Looking after your new Hamster

So Mum and Dad are letting you get a hamster? Lucky you!

Hamsters can be great fun and are very easy to keep providing you care for them properly. Once you have tamed your hamster, there is nothing in the world he will prefer more than to be petted and given lots of attention.

How do you choose the right hamster?

Before you get your first hamster, it is important to find out as much as you can about them from books, friends, breeders or your vet.

You can get your hamster from breeders or good pet shops.

As hamsters only live for about two years, you should buy one when he is young, between five to eight weeks old.

Choose a hamster that looks friendly, lively and healthy.

When a hamster is very young it can be difficult to tell whether it is male or female, so if you are getting more than one, make sure they are the same sex unless you want lots of little babies.

Preparing for the arrival of your hamster

Get everything ready in advance of collecting your new hamster. Remember if he is very young, he will find everything very strange from the minute he leaves his mother and home. He will be lonely and will miss his mother, brothers and sisters. You will need the following items to make it easier for him to settle in:

Cage

Wood shavings to line the floor

Paper bedding

Earthenware dish

Water bottle

Hamster mix

Hamster toys

Arrival of your hamster

The day has come to collect your hamster! If your hamster arrives in a box, open it carefully. He will probably have burrowed down into the bedding, so please be careful not to give him a fright just in case he gives you a nip.

As soon as he is home, put him in his cage and leave him in peace for a couple of days to settle in. By all means, speak to him quietly when you are feeding him, but on the whole, he needs time to explore the cage, deciding where to have his nest, toilet and food storage area. A heavy earthenware dish is ideal for his feed as he will not be able to knock it over easily or indeed chew it! A water bottle is the best way to make sure that his water stays clean and fresh all day. Please remember to change the water every day. Many cages have hamster wheels already fitted, but if not, please make sure you get one as it provides an excellent way for him to exercise.

Hamsters normally sleep during the day and come to life at night, so it is best to feed them in the evening. Never poke a sleeping hamster or it may result in you getting bitten!

Choose a name for your hamster, for he will soon learn it and respond to it!

Making friends with your hamster

It may take a while for him to get used to being handled. Once he has settled in, it is best to start stroking him in his cage and talking to him gently so that he becomes used to you and your voice. Your pet will soon become tame and affectionate if you handle him often but it is important to do this properly. Always handle him when you are sitting down so that if he tries to jump he will not fall too far and hurt himself. Have him facing you and scoop him up using both hands. Let him walk from one hand to the other and, should he try to jump never squeeze him tightly.

Some hamster talk

Teeth Chattering This means your hamster is annoyed and he should be left alone as handling him could result in you getting bitten.

Standing and staring If he stands on his hind legs and stares, something has caught his attention and he is listening keenly. Hamsters’ hearing is excellent and they can hear sounds that we humans

cannot.

Gnawing Hamsters’ teeth grow continuously so they must gnaw on apple wood, hard biscuits or the bars of the cage to stop them from

overgrowing.

Side rubbing Hamsters will sometimes rub their sides against areas of their cage in order to mark their territory.

Digging It is natural for hamsters to dig and if you can give them a box filled with sand, he will love you to bits!

As you can see from the above, owning a hamster involves responsibilities as well as pleasures but if you follow this advice you will have a well-behaved, contented hamster that is a joy to own and who will repay the time and effort you have made many times over.

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