Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 6: Buying a hamster
• Part 2 of 6: Setting up your hamster cage
• Part 3 of 6: Providing food and water
• Part 4 of 6: Acclimatizing your hamster
• Part 5 of 6: Providing Your Hamster with Exercise
• Part 6 of 6: Cleaning your hamster cage
• What do you need

There are several types of hamsters. Most of them live for about two years. Hamsters are nocturnal animals, which means they need to sleep during the day. To keep your hamster happy and healthy, you need to feed it properly, get enough exercise and play time, and clean the cage regularly.

Steps

Part 1 of 6: Buying a hamster

1. 1 Find a place that sells hamsters. If you want to get yourself a fluffy hamster as a friend, go to a pet store, a hamster breeder (if you are looking for a special color hamster), or an animal shelter. Hamsters are relatively inexpensive. You will spend significantly more money on buying cages, toys and providing veterinary care for them.
2. 2 Choose a healthy hamster. A healthy hamster should have clean ears, a clean and dry bottom, a small rounded tummy, there should be no bald spots or swellings (except for areas of odorous glands on their thighs, which can be confused with cuts or scabs), should have clean bright eyes and healthy teeth that should not be overgrown or bent upward.
   • If the hamster has wet fur around the priests, be especially careful; it is a sign of a wet tail, a bacterial disease that spreads rapidly through contact with other hamsters. The fur must be dry and clean. There are special antibiotics for treating a wet tail, but if you are just choosing your hamster now, try to find one that will be healthy.
3. 3 Think about the size of the hamster you want to purchase. Syrian hamsters can reach 12.7-17.8 centimeters in length in adulthood. Campbell's dwarf hamsters and winter white hamsters grow up to 7.6-10.1 centimeters. Chinese hamsters can grow up to 10.1-12.7 centimeters in length. Roborovsky hamsters barely reach 7.6 centimeters in adulthood.
4. 4 Consider coloring your hamster. Syrian hamsters are mostly golden, but can also be found in other colors. Campbell hamsters are usually greyish brown with a black stripe on the back and a white belly. Winter white hamsters are white in color with a reddish or grayish tint. Roborovski's hamsters are sandy-brown in color with a white belly. Chinese hamsters are dark brown with a milky belly.
5. 5 Ask permission to put your hand in the hamster cage. If the store staff or breeder (depending on where you went) reacts negatively to this, ask the person to lower their hand into the cage of the hamsters themselves.Avoid purchasing a hamster that bites or scratches aggressively. Also, do not buy a very fearful hamster that prefers to hide and not crawl out of the shelter. A good choice is a hamster that dares to sniff your hand without reaching for it. Another choice is a hamster that gets curious and gently tries your hand on a tooth (similar to how some puppies do).

Part 2 of 6: Setting up your hamster cage

1. 1 Choose the correct cage. Your hamster will do best in a 0.24 square meter cage or 60 by 40 centimeters sides. A glass aquarium can be a great home for your hamster if it provides the minimum required floor space. The disadvantage of the aquarium is poor ventilation, so the cover of the aquarium must be made of a metal lattice in order to somehow allow air to pass through. An alternative to the aquarium is the use of a cage with a monolithic base and metal grates at the top, which provides good natural ventilation. Make sure not to position the cage in direct sunlight as your hamster can overheat from intense sunlight, especially when kept in an aquarium. Buying a hamster aquarium can be expensive, unless you are purchasing a used aquarium. Metal cages that provide good ventilation are relatively inexpensive.
2. 2 Place the cage in a safe place. Make sure the area is well ventilated. Do not place the cage near sunny windows. Find a quiet place for her, out of the reach of other pets, such as dogs or cats. This will reduce stress on your hamster. Under no circumstances should your cats or dogs be allowed to interact with your hamster.
3. 3 Make sure the hamster cannot escape. You will be amazed at how smart the hamsters are when planning their shoots. Make sure that all openings are closed so that the hamster cannot open the movable and removable parts of the cage. If you are using a metal cage, make sure your hamster cannot slip through or get stuck in the gaps between the rods.
4. 4 Understand the territorial instincts of hamsters. Keep Syrian hamsters only one at a time. They begin to show territorial behavior as early as 5-8 weeks of age and will fight (often to death) with other hamsters if they are put together. Many dwarf hamsters can be housed together if they are properly introduced at an early age.
   • Three species of dwarf hamsters (Campbell's Russian hamsters, winter white hamsters, and Roborovsky's hamsters) can live singly or in pairs if the animals have been properly introduced. Do not pair different types of hamsters. Diverse pairs of hamsters for breeding should not be constantly kept together, as animals can start fighting among themselves and harm each other.
5. 5 Provide bedding for your hamster. The bottom of the cage should be covered with a layer of litter about 7.6 centimeters thick. Pine and cedar shavings are not suitable as bedding for hamsters, as they can cause many health problems. They can contain harmful essential oils and lead to respiratory problems. However, aspen sawdust does not contain harmful essential oils and is ideally safe to use in a hamster's cage. Never use cotton wool as bedding. This is very dangerous for your pet, as it is unable to digest the cotton wool when consumed, in addition, cotton wool fibers can wrap around the hamster's legs and squeeze blood circulation, which is potentially fatal to your pet.

