Whether or not you’re new to the world of hamsters otherwise you’re searching for some inspiration for upgrading your hamster cage, we deliver you a whole information on how one can arrange your hamster’s cage to make it snug and enriching in your pet.
A well-set-up hamster cage ought to encourage your pet to maneuver round, discover, dig, forage and be lively to make use of up their power. A cage that doesn’t present numerous enrichment will trigger your hamster to be bored and burdened, resulting in damaging behaviors similar to cage biting and frantically attempting to flee.
Though it’s simpler to simply pop up your pet in a tiny cage with a small wheel and a home, this is able to make your pet depressing. Hamsters are extraordinarily lively animals that spend all night time working round and trying to find meals within the wild. They run as much as 6 miles per day, so being cooped up in a tiny cage doesn’t present them with sufficient area and enrichment to occupy themselves.
Right here’s how one can do a correct hamster cage setup, beginning with getting an acceptable cage.
A Appropriate Cage
Very first thing first, to have the ability to arrange a hamster cage correctly, you should have a big sufficient cage. Sadly, these small hamster cages that may be bought in a pet store gained’t work as they’re smaller than the advisable minimal. These cages additionally don’t have sufficient room to suit all of the equipment {that a} well-set-up hamster cage wants, similar to deep bedding, a big wheel, a sand tub and different necessities.
A hamster cage ought to be at least 640 sq. inches. Your choices are shopping for a ready-made cage of that dimension or greater, utilizing a specious aquarium or making a DIY cage out of a plastic bin or IKEA closet similar to Detolf. I wrote an in depth information on the perfect hamster cages right here so you may see your choices in case your present cage isn’t large enough.
Secure & Deep Bedding
You could have a large enough cage, and also you’re prepared to begin setting it up and making it snug in your furry potato. The very first thing you’ll want is bedding (substrate).
Hamsters are burrowing animals, so that they want a deep layer of bedding to dig and create underground tunnels to relax in. They sleep of their burrow, away from all the hazards they suppose await them on the floor. With the ability to burrow is crucial for his or her well-being.
Sadly, it’s frequent for hamsters to be housed in cages with solely an inch or two of bedding with no choice to burrow. In these circumstances, house owners typically see their hamsters gnawing on the cage bars and surprise what the problem is. Hamsters get burdened when their wants usually are not met, they usually can’t specific their pure behaviors, so they begin biting the bars. Analysis has proven that hamsters residing in deeper bedding present considerably fewer indicators of stress, similar to cage biting.
How A lot Bedding to Use?
So let’s get to the specifics – how a lot bedding do hamsters want? The bedding depth depends upon the species of hamster you’ve gotten. There’s a giant distinction in dimension between dwarf species and a Syrian hamster, whereas a Chinese language hamster is someplace within the center.
- For dwarf species and Chinese language hamsters, the minimal quantity of bedding they want is 6 inches, though 10 inches is advisable – particularly for Chinese language hamsters, that are a bit bigger.
- Syrian hamsters want a minimum of 10 inches of bedding resulting from their dimension, however 12 inches is preferable.
Right here’s one other manner to have a look at it. Think about three hamsters positioned one over the opposite. May you bury them within the bedding? In that case, it ought to be deep sufficient. If not, add extra bedding till the highest imaginary hamster is roofed.
With our hamster bedding calculator, you may simply calculate how a lot bedding you should purchase in your cage, relying on the scale of your cage and the specified bedding depth.
What to Use as a Bedding?
Hamster house owners mostly use these two choices:
- Paper bedding
- Aspen shavings
Hemp bedding can be protected, though it’s not very efficient at holding burrows. You should use it to supply one other texture to stroll on, however greatest to stay with aspen or paper as the first bedding.
Maintain the next in thoughts when selecting which substrate to make use of in your hamster cage. The substrate ought to be:
- Non-scented
- Be capable of maintain burrows
- Non-toxic
Mixing totally different substrate sorts so as to add selection and totally different textures to work together with is all the time a good suggestion.
Nesting Materials
Along with the principle bedding (substrate), it’s vital to supply nesting materials that your hamster can use to construct their nest.
Sprinkle some mushy hay, similar to botanical or orchard, over their most important bedding so your hamster can use it to construct their nest.
One other good possibility for nesting materials is bathroom paper. Rip off a number of bathroom paper sheets and put them within the cage. Though bathroom paper isn’t very absorbent, it’s advantageous to make use of for nesting as hamsters don’t are likely to pee or poop of their nest.
Hidey Home
Subsequent on the setup checklist is a hidey home that your hamster can use to cover and really feel protected whereas up on the bottom. Most individuals go for a wood home as an alternative of plastic as hamsters can safely chew wooden.
You will get one with out the flooring, so you may simply scoop it up and clear the leftover meals or poop below it.
A Wheel
Hamsters spend quite a lot of their time working on the wheel, so it’s vital that the wheel they use is protected and might’t trigger any hurt.
When selecting a wheel in your hamster, hold this in thoughts:
- A wheel must be manufactured from stable materials – No metallic bars or mesh that may entice limbs or trigger harm to your hamster’s ft.
- A wheel must be large enough – A wheel that’s too small could cause again accidents in hamsters as a result of they’re all the time working with their backs curved. Listed here are the minimal wheel sizes for every hamster species:
- 8″ in diameter (20 cm) for dwarf species
- 10″ in diameter (25 cm) for Chinese language hamsters
- 11’’ in diameter (28 cm) for Syrian hamsters
Additionally, don’t use a flying saucer as their main wheel within the cage, as that one isn’t a very good substitute for an everyday upright wheel.
