How long till i can hand feed and pick up my hamster?

Question

i`ve Had my hamster for 4 days.i left her to settle on day1.on day 2

she bit me.on day 3 she accepted my hand in the cage. and she is sleeping now.she is a little scared of people and i`m a little scared of her biting me can anyone give me a walk-though of what to do. she also sleeps a lot in the day and night. when she wakes up should i try hand-feeding her.first time owner.

Answer 1

My hamster did the same thing and it left me really nervous.

What i did was put my hamster in its ball for a run (she would climb into her ball herself) and about 15mins later i went into the bathroom and i shut the door and put a towel at the bottom of the door, (so she couldn't escape if she tried) then i took the top off the ball and let her come out and wonder around on my lap while stroking her gently. Then i let her go back into her ball herself.

The next day i did the exact same thing but i gave her a treat while she wondered about on my lap (i gave her a treat by placing it in the tip of my fingers because i chickened out putting it in the middle of my hand) again she went back into the ball herself.

The day after she came onto my lap again and this time i placed my hand flat and she ate a treat straight from my hand and i was rather pleased with myself for not being scared. She again wondered back into the ball herself.

Then the next day everything came together, one of my friends told me to rub my hands in wood shavings (so they didn't smell of anything she could mistake for food) so i thought i'd try this. When my hamster was on my lap i picked her up and place her on my hand where she was rather confused at first but then realised she could walk from on to the other. I did this for about 2 days so she got used to being handled and now she will let me pick her up whenever and never bites.

Hope this very long answers helps.

Answer 2

She has to get used to your smell.  If she tries to bite you when you hold her, wear thick gloves such as ski gloves.

She will soon learn that biting has no effect, and will stop.

It's usual to give them 3/4 days to settle down so you should be fine now.  Try giving her treats such as yoghurt/chocolate drops through the bars so she knows that you will reward her for being friendly.

She will be more active at night, so try to tame her then.  Do not try to wake her up, she will get very grouchy and will most likely attack you.

It won't take long for her to get to know your voice and smell and should soon become friendly and easy to handle.

Good luck and have fun!

Answer 3

let her run around in an exercise ball, then let her out on the bed to run around.  Sometimes it takes awhile for them to adjust.