I've lost the hamster

[Huifen]

DS got a fairly new hamster, loves it of course. Long story but he managed to get out and has disappeared in a tiny hole next to the toilet in DDs en-suite upstairs. Everyone is devastated of course, I could hear a bit of scrabbling in the floorboards when I was downstairs but it's stopped. Have laid some treats, food and a home made humane trap in the bathroom in the hope thy he will reappear. Have I got any hope at all here? This was only about an hour ago - could he come back or can they not find their way out? Any other tips for finding an escapee? So gutted about this

Yes definitely the cage with the open door, plenty of food and a warm bed. Then close the door and put the light off. Have used this a few times to tempt back escapologist hamsters. Always found them curled up in bed the next morning.

Mine escaped three days after getting him. He returned a few days later, I could hear him wandering around under the floor. He then escaped regularly and always came back so I stopped worrying about him.

I lost differebt hamsters at different times and they all came back. Just leave treats where the disappeared and try to capture it.
I had to take a power socket off the wall to give one of them a way back in.

I remember my bf had one that escaped and got into the wall. We heard the wall crumbling and his mum went mad. But still, hammy came back!!

Do I leave the light on or off???

Put his cage in there with the door open, he will want to get back to his burrow. If you leave some food around he will want to collect it up and take it to his food store in the cage.

Was the light on or off when he emerged 10 minutes ago? Is it pitch black when off or is there any light from outside like street light/security light etc

It was off before, I'll turn it off

It's pitch black - en-suite has no outside walls

Hel make his way out. Mine did the same when I was a child, escaped in a hole in the bathroom, came out about three days later. Just leave food out

Oh hamsters are awful for this - hope rascal turns up soon.

I lost my hamster in the back of my car driving to uni many many years ago. He was presumed dead for days then just turned up in the dashboard about 2 weeks later. Right as rain.

Don't give up hope OP

Good luck OP. I expect to come back here in the morning to see a photo of a cute hamster snoring away in his bed

Yes this happened to me. Get a small bucket and put a little ramp to the top. Put some tasty treats in the bucket (I might have put a bit of honey, look it up as I can't remember what they can eat.) Put some treats near where he escaped to lure him out. In the morning hamster was in the bucket.

happened to me, caught mine with a trap with peanuts inside he/she will come out at night when it is quiet. I would turn the light off and listen for the trap

Happpened to me, it was fresh banana that lured the little blighter out 3 days later.

They are little escape artists!! They almost always turn up again! Occasionally curled up in a little ball 😍😍

I hope you find the little critter soon, but often it will be a day or two while they explore!

a little bit of boiled egg is a super tasty treat.

Welll, he's most certainly fine which was my main concern. I can hear him having a lovely time in the little box by the toilet but as if he is going to come out. I hope to be posting a picture of the little scamp within the next 24 hours

We lost DD's hamster (many years ago) gave him up for lost, then after a week he reappeared in her (plastic, shiny, steep-sided) waste-bin

My DS's hamster once escaped down a hole behind the bathroom basin. She was missing for about a week when my DH got out of the shower and there she was sitting on the bathroom floor! He made a dive for her, caught her and then had nowhere to put her since her cage had been put in the loft after hearing scratching noises (turned out to be mice). It was dark outside and he hadn't closed the curtains, so there he was running about the house stark naked holding a hamster, which he put in a saucepan while he retrieved the cage. God knows what the neighbours thought if they saw him!

Ramp of books up to a crate. Bedding and tasty foods (rubbed along the ‘book steps’ ) worked for us. He couldn’t get out of the crate but had previously collected food and retired to new hiding place using other methods! We knew he was there though as a cunning pile of rubble from behind the kitchen plinth blocking a hole gave his location away. Surprising how often they find a way to escape.

Who knew hamsters could be so much trouble 🐹

Do hamsters chew through plastic pipe like their rat family members? You're going to want him out of there asap in case he starts chewing on your plastic pipework.

Indeed! They are little devils but so much fun! They are complete nutters too with bags of energy darting around the place, investigating everything and generally hurling themselves around the place causing mayhem.

they are brilliant little things ☺️☺️

One of ours did this. It needs something to climb up if it's fallen down between the floor and ceiling of downstairs.
Can you manage to put a narrow plank down the hole with some food at the top? Cucumber worked.

Another one got through a hole in the plinth in the kitchen but came out when we put another hamster in a cage near the hole.

They're escape artists, I nicknamed one Houdini.
Very cute, though.

If I ever catch him he is our first and last hamster I swear!!