New hamster

[Knitwit101]

We have a new syrian hamster. It's our first hamster, we've had guinea pigs in the past but don't have enough space for them now. We've had him 3 days.

2 questions.

First, we have a wire cage, plastic on the bottom, wire on the top. The hamster is constantly climbing up the wire and falling off from the top. Ds is convinced it's going to hurt itself. Surely if it was hurting itself it would stop climbing up? Or should we somehow stop it climbing up? It is quite a big cage compared to the size of the hamster.

Second, the guy in the pet shop told us we should handle the hamster so it gets used to us and is happy to be picked up. But the hamster is terrified of us, it doesn't want to be picked up. What should we do? Should we pick it up, should we leave it alone, should we let it sniff us and get used to us?

Who knew hamsters were so tricky. Ds is a bit of a worrier at the best of times so he is desperate to do everything exactly by the book and is worried that we haven't managed to pick the hamster up yet and so it will never get used to us.

We got a hamster this weekend too with the same advice, luckily it will let us pick it up but it poops and wees all over us!
What he has also started to do is eat the plastic around the tube that goes out of his cage and back in again! Now I'm worried the little shit is
Going to escape and be eaten by the cat!!
That and the wheel of hell which he is on aaaaaalllll night! X

Put some garden type gloves on and pick it up. The gloves will protect you if it decides to bite, then do it every day until it seems happy to be picked up and you don't need the gloves anymore. It won't hurt itself falling from the bars. Get one of those ball things you can put it in and let it run around the house safely too. Once they are used to you they are friendly little things. I had three growing up and my mum used to do the glove thing with all to tame them for us.

Hamsters do enjoy climbing, but can hurt themselves if they fall too far. How high is the cage? Can you put in some levels for the hamster to get onto? Get some toys that give the hamster a chance to climb.
To tame the hamster will take time. Leave it to settle in the cage for a few days, when it’s awake talk to it quietly, offer little bits of food through the bars. After a few days open the door and put the food on your palm and let the hamster come to get it. Just go slowly and let it get used to you - remember it’s a prey animal so will be very scared of hands approaching from above.
Buy a good book about hamsters.

This is an old book but it's an excellent reference. Might help put your DS's mind at rest? Much better than most books about hamsters which tend to be all glossy photos but very superficial (and sometimes incorrect) information:

www.amazon.co.uk/Hamsterlopaedia-Chris-Logsdail/dp/1860542468?tag=mumsnetforum-21

I knew the authors years ago and they are both VERY experienced and well respected hamster breeders/exhibitors.

Make sure there's plenty of substrate/bedding so your hamster has a soft landing at least if he/she keeps falling.

As for taming, just take your time. Slow and steady is most effective, and more importantly, least stressful on the hamster. Just start off spending time by the cage and talking to the hamster. Some people even read out loud to them. Let him/her get used to your smell and your voice. Then you can start just putting a hand in the cage and leaving your hand there. Then try giving treats from your hand. It takes as long as it takes. Some hamsters are pretty tame because they've been handled by breeders from a young age but pet shops hamsters tend not to have been handled to the same degree. But there's no rush, just take it steady and your hamster will get used to you. I don't agree with using gloves as it's stressful for the hamster. Plus gloves aren't necessary if you follow my advice above.

(As background, I'm a former international hamster judge and a Top 3 UK hamster exhibitor and breeder so I promise I know what I'm talking about).

We were advised to sit in an empty dry bath with the hamster to tame it - it was quite effective as they can run all around you but can't escape and you can get them used to you- make a bridge of your hand for them to run through etc
Also if it bites don't react or the hamster will learn this as a way of avoiding human contact
They are quite hard to handle - ours would happily go from one hand to the other but there's only so long you can do this for !!

It might help to rub your hands with some of the sawdust in his tank so it doesn't smell so odd to him. Take it slowly.

As long as his cage has plenty of being then he shouldn't hurt himself when he falls. Good luck (what's his name??)

@HundredMilesAnHour how do I stop my hamster eating the plastic round the tube in hope of escape? He is 8 weeks old and has plenty of toys and a wheel in the cage and plenty of things to chew on! X

@Kidssendingmenuts - in my experience you can't, if he's decided that's what's good to chew. We go through water bottles monthly as ours chews the lids - shame you can't buy them separately!

They tend to chew because they're bored but some hamsters are just chewers and some aren't. Not much you can do if they have lots to keep them occupied. Try giving some cardboard insets from toilet/kitchen roll instead (if you don't already) and hope they get chewed instead.

However, it usually isn't advised to have plastic tubes for Syrians because the tubes are generally too small and can result in suffocation. To be honest, the majority of cages sold by pet shops are too small for Syrians. We seem to be particularly badly educated about hamsters in the UK (compared to Germany for example), I suspect because people just see hamsters as small, cheap and disposable. But I won't get started on my soapbox.

Just to let you know, most pet store cages are not of the appropriate size. Hamsters require a minimum of 80cm x 50cm floor space. Please join a hamster care Facebook group to find out how to correctly care for a hamster.