Should i expand my hamster's home?

Question

so right now my male syrian hamster lives in the crittertrailx:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754670

i want to get him the crittertrail2:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754667

i would take out the wheel(becasue theres one in his other cage)and replace it with this:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754668

is this a good idea?

i want to connect the two cages so he would have more room to run around and play. He would have access to both cages at all times. Do you think this is a good idea? I really dont care about the cleaing, i just want my hammy to be happy :)

but im worried because he like jumping down off the slide on the crittertrailx, and im afraid he'll do that on the crittertrail2 and get hurt becasue its higher up.

helppp :)

Answer 1

A Syrian hamster?  If it's anything other than a dwarf:

I'm sorry, but critter trail cages aren't big enough for them.  They grow too big and eventually, he could get stuck in the tube.  That happened to one of my hamsters.  Luckily I was around when it happened to take him out, but that sort of thing could kill a hamster in moments if he's caught upside down.

I would recommend getting him a glass aquarium.  Online, I've seen you can order cage extensions that replace the lid of the cage and they're pretty cool if I do say so myself.  

You never really can go too big with cages..  Well, I guess you can go overboard, but I don't think that'll ever harm a hamster.  ;)

If you don't want a glass aquarium, try a wire cage.  Those are also easy to clean and fairly roomy if you buy the right model.  (:

Answer 2

The one story crittertrails are really meant for dwarf hamsters, syrians should definately have more room than this. He won't get hurt jumping.

Answer 3

well, tubes are usually too small for grown syrinians, but if yours is OK, its a good idea i guess... the wheel in the crittertrail X is probaby too small... the hamster should take up LESS THAN half of the wheel when stretched out and running, the bigger the less chance of injury.  also, the water bottles in the crittertrails are c**p. cut off the bottle about1cm or half an inch from the bulge and cap-off the hole where it goes and get a regular hang on the side bottle... the ones the cages come with hurt the hammys neck to reach and are hard to clean, resulting in bacteria growth. they also tend to leak ....

also, about the jumping , give him a 2 inch layer of a soft bdding such as CAREFRESH=] my old hammie used to hang on the top of its cage and drop from there o.0

Answer 4

Expanding your hamster's home is never bad. A bigger home takes a little longer to acclimate into, so you should leave your hamster in there for at least 4 days.

At least you're not interested in the CritterTrail 3. I am also interested in getting the CritterTrail 2 for my hamster, as I've already sketched out Mocha's cage setup for his next version!

Do keep in mind that changing the hamster's environment completely will be very stressful. Make sure to keep the same toys, the ones that your hamster loved the most in the previous cage.

It can never hurt.

Answer 5

Yes i have the second cage and it is GREAT