Any hamster owners out there?

Question

Ok, so im getting a hamster, but i dont know much about them, and i have a few questions:

1) How big does its cage need to be?

2) Do they need time out of the cage, or do they get exercise on the wheels in the cage?

3) How much do the hamsters cost?

4) How much does all the accesories such as bedding cost?

5) What are the basic rules of caring for a hamster,

Thanx for all your help, and i could also use some help with naming it!LOL!

Any suggestions would be great.

Answer 1

We have 3 hamsters in our family. All three have seperate cages and balls for them to run around.  There are alot of different cages to choose from and pretty much you just have to see which one you like. There are several different types of hamsters that you can choose from and the cost can range from 12.00 to 25.00. The cages can cost anywhere from 20.00 to 60.00. There are several pet stores that carry starter kits which is pretty much the best bet to get. Petco has a starter kit that has the cage, bedding, food, treats, food dish and water bottle for about 35.00. Hamsters are generally solitary animals, so it is best to only have one in a cage. They do like to spend time out of the cage either in a ball to run around or just hanging out with you. You want to make sure that they have food and water at all times and that you clean their cage when it is dirty. They also need to have something to chew on so that they can keep their teeth from overgrowing. My 6 year old has her own hamster and she takes him out of his cage to play all the time and he loves to just hang out with her.

Answer 2

1) The cage should have some room to run around and room for a wheel and maybe some other toys.  I used a 20 gallon aquarium when I had hamsters.

2) They seem to enjoy time out of the cage, just be careful that they don't get under the couch and other places where they'd be hard to get out

3) Hamsters are probably $5-$20 depending on where you are and the type of hamster

4) I would estimate the accessories would be slightly $100 over the lifetime of the hamster.  

5) You need to feed them daily as well as changing the water.  Approximately every week to ten days(whenever it starts to smell) you need to change the bedding.

  Also while they are young, try to handle them a lot because they will then be friendlier and less likely to bite when older.

Never tried but I would think that a hamster would get along with rabbits well.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

1.The bigger the better, just keep in mind, they need a water bottle food dish and wheel,  and they need plenty of room on top of those items to roam.

2.They do get exercise inside of their cage, but you should hold them and handle them every day so they are tamed. You can also buy a ball for them so they can get exercise while exploring.

3.the actual hamster costs 5 to 15 $.

4.In total when you buy the cage and bedding food, etc, expect anywhere from 60 to 110 $( depending on how much you spend on the cage

5.~Change the water  every 1- 2 days

~Aspen bedding is best- all the others, like pine and cedar have harmful fumes. Carefresh(I have heard) is good, but it is man made so I think it may have chemicals.

~change the bedding every 5 to 8 days. If you change the bedding too often your hamster can get stressed.

~The more you handle them the better

~When getting food, try to get a good food mix, with lot's of variety.

~For the first day or two leave you hammy alone so it can get settled in.

~A name may come to you as soon as you see him/her

~hamsters teeth are always growing, so they need to have something to gnaw on, like gnawing logs or wooden blocks, but only use the wooden blocks from the pet store. They prefere flavoured treats for chewing, you can buy them at most pet stores.

~hamsters do better when they are alone, you  could have both, but not in the same cage.

~never bathe a hamster, they can get stressed out, and this could cause an illness called wettail.

Answer 4

1) If you go to a pet store (petsmart, petco) all the cages they have there for hamsters are ok to use (dont get the rabbit or rat ones, the bars are too far apart and the hamster may try to squeeze through), they usually cost around 20-30 dollars.

2) Make sure you get a wheel for inside the cage and also an exercise ball for outside the cage, you can let them run around in the ball for 30 min or so a day if you'd like, especially if it seems they dont use the wheel much.

3) Hamsters usually cost 5-20 dollars

4) You'll probably need at least 40 dollars for accesories. Bedding, Wheel, Water Bottle, Food Dish, House (unless those come with the cage) Food, Treats, Exercise Ball.

