Desperate for Advice

[ejz]

Hello! I recently rescued a teddy bear hamster from a family who didn’t play with her. I had hámsters as a kid but now am in my late thirties. I googled the best cages and all basic info. I got her a 50 gallon clear bin from Home Depot. She has little platforms, tunnels, sand box. I give her treats and fruit and even avocado. But she’s always trying to get out. I left town for work and she was able to climb over her water bottle and escape. I came back and found her in a little opening in my wall. She came out but ever since she found the wall that’s all she wants to go to. It kills me to just see her scratch at the bin and panic on how to escape to the wall. So I thought okay, let’s try it. We had a talk about how dangerous it could be. But in the end we had a little routine where she would live in the wall then come out at night to eat treats and drink water. She clicks when we I pick her up and snuggle with her. We did this for a week. My sister said I was being manipulated and how hurt she could get in the wall. But we did it for a week and she came back every night to say hi and roam the apartment. But I couldn’t take worrying about her so I put her back in her cage. I blocked the hole to the wall, elevated all my wires and let her run around the rest of the apartment. But again its not good enough! She goes right to the hole in the wall and spends her time trying to get in. I feel like they are natural roamers and want to give her last year or two everything she wants to make her happy. If you made it this far, thank you! My question is, do I just let her do her thing and go between the wall and the rest of the apt? Or will she eventually stop trying to get in there? Thank you for your advice!

[hotglue01]

Hi there!

Good for you for adopting a hamster and giving her a better home I recommend the NiteAngel Large Bigger World enclosure. It will run you about 250 dollars, but it has so much more room than even the very nice bin enclosure you're providing. Good luck!

[CallaTheHam]

first of all, i’m sorry! i totally understand how stressful that is. i would recommend to try adding a bit more enrichment to her cage. if you don’t have room in it or already have everything you can think of, i’d say you may want to try and upgrade the cage size. if you don’t mind, maybe send in a picture of her enclosure?

and i would not let her in the wall anymore- it’s extremely dangerous as you said. instead, try getting a playpen or at least blocking off the hole in the wall. she may be wanting some more hides when free roaming, so you could try making some cardboard hides and things and cluttering up the roaming area for her.

good luck!!

[Lillias]

Hamsters can get obsessively focused on things. Keep the hole blocked, or better yet, get it fixed. She'll give it up eventually after she accepts it's not an option anymore. It's dangerous for her and everyone in the building. Wiring runs through walls. She could get electrocuted AND start a fire.
Not to mention, there may be insulation, pesticides, or holes to other apartments in the walls.

Female Syrians are the most notorious for escaping. Can you upgrade? If not, rework the existing cage to be escape-proof. Are you using a meshed lid with the bin? Free roaming in a ham-safe room can be a good option for playtime, but she needs a secure cage for when you aren't around to supervise.

[Spud]

Hiya, welcome to the forum and we'll done for rescuing her. You've done a great thing.

Please be careful with avocado- it's considered unsafe. There's an explanation of why in this post, which gives lots of safe alternatives: viewtopic.php?t=22

Have you tried using a safe playpen for her to have a runaround in? Don't be tempted to use a hamster ball either, as they're no longer recommended.

As the others have said, the wall won't be safe for her unfortunately, so please try and make the cage escape proof and block off the hole in the wall.

I'd love to see some pictures of her, and if you want you could post a picture of her cage so we can recommend some cheap and easy improvements to it.

P.S. You might want to change your username, as we get quite a few spam bots on this site.

[ejz]

Thank you for your help!! Omg I’m so relieved to have direction. I’ve been so worried about what to do. Thank you for avocado tip! This is a photo from a week ago. I switched to lettuce and strawberries but I haven’t read the post yet. I’ll make sure to follow it. I have attached her cage. She can’t climb out but I do have a lid. Should I poke holes in it? The wall is very securely blocked off. I vacuumed and picked up wires from the floor and let her run around my apartment for a few hours while I worked. She was so happy and clicking. Please give me advice on the cage! I’ve attached a photo I think. Her fluff is 6” deep.

