10 Steps To Care For Your Hamster (long post!)
1. Do not keep them in pairs. Hamsters are loners - keeping them together often results in stress, fighting, injuries and death. They are very happy alone.
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dwarf hamsters: 30 x 20 x 20 inches (80x50x50cm);
bigger hamsters: 40 x 20 x 20 inches (100x50x50cm)!
as absolute minimum! (Please consider getting an even bigger cage + fenced run area!)
Living in cages like this for them is like a human living in an elevator - a lot too small and even dangerous!
For them it feels like this:
Behavior like this is a signal for stress because the cage is too small or that they need more bedding:
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3. Your hamster (always!) needs a hamster wheel - and it must be a lot bigger than you might think!
Hamster must be able to run with a completely straight back
Results of those wheels are: spine problems, backache, stress, injuries!
Minimum wheel size for dwarf hamsters: 9-10 inches.
Minimum wheel size for bigger hamsters: 12 inches!
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4. Do not buy them plastic tubes (at all):
Those tubes are not suitable at all: Hamsters get stuck or suffocate in them easily.
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5. Your hamster needs enough bedding to dig and build tunnels.
Your hamster will be extremely happy and dig around and build tunnels all day (night).
A study also found out that (golden) hamsters need up to 12-36 inches of bedding, so just do your best do give them the highest amount of bedding possible. :)
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6. The less plastic the better!
Plastic gets swallowed, splinters, can injure or even kill your hamster.
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7. Hamsters ALWAYS need a sand bath.
Hamsters love rolling around in the sand, for them it’s like showering. How would you feel without a shower?
You can use those little baths as toilets, but you still need a bigger sand bath!
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8. Hamsters need a house with at least 2 or more chambers to store food, sleep etc. Also make sure that your hamster does have enough hiding places like coconuts, small houses, toilet rolls!
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9. Do use unperfumed toilet paper for nesting material, don’t use “hamster wool” -> it can tangle around a limb and seriously hurt and even kill your hamster!
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10. Never ever ever put your hamster or any animal in a hamster ball.
They can’t get out, might suffocate or panic, might run against furniture and seriously injure themselves. The ventilation is terrible, your hamster can’t see/smell/hear enough or use any of their senses properly.
In some countries they even discuss about banning those by law!
Even if you think that “your hamster has fun in it” - please don’t use them!
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Please reblog and spread this information.
Pet stores often are very misinformed and sell terrible cages and have little to no idea how to keep a happy hamster - please be careful when trusting them. In the end they often just want to make money - and the hamsters suffer.
Please adopt, not buy hamsters - there are too many hamsters in this world that we need any more breeding.
MASTERPOST: Cheap Cages And Supplies For Hamsters - IKEA
MASTERPOST: Why Hamster Balls Are Dangerous And Should Not Be Used
MASTERPOST: How To Spot A Good Hamster Wheel
(Sorry for the spelling errors - I made this post in a rush.)
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