A new addition

[DancingBetta]

I adopted a dwarf hamster today! His name is Yoshi!

 

[syren]

Oh so tiny!!!!!

What is it like owning a hamster? I have never had one, only have kept lizards/snakes and fish.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

So cute! How many mammals do you have?

 

[DancingBetta]

@PheonixKingZ I have two hamsters. One is a Syrian named Pip and the other is little Yoshi. Over the years I have had many hamsters and guinea pigs.

 

[DancingBetta]

@syren it’s awesome! I have had so many hamsters over the years. While I’m at it, I’ll give you a few tips in case you get one!
1. For first hamsters I recommend Syrian hamsters. Also known as teddy bear hamsters. They have a sweet temperament and are the biggest hamsters.
2. Habitrail and Crittertrail cages are way too small! Hamsters need a minimum of 450 square inches of floor space! I make bin cages for mine.
3. Many products advertised for hamsters are actually bad for hamsters. Even hamster wheels! Syrians can’t have seven inch wheels like at the pet stores. That will severely injure their backs. And this is very important as hamsters run about 5-6 miles per night!
This website is very helpful if you want to learn more: http://hubbahubbahamstery.com/
So as long as you care for them properly, they are great pets! ?

 

[DancingBetta]

Also, while they are at pet stores, it’s better to get them from a humane breeder or adopt.

 

[syren]

@syren it’s awesome! I have had so many hamsters over the years. While I’m at it, I’ll give you a few tips in case you get one!
1. For first hamsters I recommend Syrian hamsters. Also known as teddy bear hamsters. They have a sweet temperament and are the biggest hamsters.
2. Habitrail and Crittertrail cages are way too small! Hamsters need a minimum of 450 square inches of floor space! I make bin cages for mine.
3. Many products advertised for hamsters are actually bad for hamsters. Even hamster wheels! Syrians can’t have seven inch wheels like at the pet stores. That will severely injure their backs. And this is very important as hamsters run about 5-6 miles per night!
This website is very helpful if you want to learn more: http://hubbahubbahamstery.com/
So as long as you care for them properly, they are great pets! ?

5 to 6 miles?! Jeesh! I never realized how much they actually run! And I never realized the hamster wheel conundrum, I will use that information in practice if we see any Syrian hamsters through our exotics department.

I'm not sure if I'd ever get one, I have a highly prey driven cat (mostly birds, not a lot of small mammals here in Oklahoma so he doesn't seem very interested in mice/squirrels.) But I don't trust him, he would eat my Betta if given the chance, I think. ? His name is Dude. (We call him Buddy more often than not.)

 

[Essjay]

My younger son had a hamster when he got his cat, a rescue aged somewhere between 5 and 7. The first night the cat was in the house, he opened the cage and ate the hamster. They found the rather bloody remains next morning. When our son and the cat lived with us for a few months in 2019, the cat caught rather a lot of voles in the garden despite being 18ish and having only one eye.

 

[syren]

My younger son had a hamster when he got his cat, a rescue aged somewhere between 5 and 7. The first night the cat was in the house, he opened the cage and ate the hamster. They found the rather bloody remains next morning. When our son and the cat lived with us for a few months in 2019, the cat caught rather a lot of voles in the garden despite being 18ish and having only one eye.

Cats are one of my favorite hunters out there, and I love to hear about seniors that are still great hunters. They’re so resilient and agile. He sounds like he was a pretty cool cat (despite the hamster portion poor little buddy!)
that’s exactly why I won’t get any cute and fuzzy critters, even though I want to. I just don’t trust him enough.
Here’s my little booger, his name is Dude. His foster brother’s name is Ham! (Ham is the tabby)