Sand Tub
Though hamsters are extraordinarily clear animals and don’t draw back from grooming themselves, a sand tub helps hold their pores and skin and fur good and glossy.
Hamsters ought to by no means be bathed in water because it’s pointless and too anxious. A sand tub works nice for eradicating the filth and oil that has amassed in your pet’s coat.
It’s straightforward so as to add a sand tub to your hamster’s cage. All you want is a shallow container large enough for the hamster to roll round in crammed with hamster-safe sand.
What’s hamster-safe sand? Listed here are the choices:
- Reptile sand – pure shade, with no added minerals or calcium (similar to Reptisand)
- Chinchilla bathing sand
- Youngsters’s play sand – warmth handled. If it’s not warmth handled, it ought to be sanitized by baking it within the oven for 20 min at 350°F (180°C). It’s additionally advisable to sift it by way of a sifter to take away the bigger chunks that would irritate your hamster’s pores and skin.
What sort of sand to keep away from:
- something labeled as “mud” or “powder” as these are too advantageous and might trigger respiratory an infection
- scented sand
- clay-based sand
- coloured sand
- sand with added minerals or calcium
You may discover that your hamster makes use of a sand tub as their bathroom, however this may make spot cleansing that a lot simpler. In the event you’d choose to maintain the sand tub clear, you may present two sand baths in numerous components of the cage. That manner, in case your hamster does resolve to pee and poo in a single, it’ll hold the opposite for bathing.
Meals & Water Equipment
Whereas it’s greatest to scatter feed your hamster to encourage foraging and motion across the cage, a meals bowl can nonetheless be useful to place recent meals in in order that it doesn’t get misplaced within the bedding and spoil.
For water, you should utilize both a water bowl or a bottle. Some individuals suppose utilizing a bowl is unsafe as hamsters can drown, however the bowls we use for water are so small there’s no manner a hamster can drown in them. So whether or not you’ll use a water bottle or a small water bowl is as much as you – each are utterly protected.
In the event you’re utilizing a water bottle, do common inspections to examine if it’s working correctly. Bottles can get caught, and being with out water for just a few days will be detrimental to your pet’s well being.
Cage Equipment
Now that we’ve added the important cage provides, it’s time to make the cage much more enjoyable and enriching by including totally different equipment starting from bridges and cork logs to tunnels and chew toys.
It may be exhausting to maintain your pet entertained as they all the time appear to have limitless power, however these equipment ought to assist hold them occupied.
Listed here are some accent concepts for the cage.
Cage furnishings:
- Cork logs
- Hideouts
- Picket bridges
- Picket ladders
- Tunnels
- Platforms
Chewables:
- Chew toys
- Herbs and foraging crops
- Branches – in the event you use branches collected outdoors, be sure that the wooden is protected for hamsters. The branches must also be cleaned and dried to kill bugs or parasites earlier than use. Keep away from branches and twigs you discover close to closely used roads or which may have been sprayed with chemical substances.
- Cardboard tubes
- Willow balls
Nesting materials:
- Tender hay, similar to orchard or botanical hay – sprinkle hay throughout their cage as hamsters use it to construct their nest and nibble on it.
- Bathroom paper sheets and paper napkins – hamsters love utilizing them for his or her nest.
Different equipment:
- Rocks to file nails – if you wish to use a rock that you simply discovered outdoors, give it a very good scrub with sizzling water and cleaning soap earlier than placing it within the cage.
Dangerous Hamster Cage Setups: What To not Do
Now that we coated the whole lot a hamster cage must should hold it’s resident completely happy and cozy, let’s go over some examples of dangerous hamster cage setups. The next gallery is exhibiting some fairly horrible setups which can be, sadly, nonetheless typically seen amongst hamster house owners.
Among the most typical errors are:
- a cage that’s manner too small
- not sufficient bedding (normally solely an inch or two of bedding)
- a kind of bedding that’s not appropriate or doesn’t permit burrowing
- a too small wheel
- not sufficient enrichment to present hamster one thing to do
Let’s take a look at some examples on what to not do when establishing a hamster cage.
How Usually to Change Hamster Cage Setup
Hamsters get bored simply, so you may change issues round occasionally when doing a whole cage cleanout. When doing a deep clear, bear in mind to all the time hold a minimum of ¼ of their previous bedding to reuse within the cage. This retains the hamster’s house smelling acquainted to them and stops them from getting burdened.
In the event you’re utilizing the advisable minimal cage dimension of 620 sq. inches, the cage ought to be good for a month earlier than it must be utterly cleaned. That’s if the cage is usually spot cleaned to take away any dirty bedding. You’ll be able to take that chance to make a cage overhaul, change issues up, and add some new enjoyable equipment.
Why a Good Cage Setup Is Important for Your Pet’s Properly-being
Cage setup is the one factor that may take advantage of important distinction in your pet’s high quality of life. Do not forget that your hamster’s cage is their entire world. They spend nearly the whole day in it, so it must be set as much as fulfill their wants and permit them to precise their pure behaviors. It ought to be capable to mimic their pure habitat and supply them with comparable enrichment that they’d get within the wild.
Attempt to see issues out of your pet’s perspective when establishing their cage, have their pure habitats and behaviors in thoughts so you may present a glimpse of that of their cage.