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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask you to help me find my hamster?

33 replies

Islands81 · 24/03/2019 23:06

My hamster, Miss Bitey, was having her nightly free range time in the kitchen this evening. Normally when she’s in there I’m sat in the kitchen working, and it’s nice and quiet. But tonight we got back quite late, and I needed to put the oven, on washing machine and tumble dryer on, so I couldn’t track what she was up to like I normally do.

I haven’t seen or heard her for about two hours now. Normally when I’m sat there I can hear her, and see her bombing around from time to time. I was worried that I hadn’t seen her for a while so I turned everything that made a noise off, and sat there quietly for about an hour waiting. Not a peep. Sometimes she goes under cupboards but you can always hear her rustling about. Tonight, nothing.

I’ve checked inside the washing machine, she’s not in there. I’ve moved everything that’s movable out, and shone a torch behind everything else that I can’t move. No sign of her.

I’ve put a baby corn on the floor and gone upstairs for now. Going to check in a bit to see if it’s gone. Not sure what else I can do? I’m worried that she’s stuck somewhere or hurt.

OP posts:

thenightsky · 24/03/2019 23:10

Is she under something. I regularly babysit a chinchilla who hides under the wood burner (unlit).

Bunnybigears · 24/03/2019 23:11

If she was stuck you would probably hear scratching as she tried to get out. Does your kitchen have external walls? She might have got outside or under your floor into another room if you have floorboards. When we lost our bastard hamster it was the dog that found it under DSs cabin bed.

thenightsky · 24/03/2019 23:11

Can you rattle her treat packaging?

Lovingbenidorm · 24/03/2019 23:13

Oh dear.
Sorry she’s missing.
Tbh tho my dc have had several hamsters over the years and I would never have given then free roam time! They can get into the smallest of places.
Ours always either went in the ball or a (ridiculously) big ‘hamster corral ‘ designed by youngest.
What about putting her cage on the floor with food in?

Mammajay · 24/03/2019 23:13

Found ours in the bin once. Another two me she appeared weeks after going AWOL, black with dirt.

WhenISnappedAndFarted · 24/03/2019 23:16

My DP had this happen when he was a child. He said they eventually found the hamster IN the sofa, he'd nibbled a hole and made himself at home.

Original poster

Islands81 · 24/03/2019 23:20

There are external walls but it’s a tiled floor so no floorboards.

It’s just really odd, it just doesn’t feel like she’s in the room anymore. But I can’t for the life of me work out how she’s got out.

I’ve had to put the washing machine and dryer back on for now otherwise dd has no school uniform.

I’ll check soon to see if the baby corn has gone. If it has I’ll sit it out and wait for her to reappear. I could try putting her cage on the floor and see if she goes back in, I’d be surprised if she voluntarily put herself in there though, she spends her life trying to escape!

OP posts:

BeanTownNancy · 24/03/2019 23:20

Curled up in the teatowel drawer. (My kitten did this - my hamster liked the sock drawer in my room... We didn't have both pets at the same time.)

americandream · 24/03/2019 23:24

Leave the cage door open. Ours used to get out (through a hole in the cage,) and would come back after a few hours.

(Before we had cats obvs!)

Clarinet1 · 24/03/2019 23:24

I have heard of the following method - although not tried it myself;
Take a bucket and put some fairly strong-scented food in it - a few raw cabbage leaves is good. Arrange some books as steps going up the outside of the bucket. Hopefully the hamster smells the food, climbs up to get at it, falls in the bucket and can't get out again!

Ewitsahooman · 24/03/2019 23:31

Hamsters will go where their food store and their nest is. Leave her cage on the floor tonight with the door open and her food bowl topped up, if she has a favourite treat then put that in to tempt her too. Ten to one you'll find her sleeping in her nest in the morning.

Original poster

Islands81 · 24/03/2019 23:32

The bucket trick could work, I actually had to retrieve her yesterday after she fell in the (empty) mop bucket so I know she definitely can’t get out of them!

Will take her cage downstairs later if she hadn’t reappeared.

OP posts:

DifferentViews · 25/03/2019 00:12

I second putting her cage out for her. We used to lose our hamsters sometime, they always reappeared. One night, on my pillow! But that was a whole other story.

Original poster

Islands81 · 25/03/2019 00:21

Got the little bugger! Christ knows where’s she’s been, went down to the kitchen to sort the washing out and she casually strolled across the kitchen floor. Took the bait of the baby corn which I cunningly placed in front of the purple tube, and grabbed the tube as soon as she went in it.

Thank Christ for that, I can go to sleep now. I’m doubly glad she turned up as I did a 180 mile round trip today to pick her up a super posh new cage!

OP posts:

Sparklesocks · 25/03/2019 00:23

I too did the bucket trick years ago to lure back an AWOL hamster and confirm it works! Just put some of their food in the bottom, something enticing like fresh veg in there too. Mine escaped in the bathroom, it ran under the crack under the airing cupboard door and as I flung the door open I saw it disappear down a small hole where all the pipes were! Nightmare!! Could hear it under the floorboards.

I put the bucket set up in the bathroom before bed and awoke at about 3am to hear lots of noise, it was hammy trying to scratch it’s way out of its bucket prison!!

Sparklesocks · 25/03/2019 00:23

Oh just seen you got it!! Well done!! They are tiny pets but can really keep you on your toes

DifferentViews · 25/03/2019 00:24

Awww she's lovely. Glad she's back safe and sound.

Lovingbenidorm · 25/03/2019 00:27

Glad she’s back!

Original poster

Islands81 · 25/03/2019 00:29

Thanks all! This one certainly keeps me on my toes, she’s a terrorist. Always had male hamsters before and they were so much easier. This one seems to like to find as much mischief as she possibly can

OP posts:

Lovingbenidorm · 25/03/2019 00:36

That’s why we put them in cages op!😉

Seren85 · 25/03/2019 00:42

Glad you found her! I've had a couple of escapee hamsters, although never allowed to free range, only balls and hamster gym set ups. They do tend to go back to their food and nest. One we found escaped the bars and gnawed a hole in the sofa, he had a whole set up in there with food and bedding. The other we found curled up in the big tupperware box containing his food fast asleep.

Original poster

Islands81 · 25/03/2019 00:48

I’m rethinking allowing this one to free range now 😂. She has a playpen but just spends her whole time trying to chew her way out, and our house is too small for her to have much fun in a ball, she just crashes into something every 2 seconds. I can only let her go in the kitchen though as she shreds carpets, she’s completely annihilated the one in dd’s bedroom

OP posts:

Bacardi101 · 25/03/2019 00:53

Our last hammy was such an escap artist I used to have to use cable ties ever night to lock her door as she learnt how to open her cage door and get out!

Original poster

Islands81 · 25/03/2019 00:55

Oh my goodness Bacardi . That’s some skills. I’ve just bought Miss Bitey a tank cage so she’s got no hope of getting out of that.

OP posts:

Hyrana · 25/03/2019 05:46

Glad you found her OP! My first hamster escaped from his cage once just as we were doing DiY and we heard him 2 days later so had to take down the lovely plyboard arch in the alcoves my DH had made. This was in 1983 so we wouldn't be doing the arching thing now He lived for a long, long time and eventually his testes grew too big. The vet said it was common in males who lived a long time, who knew?
I also had a total escape artiste, everything was cable tied and taped but she managed to get out, we have no idea how. I found her in the cat's mouth one day, the cat dropped her when I asked her cage was in our bedroom and I would regularly hear scraping in my knicker drawer and here was Floella curling up in my bra with a store of food
Annoying little buggers but when they are totally hand reared and relaxed with you they are wonderful.

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