My Roborovski Dwarf Hamster prefers less space

[Pebbles82]

Agree, as a robo she would very much benefit from deeper substrate and be able to enjoy some normal behaviours. I also think that some tweaks to the 20 gallon tank could make it better for her. Fill it up with things - toilet roll tubes, cardboard hide outs etc and a platform at one end (shelter). Even that isn't very big - about 2ft long by 1 ft deep. Sometimes the wider cages/tanks allow them to enjoy the space more too.

But - if you're thinking of getting the tamburino then best leave her in the 10 gallon for now and then move her to the Tamburino (which I think is a much better option than the 20 gallon tank - the dimensions are better).

[Pebbles82]

When you say she just sits in the corner, does she not run on her wheel? Robos usually love their wheels. I've just found a video I have our first robo exploring his new set up - it's a glass tank that is the same size as the Tamburino (only a bit taller and squared off - but in terms of floor space size it's about the same). Except the tamburino maybe has slightly more floorspace once the substrate's in due to the curved out sides.

He loved diving into hide outs and tunnels while exploring and climbing over things. But with robos you need to fill the floor space really and not leave open space, so they feel secure. They can still dig as they go under things. Nugget, in the video, built a big pile of substrate mountain under the shelf and then made a hole in the top and built his nest inside the mountain. The more there is, the more they like rearranging it . He would then tunnel underneath that and into the house in the middle with the veg dish on top and just appear out of that house.