5) Hamsters live alone (unless they are dwarf then they can live with another), try not to wake them up, it startles them and they may bite. Clean their cage ever other week or so (in the evening when they are awake, just put them in the exercise ball) cause it only takes about 20 min or so to clean. Dont give them weird treats unless you know its ok (like citrus fruits are bad, most veggies are ok, but must be fresh). Make sure they have water and food at all times and things to chew, and ways to exercise.

My hamster's name was Hemi.

Good Luck

Answer 5

1) cages should be about/at least a foot high, 1 1/2 feet wide, and 3/4 of a foot in depth.

2) & 5) they do exercise on their wheel, but they need time out of their cage because they need to explore and play in other ways. not taking them out is like you being stuck in ur room ur whole life.dont play w/ him/her for the first week just change his food/water and leave him alone(this is because he needs time to get used to his new home. after the 3rd day though u can talk to him and try to pet him but dont pick him up. preferable do this in the evening cuz hammies r nocturnal. after a week open his/her cage and put ur hands there, let him come to u. if hedoesn'tt just wait and pet him instead (dont grab him).after 2 weeks u can gently pick him up and play for a mintute by letting crawl around in ur hands then put him back and increase the time everyday. after 3 weeks u can get a plastic box(large) and fill it w/ bedding, and put hamster toys, put him in and let him play. after a month let him run in a hamster ball(not too long otherwise it can hurt his/her back)

3) & 4) about 20+ for cage, 10+ for hamster, 35+ for food (yearly), 40+ for bedding (yearly), 30+ for toys(yearly), 20+ other (yearly)

5) change water/food everyday. clean cage every week( this can be done by taking apart the cage,scrubbing it, and changing the bedding.)

bathe hammy every 2 weeks (this can be done by filling a container w/ water up to the hammies stomach and putting a couple drops of shampoo on fur and gently scurbing (like a masage) and rinsing. dont wash near/ on face. dry w/ towel and put in cleaned cage.u can use conditioner too to make fur softer) play w/ hammy. dont leave alone for more than 2 days. if runs away he wait till night and look w/ the least amount of noise. put food out incase u dont find hiim and put a ladder to his cage door. leav toys out and c if he cums to the(works w/ my hammy).

names- cherry, shadow, chedder, kiwi, look for more on google

Answer 6

1) Cage has to be big enough so you can put a little house, some tubes, a food ball and still have room for your hamster to run around.

2) They exercise on the wheels in the cage, but taking them out and letting them run in a hamster ball is good as well. But remember to never take the hamster outside.

3) Hamsters cost about $15-$25

4) Bedding is about $20 for a big bag. Food is about $10 for a medium size bag that can last for about a month. Wheels, food bowls, and water bottles are usually included with the cage.

5) Basic rules: change bedding about once a week, feed them around the same time everyday (usually evening or dawn), they like fresh food, so when filling their food bowl, don't fill it to the top (about halfway

can do) because you need to replace their food everyday

To tame/handle the hamster, first rub your hands in bedding so you have a more natural scent that the hamster recognizes. Approach the hamster slowly and lay your hand on the floor of the cage. Do this every day until your hamster learns to crawl on your hand every time you put it in it's cage. Also offer it food as a treat when it does crawl on your hand.

Names (of some of my hamsters) : Hammy (duh), Mouse (not so duh), Ruffurd, Hamtaro (duh), Kiwi, Fezzy

And I don't think a hamster and a rabbit will get along. Hamsters don't even get along with their own kind

Answer 7

Hamster cages need to be about the size of a 10gal fish tank. They would get use to you better and they tend to like it more outside the cage,Hamsters can cost anywere between 12-20 dollars. you would need a house=$6,bedding=$4-8,wheel=$5,water bottle=$3,toys are always optional you could also use toilet paper rolls.The main rules are 1.DO NOT DROP YOUR HAMSTER IF YOU CAN HELP IT.2If your hamster bites it is usually because It felt threatend3.after you hold your hamster wash your hands4.love your hamster :)

the most popular name is hammy

and no the rabbit would eat the hamster it is NOT safe for it

Hope this helps :) Kory