Part 3 of 6: Providing food and water

1. 1 Feed your hamster daily. Provide enough food each day for the hamster to fill both cheeks, about 15 grams for the Syrian hamster or 8 grams for the dwarf hamster species. Fresh food in the pet's bowl should appear daily. Particularly practical hamsters will store food supplies. Cleaning these supplies can be stressful for your pet, so if you are worried about the quality and safety of the food in your hamster's supplies, simply remove the old food and replace it with a new one in the same place where the hamster stored the food.
   • Choose between using a ceramic or metal food bowl. They are best for use in hamster cages, as these pets can chew on plastic utensils.
2. 2 Provide a constant supply of water. The hamster does not drink a lot of water, but when he gets thirsty, it is important that water is always available. Do not put water in the bowl, as this will quickly get dirty, or the hamster will just knock it over. Use a wall-mounted drinker instead. If possible, change the water in the drinker every day to keep it fresh, or at least once every three days maximum.
3. 3 Use pellets or briquettes. Cereal mixes allow hamsters to eat more selectively and choose whichever tastes better, but usually less healthy. Provide the main diet with pellets or briquettes and use cereal mixes as a complementary feed. Be sure to check that your hamster is eating well pelleted food before offering him a grain supplement.
4. 4 Distribute food throughout the cage and hide it in toys and tunnels. Make your hamster look for him. Simply putting food in the bowl can make your hamster gain weight and be less interested in physical activity.
5. 5 Don't give your hamster “human” food. These include candy, pasta, raw meat / fish, sugar, and desserts. Hamsters can develop diabetes. Even food that you don't consider very sugar can be too sweet for your hamster. And this is bad for his health.
6. 6 Give your hamster a treat. Give your hamster treats regularly 2-3 times a week. Hamsters' favorite treats include cucumbers, carrots, apples, bananas, peppers, lettuce, celery, kale, collard greens and dandelion leaves, as well as many other vegetables and fruits. Some of them can be used in the daily diet of hamsters. In addition, pet stores offer specialty treats for hamsters, such as yogurt chips, hamster chocolates, or pieces of wood that hamsters love to chew on. Some vegetables and fruits are not safe for hamsters. For example, onions, garlic, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and citrus fruits.
7. 7 Give your hamster a toothbrush. They come in a variety of sizes, colors and flavors. Since your hamster's teeth are growing constantly, he needs to grind them down. These sticks are suitable for this purpose. Try to suggest different types of sticks to your hamster to see which ones he likes best. Some hamsters refuse these sticks altogether. If this happens in your case, be prepared for the fact that the hamster will chew on other objects in the cage, for example, its rods.

