Changing cage set up

[NanaBeaver]

Originally Posted by LunaTheHamster1

. It wasn't clear to me with what you wrote, but when you are cleaning are you replacing all the bedding? if so, you really don't need to do that, just do the dirty sections i.e. where they pee and poo a lot

No. I put quite a bit of the used substrate and house bedding back in and keep the wheel, house and deep burrowing substrate in their usual places. I spot clean pee and poo areas every few days. Do you think this is enough then without emptying the cage every month?
BTW I have watched a couple of your Youtube videos, Luna and found them very good and interesting.

[LunaTheHamster1]

I don't clean my cages every month, and i don't really spot clean unless it starts to smell especially with my robo. Their pee and poos are very small. With my latest syrian she has a poo corner behind her wheel so I will pick them up, but that's it. I changed my cleaning habits after I adopted Twinkle a syrian, he was a scaredy cat when he arrived and so I didn't want to disturb his hide at all to do spot cleaning so I left it for 6 weeks and that's when i realised when their hides/sleeping areas get too dirty they tend to kick out their dirty bedding anyway.
It also very much depends on the hamster, for example elderly hamsters may pee more in their nests so then i will check and spot clean more often, but in general for a young healthy hamster I don't.

p.s. Glad you found the videos good/interesting. Thanks for watching.

[NanaBeaver]

Originally Posted by LunaTheHamster1

I don't clean my cages every month, and i don't really spot clean unless it starts to smell especially with my robo. Their pee and poos are very small. With my latest syrian she has a poo corner behind her wheel so I will pick them up, but that's it. I changed my cleaning habits after I adopted Twinkle a syrian, he was a scaredy cat when he arrived and so I didn't want to disturb his hide at all to do spot cleaning so I left it for 6 weeks and that's when i realised when their hides/sleeping areas get too dirty they tend to kick out their dirty bedding anyway.
It also very much depends on the hamster, for example elderly hamsters may pee more in their nests so then i will check and spot clean more often, but in general for a young healthy hamster I don't.

p.s. Glad you found the videos good/interesting. Thanks for watching.

Coco is a syrian and 'goes' behind her wheel too. She generally pees in her sandbox. I'll follow your lead.