another hamster question - enclosures?

[Donovans4]

I am still doing research about the hamster my ds10 will be getting for Christmas. For those of you with hamsters, what type of enclosure does your hamster live in? One book I have stated that the minimum size is 32 inches long and 16 inches wide. The stores here sell those size cages for guinea pigs. All the eclosures for hamsters are much smaller. Another concern I have is that we have two cats, so I was considering a glass aquarium with a firmly latched screen top, but the 10 gallon aquariums are no where near 32x16. All advise greatly appreciated, especially as my shopping time is dwindling!

 

LauraD in MN

[lovemywhirlygirls]

We are 3 months into our first time owning a hamster. My daughter bought a wire cage that has a big ferris wheel sized tube/wheel to run through. The cage is maybe 10 x 20 but the tubes on it go up to a little penthouse (small, round cozy) and then up to the really big wheel she can run in (that's pretty quiet if she doesn't take her food in there with her) etc.

 

The main thing that I've learned is.....hamsters are SMART and DILIGENT about getting out. They are used to TONS of activity, so they are busy, busy, busy or.....ASLEEP. There's not much in between. Biscuit, our hamster, can open the doors on the cage. I should take a picture of how we've secured it so she can't get out....complete with plastic tie cords in their locked positions, wire twisted in multiple places around the door, big heavy books on the roof (yes, she can lift the roof) etc. We take her out by taking the top off.

 

Do make sure you research what they can/can't eat. It's very important. Some things are toxic for them. If your house is cool/cold make sure you read about hibernation. See my thread from a couple of days ago if you have questions. I have no clue how to link it here.

 

We love our Biscuit. She is smart and sweet and adorable and loves to play with us. I'm very glad we got her. Just make sure once you get one that you can keep it!! :D

 

HTH some.

[Jen500]

We have these Habitrail cages-

http://www.habitrail.com/ovo/eng/index.php

I like habitrail in general ( I had their cages as a kid). I think they may be a bit more expensive than other brands (not sure).

Pros-

easy to take apart and clean ALL the parts

everything fits together well

can change the setup of tubes

can buy replacement pieces

the wheel isn't really noisy

all the pieces have little air circulation holes

 

Cons-

the pin holding the wheel in has to go in just right or it'll fall off

price

[Jann in TX]

We have had hamsters in the past (currently have gerbils) and they LOVE to chew on the plastic-type enclosures. They also make a mess with the wire ones.

 

Our best luck has been with a 20 gallon tank and a wire screen top. We add in all sorts of play things and tunnels (and a free-standing wheel). Water bottle hangs from the side... We have had this same tank for YEARS. It has been easy to clean and best of all it is easy to watch the furry critters living inside it.

 

The fancy plastic enclosures we have tried were eaten in a matter of weeks. I do know that you can purchase add-ons for glass tanks that resemble the fancy plastic tubes and such--we tried them before too--and YEP they were destroyed!

 

If you are only getting one hamster then a regular 10 gallon would be fine--plenty of room.

[hornblower]

I like Martins cages.

http://www.martinscages.com/products/cages/hamster/

 

Are you getting a Syrian or a dwarf? Dwarfs are a bit harder to keep, esp when they're young, as they can get through some of the bars on the common cages....but it's just until they grow up a bit & then they're fine in the Martins cages.

 

I do not like keeping hamsters in tanks as they're more prone to resp infections due to inadequate ventilation. Tanks are also a pita to clean (I have one here for emergencies (if I need to isolate a critter) & I also use them to keep them safe while I'm cleaning out the main cages.)

 

Go as large as you can afford and fit in your house. Height isn't quite as important hamsters as with rats as I find most hamsters climb less than most rats. BUT they will climb, and will explore and will appreciate the extra space.

 

You will absolutely need a wheel inside a hamster cage. They go quite crazy if there is no wheel so make sure there's room for a nice wheel.

 

We did use a Habitrail Safari with some plastic tubing in the past & while none of my 3 were chewers, again it was a pita to clean the tubes. They pee as they run and everything needs to be washed in warm soapy water once a week. It was a lot of work.

 

Eventually I switched to plain big cages, a plain wheel and I had the kids make an endless supply of tunnels out of toilet paper tubes, paper towel tubes and kleenex boxes. Save the tubes your Christmas gift wrap comes on - you can use them for playing outside of the cage by making big mazes out of boxes and the tubes or cut them up into smaller chunks for use in the cage. Best of all, you just throw them in the recycling when they start getting stinky.

 

I'm a bit fanatical about ease of cleaning because a nice clean cage is of prime importance both to the hamster's health & to how the hamster fits into the home - everyone loses interest in a stinky critter. Make it an easy task, one which can be done quickly and efficiently and then it WILL get done and you'll have a happy hammy whom people want to interact with.

 

One final note - think ahead about bedding. No aromatic oil bedding (pine, cedar etc.) Aspen is OK. Hemp is even better but it's harder to find. Carefresh is good & easy to find. I also give shredded pieces of toilet paper or paper towel for them to nest with.

 

You can make little polar fleece hammocks which you hang from the cage with diaper pins & give the hammie a box to sleep in - again, I ended up using the small square kleenex boxes. When you clean out a cage, if you need to change their sleeping box (not often because they don't pee in there), keep some of the old smelly bedding & put it back in the new box so it smells like 'home'.

 

have fun with your hammie!

[Donovans4]

thanks for all this great information. I can see I still have some research to do.

 

LauraD in MN

[SonshineLearner]

Hey Hornblower...with all your info...can you train a hamster (and or guinea pig for that matter) to only go in litter? I know you can with (some) rabbits. Wouldn't that be nice??

I bet you could make a cool glass cage with a good lid on it. I'm pretty sure my husband could, and then you could do it for wherever you were planning to keep it.... (Oh..or metal...now I see the ones you're recommending...they're nice! and much better than what we had for our gerbils when I was young!)

And...the water bottles (glass) look very nice...I'd get a couple of those! That way you could always have nice water for them!

My daughter may get a guinea pig next year, so I'm watching all of this...and of course, we have a cat who would love a guinea to pounce on....so I'm watching for how to make it safe for all:-)

Carrie:-)

Edited December 17, 2008 by NayfiesMama
looked at the site listed...it's nice:-)

[hornblower]

Yes, you can train a hammie, a rat and a guinea pig to use a litter box.

 

My hammies didn't have a potty but they really only peed in one corner so that effectively was their toilet & really easy to clean. I scooped that corner daily & did the entire cage once a week. I used to get a real kick watching my Caramel get up midday and stagger over to his potty corner, do his thing & return to his nest - all without opening his eyes!

 

Folks who have free range rats (rats which spend a lot of time outside of their cage or have cages with doors open most of the time - obviously you need to rat proof the room they're in) potty train them first.

 

The process is the same for all:

you watch where the animal goes

gather up the wet bedding & the poops

put them all in the litter area or litter box

 

These guys are all pretty clean and will usually choose to go in one area.

 

It doesn't work so well if they don't have a big enough habitat. Hamsters esp I find like to 'move house'. Every few nights they'll gather up all their belongings and decide to relocate to another corner of the cage. There needs to be adequate space for them to move their belongings, have their play area & a toilet area.

 

Remember all these guys need to eat some of their poops a second time to get all the nutrients out so don't be surprised if you see an animal snacking from there.

 

It apparently speeds things up to use a different litter for the litter box than for the regular bottom of the cage - something like corn cob bedding would be ok or use aspen or hemp for one area, and the paper bedding in another. Just so it's different.

Edited December 17, 2008 by hornblower