Tom

to start a new home for a dwarf hamster? Would I be able to use an empty 10 gallon to house the hamster?
Tom

Stradius011

Yay!!!!!!!!!! You're becoming interested with rodents!!!!!!!! Bless you! Bless you! Sorry. Ok, a dwarf hamster will be able to live in a 10 gallon. Normal hamster require at least a 15 gallon though. I just went to my friend's house and he had a hamster. He gave the hamster 2 baby carrots and the hamster stuffed them in his mouth and it looked funny.

Tom

What is all the equipment I need to start a home for one?
Tom

Stradius011

You need the 10 gallon aquarium, a nest box, an exercise wheel and/or playground, toys, bedding, food dishes and a water bottle thingy.

Bonochick

I miss having a hamster, they're so cute. I never had a dwarf one.

You've got the aquarium, that's good. Stradius listed the other essentials. Just some advice...

Some people swear by the solid plastic wheels because hamsters sometimes have their feet fall through the openings on other wheels, which can cause sores on their legs. I think I only had one hamster who ever actually hurt his legs though. The solid plastic wheels seem to make more noise, they rattle around more once they are in use than they do when you are just spinning them at the pet shop. The regular wheels cans can squeak, but a dab of vegetable oil makes it quiet.

I suggest aspen bedding. It's not as hard on an animal's respiratory system because it's light on wood oils. I've had some hamsters also like nesting beds, those pads that they tear at so that they fluff up into a big, cushy wad...but I've had some hamsters who ignored them. It might be worth trying though because my hamsters who did like them REALLY liked them!

Try to leave one corner open...don't place toys or food there, because most hamsters will pick a corner to be their "potty corner". Having a spot already open might encourage them to do so.

Make sure you have a toy that the hamster go hang out in. My last hamster had an igloo. He loved to sleep and hide food in there, and he also liked climbing on it...and gnawing on it. :

I liked to get mixed food with good chunks in it. My hamsters would also go through and pick out their favorites things (like corn and sunflower seeds), leaving the pellets and tiny pieces behind. Divas! For treats, they sell treat sticks that look like mixed food in a block. Mine always loved those, and they also loved yogurt treats, like balls and chips (Kaytee strawberry yogurt chips have been a fave). I've had mixed results with those wooden chewing sticks. Some loved them, some ignored them. It's good for them to chew, so it would be a good idea to try those. Mine also loved carrots and lettuce.

Just a tip about the water bottle, since you'll have it in an aquarium (that's how mine was). Some water bottles come with holders that will hook onto a cage, but there really isn't a way to rig it up into an aquarium, or maybe the way to do it would have the water bottle too high. If you get one like that, I attached some strong velcro to the back of the holder and stuck the other patch on the inside of the aquarium so that it could be easily hung at whatever height you want. Keep some spare velcro on hand though, because you will probably eventually have to change it.

vin

Tom,

All good advice here.....However as a current owner ferrets and prior hamster owner, many of the principals are the same....The water bottle can be hung from the aquarium rim very easily....The velcro while a good idea will tend to get full of litter and bedding as your little guy will use any means he/she can to get out of that tank. Eventually you will find yourself cleaning the velcro to get it to work properly. (I've tried it) For my baby ferrets I bought a water bottle with hangar that has a metal strap on the back that you can swivel and bend. You can bend the strap so that the spout will be at your desired height. You can then hang it over the rim of the aquarium and still be able to put your aluminum screen cover over the lid of the aquarium....(when the ferrets were big enough they were moved to their 30x48x48 palace as I call it....)

Also, plastic wheels will work, but they are also chewable and can splinter....Hamsters like most rodents like to and need to hone their teeth. Make sure you provide them with chew toys that are made specifically for hamsters and gerbils. When we had hamsters we got them an excercise ball...It's a big plastic ball with a latchable cover...Put them inside and watch'em go!! It's a lot of fun to watch and they get their excercise while also getting a change of scenery.

Lastly, hamsters are highly social. If you can swing it, buy two....Try hard to get the same sex if you can because they will breed readily if you mix sexes.....By having two their personalitities really come out and they will be much, much happier.

Bonochick

Thanks for weighing in, vin!

I didn't have a problem with bedding getting in the velcro, but the softer piece of velcro would get too loose and would have problems holding the grippy piece (not sure exactly how to describe it, but I think you get it!), so I probably just changed the softer piece every few months to be safe. He did try to climb it a few times though.

Most of my hamsters were kept alone because I had a bad experience with hamsters being together. We had three boys together who were from the same litter and had been best buds...then one morning we woke up and found a bloody mess! They were all horribly fighting with each other. They all thankfully survived, but we ended up having to get them each a separate home, just to be safe. After that, I was too scared to ever have more than one in a habitat.

vin

That's too bad.....I never had that problem.

One more thing I forgot to mention - The velcro is a great idea for keeping your lid secure!!!

Bonochick

It was just so bizarre and unexpected. Those were my sister's hamsters, and I had the other two from that same litter together, and those two were always fine. We didn't want to separate them and set up another habitat if we didn't have to, so we just kept an eye on them, but they were good pals. After that incident with the other three though, I was just too nervous and always stuck with single hamsters...and I had a mouse at one point.

I never thought of velcro for the lid, that's a good idea. I ended up buying some lid hook thingies (I know, I'm so technical! :), but they were a HUGE pain to attach to the lid. Velcro sounds much simpler!

vin

Lid hook thingies....Yes...I agree...Very technical!!

Stradius011

I heard that 2 hamsters should never be kept together but I guess it depends on their personalities.

Tom

Thanks, you three. Now I have one more question, before I have to plan where it might go and convince my parents, would the lid that is used to cover reptile 10 gallon tanks be good enought to cover the hamster cage? It is about 1lbs to begin with, if not, I would just put some rocks or other weight on top.
Tom

vin

Never heard that. But then you also have to remember that they are kept together at pet stores...Dwarf Campbells for example love to be kept with their own kind.

vin

Tom,

You can use that lid as long as it's clipped down and has plenty of air circulation. With regard to the size of the aquarium, it's a good rule of thumb that the hight does not exceed the width of the tank to avoid circulation issues. So if your tank is 12" wide then it should not be more than 12" tall....

Tom

I was reading in one of the books I got from the library and it said a 10 gallon aquarium would be perfect for 1-4 dwarf hamsters.
Tom

Stradius011

Maybe dwarf hamsters and hamsters behave differently? My book about hamsters says hamsters are solitary creatures.

vin

In a 10g I wouldn't do more than 2....They really need about 1sq. ft. of living space for each of them....As for keeping more than one, buy the dwarfs at the same time.....

vin

I was mainly talking about the dwarves...Sorry - I should have clarified that...Dwarves like to have company.

Tom

I am assuming this is for territorial reasons.
Tom

vin

They just need room to move around, but I would also think it's for them to have room to separate if they want to.

Tom

I think I will be able to get all the equipment easily but the space and convincing my parents are still needing to be done.
Tom

Stradius011

Yeah, that's by far the hardest part.

Tom

It is easy to get the stuff since there is a used pet store here that I know the manager very well. When I bought the 5 gallon for the killifish fry, he through in a new mesh cover(regular $8CDN) for free. I also bought a heater.
Tom

Tom

Which one would be better for a dwarf hamster?
http://www.usedwinnipeg.com/classifi...aquariums-fish
or
http://www.usedwinnipeg.com/classifi...aquariums-fish
Tom

vin

It's hard to see the size, but bigger is always better....Also, it's important to make sure he couldn't get his little head stuck between the bars...You might be better off with an aquarium as they do like to kick litter around....