Hamster what do i need

He might not like being held like this, so expect a bit of squirming. Expect lots of squirming if the hamster does have a serious infection, since it will possibly hurt him a bit. In this case, take your hamster to the veterinarian. He will prescribe a round of antibiotics that are safe for small animals.

He will tell you how to administer the medication to your hamster. Usually the veterinarians that have experience with rodents are labeled as exotic, meaning that they will also know what to do with unusual pets if the case arises. Misshapen or broken hamster teeth There are some unfortunate hamsters who are born with misshapen teeth. They are misaligned since birth, but they can sometimes be corrected.

You can notice this at the pet store by looking closely at the hamster for any mouth problems. You will also be able to notice this when the hamster tries to drink a bit of water. Just use the scruffing method and check the teeth. There should be no gaps, or odd angles or crossed teeth. If there are such problems, take your hamster to a veterinarian. Breaking teeth are a sign of malnutrition, or poor health, old age, or a possible illness.

It depends on each hamster, and his own medical history. Broken teeth are particularly dangerous, since the hamster can cut himself on them. Helping your hamster with bad teeth For any hamster with bad teeth, the diet is important. But the food he eats has a direct and large impact on his health. You can take care of this by giving your hamster friend a healthy food mix, to make sure he has all the basic nutrients already in his food bowl. This particular mix has all the nutrients your hamster needs, including the harder, sturdier grains hamsters need to chew on in order to file down their teeth.

The whole bag will last you a couple of months or more, depending on how much you feed your hammy. You can check the listing on Amazon here, and read the reviews as well. Aside from the healthy food mix, you can give your hamster from your own pantry or fridge. A large amount of the foods we humans eat are also safe for hamsters, so you should check out this article on what foods are okay and not okay for hamsters to eat.

Just remember, fruits and high-fat foods should be kept to a minimum, since they can lead to an obese hamster. And always, always, make sure your hamster has something wood-based to chew onto. A word from Teddy I hope you found out how to care for your teeth in this article. I know us hammies can get a bit overzealous with our chewing and biting, but we do have dental problems from time to time. So if you want to know more about us hammies, you can check out the articles below for valuable info on how to care for us Four Reasons Your Hamster is Making Weird Breathing Noises Hamsters may be bite-sized but, thanks to their upkeep demands, they are more than a handful.

Taking care of the little furballs is almost a full-time job sometimes. Doing everything correctly might not even be enough though, and a myriad of strange things can pop up seemingly out of nowhere. Today we take a deep-dive into one of these problems: strange breathing noises. We explore some of the frequent problems and hamster quirks that may result in little Penfold producing unusual and worrying sounds.

Coughs and colds2. Respiratory infection and allergies3. Behavioral 1. Coughs and colds If your little pet suddenly wakes up one morning with ghastly sounding wheezes, sneezes, and generally labored breathing, he may be reeling from a case of the sniffles. Of course, it may be more serious so we always recommend a quick visit to a veterinarian…just to be sure.

Maybe you left the window by his or her cage open a touch too long the previous day. Yes, hamsters can just as easily catch colds as we can, and from people or other pets. Coughs are usually innocuous and of little consequence. They come and go as randomly as they do with humans. Any longer than that though, and it could be a hint at something a bit more serious.

You can identify a cold in your hamster by listening to its breathing, and observing its nose for excess wetness. What you want to do in this scenario is to isolate the hamster from any other pets you have. This could save you from the inconvenience of caring for more animals. Try to keep the hamster warm and make it feels safe with soothing talk. The majority of hamster species originate from tropical to desert climes, which means that they are not big fans of the cold.

Nudge it to eat something break it down yourself when you need to and make sure to consistently hydrate. We recommend that you use a water dropper to help your hamster keep its fluids up.

If you have transferred the hamster to a temporary cage, you should clean his or her regular cage thoroughly to disinfect it. Don a trusty pair of latex gloves and get to work. Change the bedding, get rid of all waste, and scrub the cage vigorously.

Use a bleach-based solution approximately one part bleach, nine parts water to do this. Take care to rinse the cage properly so as not to expose the hamster to harmful fumes. Respiratory infection and allergies Hamsters can easily fall victim to a myriad of respiratory diseases such as pneumonia, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema. These frequently present themselves through symptoms like heavy breathing, wheezing, and clicking noises. Sneezing is another symptom to look out for with these illnesses.

Allergies are not uncommon for hamsters either, and susceptible individuals can have their reactions triggered by almost anything. While a mildly drafty room might not seem like a big deal for you, it is a serious hazard for your little rodent friend.

As stated above, hamsters need relatively warm temperatures for them to be comfortable. Prolonged exposure to a draft, combined with the inability to burrow underground for warmth because of being in a cage , results in an increased risk of serious pneumonia. Your hamster will literally be clawing for each and every breath, with raspy wheezes. At this point, you will be in a race against time.

