Hello Hammy

[Ria P]

Originally Posted by Stanza

Think he may have been. It’s the first time I’ve removed a substantial amount of bedding all in one go and he could no doubt smell and hear me moving things around. I did read it’s better to move them further away really. I treated him to some tiny bits of grape after.

That depends on the hamster. Some prefer to watch, others are better off in another room.

[Pebbles82]

I use these ferplast drinky bottles - they're my favourite They actually come with a little clip that fits to the bars and bottle sits in the holder - inside the cage (so the spout doesn't need to go through the bars) - and holds it at whatever height you want. Works well with hamsters who get freaked by bar clanging noises. But Mainly I got them as they're the most reliable ones I've used (as well as for the clip). They always seem to let the water out well but don't drip or empty themselves.

A bit of cardboard probably does the same thing though!

Like so many things, they have gone up in price! I used to buy them for £1.50. For the past few years they've been £3.50 and now doubled in price!

FPI 4660 Drinky 75 Drinking Bottle | Welcome to Porton Garden Aquatic & Pets

The way they show it on the picture is with the holder on the outside and the spout through the bars, but it works either way round - I have the holder on the inside and the bottle inside the cage (no spout through the bars). Either way it's very easy to get the bottle in and out - you just pull it out of the holder.

[Stanza]

Originally Posted by Ria P

That depends on the hamster. Some prefer to watch, others are better off in another room.

Think I’ll get the OH to watch him in the front room next time, as he did seem a bit unsure with what was going on.

Pleased to have helped with the slipping water bottle. Think the idea came to me when I was reading a piece on this forum re someone’s hamster who was bar biting just in one corner and they had concertinaed cardboard and I had one of those eureka moments, lol!

[Stanza]

The way they show it on the picture is with the holder on the outside and the spout through the bars, but it works either way round - I have the holder on the inside and the bottle inside the cage (no spout through the bars). Either way it's very easy to get the bottle in and out - you just pull it out of the holder.

Yes, these are the ones. I didn’t think to try it on the inside. The clip was great but unfortunately got broken when my mum was caring for him over the holidays. Thanks for the link

[cloudy]

Aw, lovely to read an update on Hams. You are so clever to think of that water bottle idea.

[Stanza]

Sorry I don’t think I’m supposed to post these here, but I’ve two completely random questions……..

1). How long does everyone leave an uneaten or chewed whimzee in the cage?

2). Would you say Syrians don’t burrow as much as dwarfs and robos as I’ve added lots of substrate to Hams cage on various occasions but he just seems to trample all over it rather than attempt to tunnel through it. It’s just the Kaytee clean and cosy maybe it’s not so good to burrow in?

Thanks

[otto]

Originally Posted by Stanza

Sorry I don’t think I’m supposed to post these here, but I’ve two completely random questions……..

1). How long does everyone leave an uneaten or chewed whimzee in the cage?

2). Would you say Syrians don’t burrow as much as dwarfs and robos as I’ve added lots of substrate to Hams cage on various occasions but he just seems to trample all over it rather than attempt to tunnel through it. It’s just the Kaytee clean and cosy maybe it’s not so good to burrow in?

Thanks

1) I leave it in there until it’s gone! Usually mine drags it away into his burrows before I have a say in anything though… lol
2) I’d say syrians burrow more! Add at least 6+ inches all around the cage, pat it down slightly so burrows don’t collapse, and add some burrow starters such as tubes pushed into the bedding. See if that makes a change.

[Ria P]

a) i leave whimzees indefinetly as they don't go off. They're a bit like pasta in a kitchen cupboard.

b) going by our hamsters, i'd say that dwarfs burrow more than Syrians. Out of our four Syrians only one burrows. Our first Syrian didn't burrow either.

[Stanza]

Hi Otto and Ria, Thanks for the replies.

Hams has taken his whimzee into his bed, he’s probably had it 3 wks at a guess and it’s half eaten so I’ll just leave it for now

Re burrowing, I kinda guessed I prob don’t have enough depth of substrate for him. His nest is prob a good 6” deep but not the rest of the cage. As we are moving to the winter season, I’m going to try adding more depth all across the back of his cage and I’ll place his cardboard tubes underneath, see what happens. I put some extra in last night and he was sinking into so maybe I should compact it more also. He was kinda wading through it, made me chuckle.

Thank you

[Ria P]

Lol! I've seen Henry wading when he wasn't impressed with the bedding i had bought but that was before i knew about Kaytee.
Not all hamsters want to burrow so i wouldn't worry about it. Kaytee is good for burrowing but like Hams, most of our Syrians just flatten it by walking on it or they use it as building material..
Jack built an interesting nest in a back corner by building a wall. The corner shelf needs a clean but i can't remove it because then his wall would collapse.
Hams may not want to make tunnels but he may well come up with some other structures.