Moving a new hamster

blpriestley · 11-14-2016, 01:52 AM

Hi I recently got a new hamster (10/11/16) my first one in a long time and I think the cage I got for him is too small. I'm planning to buy a new one (Small Pet Terrarium Kerry) but I want some advice on how to make the transition smooth. Nibbler is not tamed and is still jumpy and I don't want to make it to traumatic for him though I think in the long run the move will be better for him.

Thank you

Fluffagrams · 11-14-2016, 02:28 AM

Hello there,

What species is your new hamster and what cage do they have currently?

I've found that some species of hamster in particular can get a bit overwhelmed with too much space and it can actually make them more skittish and harder to tame so if you want to upgrade him, I'd give him a couple of weeks to settle after leaving his siblings and the smaller display tanks that you find in pet shops before you do.

If I am planning to upgrade my hamsters and I'm not sure how well they'll settle, I'll let them play in what will be their new cage during playtime. It gets them familiar with the new space without overwhelming them too much.

blpriestley · 11-14-2016, 02:35 AM

He's a Syrian hamster. I have the Qute cage. It seemed to have good reviews but since buying it I've found a lot more negative things been said about it that I agree with now I've had some experience with it. It wouldn't seem so small I don't think if he used to the tube which he hasn't used much (though to prove me wrong he used it as I typed that). I was planning on waiting another week before moving him just to make sure that it was the cage that seemed small or if it was him just being new.

cypher · 11-14-2016, 02:47 AM

Unfortunately that cage is really designed to appeal to humans rather than be suitable for a ham!
The Kerry would be a much more appropriate space for him.
I've moved lots of hams without problems, I don't have the space to have current & new cages out at the same time so have always skipped the let them play in it first idea & just move them straight over.
The most important thing is to keep everything as familiar as possible, so use the substrate, nesting material, wheel, house, toys etc from the old cage in the new & don't clean too soon before or after the move, except spot cleaning, he should be fine that way.
It can take them a little while to settle in, even a couple of weeks so don't worry if he doesn't seem totally at ease straight away.

Fluffagrams · 11-14-2016, 02:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blpriestley

I was planning on waiting another week before moving him just to make sure that it was the cage that seemed small or if it was him just being new.

It could be a bit of a combination of both but I'd give him a little bit longer to settle before you upgrade him.

When you do upgrade him, keep the substrate from his old cage to add to his new one as it will smell familiar to him and help him feel more at home. Where possible you should keep the layout of his new cage similar to his old one until he settles in and then add new toys gradually and that way he's not going to be too overwhelmed by too many new things at once.

blpriestley · 11-14-2016, 05:13 AM

OK thank you for the advice. My plan is then to leave him another week then put him into the new cage for playtime for another week before fully transitioning him to the new cage. I'll keep his substrate and toys but I'll have to send his wheel back with the cage. I'll put his new one in the new cage so he gets used to it. Are there any recommendations for water bottles in a glass cage or are bowls better?

cypher · 11-14-2016, 05:18 AM

I use bowls for all my hams but found the only ones that really work well are from Rodipet in Germany, they're so well designed & all my hams choose to use them over bottles but some hams may tip a bowl or fill it with substrate & do better with bottles.
I'm not sure about bottles for tanks tbh, I think some people fix them on with velcro or you can get water bottle stands, Living world do a glass bottle with a stand, or make a stand with a toilet roll tube (not sure how stable that is) or something like those yellow wooden cheese cube toys.

AmityvilleHams · 11-14-2016, 05:22 AM

Velcro and a glass bottle would be a good idea.Using a stand or holder can be a good idea,however some hamsters may climb onto those which can be problematic and allow hamsters to chew on parts of a tank they otherwise wouldn't have access to.This would defeat the purpose of eliminating bar chewing on regular aquariums with lids as it gives the hamster access to the lid to chew it,but with a tank that has a wire topper of some sort this is already an issue.

Vectis Hamstery · 11-14-2016, 06:08 AM

I use the classic plastic bottles with velcro in tank cages. I've had a lot of problems with glass bottles stopping working all of a sudden (particularly the living world ones - I bought 8 of them in one go to try and change all my hams from plastic ones, but only 2 worked more often than not).

Pebbles82 · 11-17-2016, 07:40 AM

Have you bought the Kerry yet? I was just wondering if you might want to look at some other options first, as the Kerry isn't that cheap and is still on the minimum size for a Syrian, once you have a larger wheel and Syrian sized toys etc in

Assume you looked on Zooplus at the Kerry. The Alaska, Barney and Alexander cages are very popular for Syrian hamsters and the Barney and Alexander come with a shelf and houses that are a good size as well. They even come with an 8" wheel which would do at first. The Alaska is good value at £33 something and a good sized cage for a Syrian, plus access is good for taming with a big front opening door. The little white house on the shelf isn't really any good and the holes are a bit small so it would need a different house putting in it (or make a shoebox house for it) - which makes the Barney better value in some ways as it comes with a good shelf and house plus an 8" wheel. But if the Barney is a bit too big for you to fit in, then the Alaska is a good cage for a Syrian and not quite so big

I did a video earlier this year on cage options (although this is my personal selection and there are others) if this helps - there are some tank style ones in it too if you prefer tank style cages

I did something similar with our Syrian who started out in a 3 tier rotostak thingy and upgraded him 3 weeks later to what I thought was a huge cage! 80cm by 50cm was quoed as the minimum for Syrian hamsters at that time so I bought an 80 x 50 cage but found it wasn't quite big enough as our Syrian grew huge and needed a 12" wheel and rat sized toys (rat sized toys are a good option for Syrians generally as most things sold for "hamsters" are only big enough for dwarf hamsters). So he then got upgraded to a Barney cage. And I had wished all along that I had gone for a 100cm cage in the first place! You can't go wrong with an Alexander cage really - it has a lovely big built in house that's good for nesting and hoarding and you can fit a potty litter tray inside, and it's about the same price as the Kerry.

Anyway - I could only think bigger in stages, but it can work out cheaper, and less upgrades in the long run, to go for something like the Barney or Alexander as you're not likely to want to upgrade any bigger than that. You can set it up to be quite cosy as well so the space isn't overwhelming at first (the shelves help). Our Barney cage is currently set up as a retirement bungalow for our older Syrian now he can't climb, so the extra floor space is good now he can't use levels.

Anyway this is the video which might give a few other options/ideas. The maxi duna multy is also a nice tank style cage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSKzn0g3sVk