Part 4 of 6: Acclimatizing your hamster

1. 1 Leave your hamster alone to explore a new home. When you first bring your hamster home, put it in a cage with fresh food and water and leave it alone. Cover the cage with a thin cloth so that the pet can explore new housing without anxiety. Make sure he has enough food, water and toys to keep him busy for several days, as you shouldn't disturb him during this period. If there are children, friends, or guests in the house, let them know that they shouldn't bother the hamster either.
2. 2 Start gradually getting to know your hamster. After about 3 days of being left alone, you and your pet can start dating. As you approach the cage, speak slowly to alert the hamster of your presence. The hamster may be nervous at first, but you shouldn't be upset, remember that he is not used to you yet. Start doing your usual activities, such as changing water and adding food, and replacing old toys with new ones. Also, try to remove contaminated bedding. The hamster will begin to get used to the fact that your hand is periodically present in his cage.
3. 3 Start taming your hamster. Starting from the second week of your hamster's home, you can start giving him short taming lessons. Most of the hamsters are active from early to late evening and at night. Try to learn the personality of your hamster and give taming lessons when he is most active.
   • To tame your hamster, place your hand in its cage. Let your hamster sniff and examine it. If the hamster bites you gently, but does not show aggression, gently move your hand back, but immediately let the hamster examine it again. This will help him understand that the hand should not be eaten, and also should not be afraid of it. Then place the treats in your hand, it is a good idea to use a grain mixture; Due to the fact that it is used only as an additional feed to the main pelleted diet, hamsters really like it. Your hamster should get used to climbing into your hand, realizing that it can be climbed. As your hamster becomes more comfortable with the hand and is more comfortable with climbing on it, start gradually putting the treat further and further in your hand.
   • If your hamster is making good progress in taming, try offering your hand without a treat and only treating it to him after he climbs it. Your hamster will understand that there is nothing wrong with the hand. Then invite the hamster to climb onto the arm and slowly lift it from the bottom of the cage. Your hamster may get scared at first, continue to talk to him lovingly and offer a treat to make him more comfortable. Sit on the floor during this step, as the hamster may try to slip out of your hands and suffer from falling from a height of more than 15-20 centimeters.
4. 4 Respect your hamster's need for daytime sleep. Despite the fact that hamsters are nocturnal animals, they periodically run around the cage in search of food during the day. While they may appear awake, they will not be in the mood to play with you unless you understand otherwise from their behavior. For the same reason, try to minimize other people's attention to your hamster in broad daylight. At this stage, it is important that the hamster gets used to you, the rest of his friends will appear later. Now he needs to understand that it is you who are his friend and will never harm him.

Part 5 of 6: Providing Your Hamster with Exercise

1. 1 Purchase a running wheel suitable for your hamster. The wheels that come with the cage are usually too small to fit the hamster's back. If you use a treadmill that is too small, your hamster's back will bend upward. For dwarf hamsters, get a running wheel with a diameter of at least 20 centimeters, and for a Syrian hamster, at least 28 centimeters. Don't be afraid to get a larger wheel.
2. 2 Be sure to provide plenty of toys to keep your hamster entertained. Your hamster will love toys such as cardboard toilet paper tubes, empty paper boxes, tubes and tunnels, nest houses, plastic tunnels, and other chewable toys. Most hamster owners simply provide their pets with a running wheel and a walking ball for fun.As a result, the hamster develops unhealthy habits, for example, throwing around the cage and biting its rods (if the hamster is kept in a metal cage). Your hamster needs more than just a jogging wheel and a walking ball to be entertained. You should have enough toys to keep your hamster up-to-date and to keep him interested.
3. 3 Set up a playpen. Your hamster will love the opportunity to explore outside of its own cage. Having a playpen also makes it easier to clean the cage when it is necessary to place the hamster in a place from which he cannot escape. For this purpose, you can use a plastic bowl with high walls or a small special playpen for animals, which can be found in pet stores.
   • Make sure that the hamster cannot reach dangerous objects (for example, wires that it can chew on), and that it is impossible to escape from the room.

Part 6 of 6: Cleaning your hamster cage

1. 1 Move your hamster to a safe place. Place your hamster in a walking ball or playpen while cleaning the cage. You will need some time to clean the cage and will need to have both hands free. Do not try to hold the hamster with one hand and clean the cage with the other. It will be bad for both cleaning the cage and your pet.
2. 2 Clean the cage thoroughly. Use regular dish soap diluted with water. Even the smallest traces of other cleaning agents (such as hand soap) can make your furry friend uncomfortable. Most pet stores also offer specialty soaps for cleaning hamster or rodent cages.
   • You can use a white wine vinegar solution to clean your hamster's cage.
3. 3 Rinse and dry the cage. Make sure that all the water has evaporated and that all traces of the cleaning agent have been removed. Remember that hamsters have a sensitive sense of smell and the residual vinegar or soap odor will irritate them.
4. 4 Renew the litter. Old bedding must not be put back into the cage. Just use an inexpensive sawdust bedding that you can find at the pet store and renew it every time you clean the cage. Shredded paper can be an alternative bedding option, or torn paper towels can be used. Do not use newspapers as bedding, as the hamster will lick the ink off of them, and this can lead to serious illness. Never use pine or cedar sawdust, as they are not safe for the health of your hamsters. It will be good to use aspen sawdust.

What do you need

• Hamster
• Cell
• Hamster toys
• Safe cleaner for hamster cages
• Hamster food and treats
• Food bowl
• Water
• Drinker
• Litter
• Tunnels
• Nest house
• A place to sleep
• Toilet paper rolls (for chewing and playing with)