I haven’t tried the play pen. When I look them up they are all mesh where she can climb up. Can you recommend one? I’m sure it’s on the site.

Also I can’t figure out how to change my user name. I didn’t think about it being visible.

Thank you!!

[Sadie]

Thank you for your help!! Omg I’m so relieved to have direction. I’ve been so worried about what to do. Thank you for avocado tip! This is a photo from a week ago. I switched to lettuce and strawberries but I haven’t read the post yet. I’ll make sure to follow it. I have attached her cage. She can’t climb out but I do have a lid. Should I poke holes in it? The wall is very securely blocked off. I vacuumed and picked up wires from the floor and let her run around my apartment for a few hours while I worked. She was so happy and clicking. Please give me advice on the cage! I’ve attached a photo I think. Her fluff is 6” deep.

I haven’t tried the play pen. When I look them up they are all mesh where she can climb up. Can you recommend one? I’m sure it’s on the site.

Also I can’t figure out how to change my user name. I didn’t think about it being visible.

Thank you!!

The cage looks pretty good but I would add more bedding if posible and some more clutter. Hamsters are prey animals so they don’t like being in the open. Also definitely get a lid!! You can watch a video on how to do it with mesh and zip ties, I think Victoria Rachel has a video on it. I would feed fruits in moderation just because they are high in sugar! Good luck, we are here if you need anything

[ejz]

Thank you Sadie! I can do that! What kind of clutter do you suggest. Like extra vases I have? Or more toys?

[Sadie]

Maybe you could add another substrate dish like coco fibre? Or add a cork log to give it a natural look? Tunnels are always a good way to go!

[Kikya]

Hello! I recently rescued a teddy bear hamster from a family who didn’t play with her. I had hámsters as a kid but now am in my late thirties. I googled the best cages and all basic info. I got her a 50 gallon clear bin from Home Depot. She has little platforms, tunnels, sand box. I give her treats and fruit and even avocado. But she’s always trying to get out. I left town for work and she was able to climb over her water bottle and escape. I came back and found her in a little opening in my wall. She came out but ever since she found the wall that’s all she wants to go to. It kills me to just see her scratch at the bin and panic on how to escape to the wall. So I thought okay, let’s try it. We had a talk about how dangerous it could be. But in the end we had a little routine where she would live in the wall then come out at night to eat treats and drink water. She clicks when we I pick her up and snuggle with her. We did this for a week. My sister said I was being manipulated and how hurt she could get in the wall. But we did it for a week and she came back every night to say hi and roam the apartment. But I couldn’t take worrying about her so I put her back in her cage. I blocked the hole to the wall, elevated all my wires and let her run around the rest of the apartment. But again its not good enough! She goes right to the hole in the wall and spends her time trying to get in. I feel like they are natural roamers and want to give her last year or two everything she wants to make her happy. If you made it this far, thank you! My question is, do I just let her do her thing and go between the wall and the rest of the apt? Or will she eventually stop trying to get in there? Thank you for your advice!

Hello and welcome to the Clubhouse!

You've gotten a fair bit of good advice but I also have had my share of insatiable female Syrians. Hamster proofing a room is a good idea but definitely don't let her get into the wall. She could fall into a space, she can't climb out of and you won't be able to help her get out of.

If you need a lid for your bin cage, here is a guide on creating one.
viewtopic.php?t=273

Honestly, no matter how big the cage, she will want to roam. Just making her an area where she can safely to do it is key. They will settled down some as she gets older but it's in their nature to roam all over. I would usually do an hour or two of free roam time for my girls and then put them back in their cage with boredom breakers, like a partially cracked walnut or some cardboard toys, they have to dig into to get treats. Also, I find rearrange their cage frequently to a different layout helps too. For one of my females, it was about every month. I would clean her burrow at the same time and change everything around and she'd go to town making new tunnels and moving things around.