choice I'd go for the Jack cage from Zooplus as it offers more room and more versatility in terms of adding things to the bars etc.

However if you *did* go for an Imac Fantasy I would say that yes, an extension unit would be a very good idea. You may as well get an extension really, it's the base cage that's the most expensive bit so by the time you've spent money on that you may as well double the space by getting the (relatively cheap) extension unit.

Some people have housed Syrians very successfully in rat cages too such as This One On Ebay. I can find you a pic of one set up for a Syrian if you decided to go with that option.

[capricorn30]

I'm liking the idea of the 2 tier rat/chin cage, but it looks a pain to clean out xD Do you have pics of it for a Syrian? I'll go looking for a 65cm+ cage, but if there really isn't one of a decent size I'll order online instead. Cheers for all the links as well!

[Hanlou]

Originally Posted by capricorn30

I'm liking the idea of the 2 tier rat/chin cage, but it looks a pain to clean out xD Do you have pics of it for a Syrian? I'll go looking for a 65cm+ cage, but if there really isn't one of a decent size I'll order online instead. Cheers for all the links as well!

No problem. It's always worth cruising ebay too under rat cages as well as hamster cages as you may get a bargain. I've had three bargainous cages from ebay recently - none of which were described under the cage name or manufacturer just generic terms like 'hamster cage' etc so you do have to just scroll through the rubbish and hope that you find a gem!

Here's {{{ Link to the pic of a Critter 2 rat cage set up for a hamster }}} for you. I won't lie - they are fiddly to put together. But in terms of cleaning out if you furnish them sensibly they're not too bad. With those cages it's always well worth taking the door on the side off and reattaching it so that it's on the outside and hangs downwards which creates space. The whole roof lifts up too so access is excellent.

[haziebabie]

Hanlou - I feel I need to defend myself a little. I was just giving my opinion as was requested on an open forum.

I do agree with you when it comes to cages. Of course everyone here wants their pet to be happy and comfortable. I also agree that many cages on the market are unfit for the animals they are recommended for. There are many cages a whole lot worse than the one Capricorns's Rosie is in. I am aware how long hamsters are in their cage and I do spend a lot of time with my hamsters and also a lot of time looking for ways to entertain them and to keep them well. Obviously if money and space were no consideration it would be ideal. Of course a bigger cage is never more vital for a hamster over love, care and attention. I also think that my pet hamsters are a lot better off than probably most out there.

Capricorn - Good luck with finding a good home for Rosie.

[cornishrobos]

Hi Capricorn, I agree with Hanlou, this cage is awful. I got one when I adopted my last Robo because P@H had sold out of Savic Rodys. It looked fine in the shop but once my Robo started living in it, I soon changed my mind (even though on another thread I said it was "good" it definately isn't). It's not at all practical, I found it hard to get my hammie out, which made it hard to try and tame him, it was a nightmare to clean and I couldn't fit enough toys in it, along with his sandbath etc. It must be a tight squeeze for a syrian to get to his little house, my robo filled the tube and he's not a large robo.

Needless to say mr rolo is now in a ferplast duna fun maxi.

That cage will be fine for the meantime but i'd get something different sooner rather than later!!!

God knows what the designers are thinking when they come up with cages like this, it's definately not the welfare of the animal, that's for sure!!

Anyway good luck with the search!!

[Hanlou]

I'm not about to begin a debate and there's no need to defend yourself haziebabie - you obviously simply have a different opinion as to what is "big enough" but I felt I had to defend my opinion too which is all that I did as you contradicted what I'd said. :P

I was just explaining my opinion and why I feel personally that a big cage is very important - also by mentioning the fact that I'd sat and measured it out I was making it clear that I knew exactly how big the cage was - I wasn't just making an assumption based on a picture because we all know that pics on the web can be deceiving. Some cages look bigger than in real life and some look smaller. I'm well aware that other people are happy to house their animals in smaller cages than I would be comfortable with which is up to them, and that's up to each individual.

I still think it's important though that a cage is more than 'adequate'. A one bedroom flat would be 'adequate' for me and my husband but I do quite like to have more space than that no matter how often I go out of the house.

You said about your own hamster's cage recently (Wiley's):

The big Imac's do make Wiley's cage look very small. I will see how much I get back from the Rotastak before I decide when to upgrade him.

- and your cage is bigger than the cage posted here in this thread. Your cage is also much more versatile in terms of layout because it's much more open and doesn't have fixed cage accessories.

capricorn30 - I'm sure you'll find something you're happy with for Rosie. Look forward to hearing more about her / seeing pics!!