Your best bet is to rush to the vet but that might not be enough. Chronic bronchitis is an illness that is usually associated with smokers. I know times can get stressful for anybody but I highly doubt that your little hamster is lighting up under the cover of darkness. Yet hamsters can get lung disease, resulting in irritating coughs and wheezy breathing. Causes are unclear, but it may be an allergic reaction or simply a genetic defect. Captive hamsters have been subjected to inbreeding for generations.

As pet merchants sought to make hamsters as cute and docile as possible, a wide range of genetic problems including propensity towards respiratory diseases was passed on and on.

A National Institute of Health NIH study even used hamsters as models for the effects of emphysema and chronic bronchitis in people. Once again, genetic problems are the likeliest cause of most cases.

If your hamster has a lineage that traces back to areas exposed to alpha radiation such as uranium or halogen mining towns , it might be at risk of developing lung cancer at some point. This first develops as a series of tumors along the trachea and the bronchi. These cause the animal to cough and make unusual clicking noises.

Eventually, the lungs will gradually break down. Your vet will be your guide through this difficult period. Hibernation One day you might find your hamster face down and lying lifeless in his cage, just hours after you last saw him as his usually sprightly self at breakfast.

A dead giveaway no pun is the slight and soft breathing. Hibernation for domestic hamsters is a little different than for wild animals who also tuck in for the winter. The likelihood of a hamster hibernating depends on a few factors. Most hamsters have had that instinct erased from their genetic memories thanks to selective breeders who, doubtlessly, did not want the hassle of selling pets that sleep for a third of the year.

However, if yours is still in touch with its wild roots, so to speak, the drive to hibernate may still lie dormant. The second factor depends on the environment. Behavioral Some breathing noises that your hamster will make from time to time might seem strange, but, more often than not, these are just part of natural behavior displays. One common noise that might worry first-time hamster owners is the clicking noise. This sound is extremely sharp and incessant in some cases.

Hamsters usually make the clicking noise when they are frightened or in an aggressive mood. Who knew that hamsters can get tired of all the kisses and cuddles? Well, now you do. When your hamster just wants some alone time or is feeling angry or afraid, he will issue this incessant clicking as a warning for you to back off.

Sometimes your hamster will make squeaky sounds while it is asleep. This is also normal and no need for alarm. Like you and me, hamsters are capable of having engaging dreams that demand real-world re-enactment. Maybe he or she dreams about scurrying through the bushes with other little hamsters. Who knows? Some people talk in their sleep sometimes so is it crazy to imagine that some hamsters do the same? Hamsters are also known to snore, which is probably the cutest thing I can think of.

Snoring is more common in older hamsters but babies or pups are also known to do it, which is as precious as you can imagine Do Hamsters Cause Allergies? How Hamsters Affect Your Health If your allergies have flared up since you got your new hamster, this article might help. Table of Contents So do hamsters cause allergies? Yes, hamsters can cause allergies. Any animal with fur or hair will cause allergies to flare up in a person who is already allergic.

Not only are they not always immediately clear — like peanut or shellfish, for example — but they can annoyingly change over time. But, for the most part, people with allergies react to very fine foreign particles in the air. Those particles are usually pollen or dander.

You see, hamsters have skin like everyone else, and those skin cells eventually die off and get renewed. The dead skin needs to go somewhere. In humans, we wash it off. In furry animals, it stays in their fur for an amount of time. Sometimes it breaks into very very small little pieces. Not those white clumps, immediately noticeable. Once your hammy moves, those particles get released into the air.

Those are most cases. Like the smell of hamster pee. Or, another trigger can be the bedding on which your hamster lives. You might be allergic to whatever bedding the hamster has, when it is in fine particles. Most pets have the potential to cause an allergic reaction This can and does happen with every and all animals who have fur. Even those with no fur, actually. Because it has to do with the skin, not the fur. The fur acts as a trap for the dander.

But even a Sphinx cat — hairless cat — can cause allergies. But those with severe allergies can get reactions even from a hairless cat. This is because the dander — dead skin cells — still exist, everywhere the skin is. But there will still be some. No debris and flying skin anywhere with a snake or a lizard. Birds also have this amazing potential to cause allergies. Birds have a fine dusting on their feathers, to keep them waterproof and it happens to contain a bit of dandruff as well.

Or any other bird. Always had birds since I could remember. When those two birdies ruffle their feathers and preen themselves, a whole layer or dandruff settles on the surfaces around them. The biggest problem is the dandruff, and where and how it settles.

Do not handle the hamster. Most obvious one, and most painful one if you really love your hamster. Simply not handling him will get you as far away from his fur and dander as possible.

Regularly groom him. Never bathe a hamster, since that can be deadly for hamsters. But a light grooming with a soft comb would help get the dander off. This means twice per week.

Carry a shot of epinephrine, or adrenaline with you. If you get into anaphylactic shock, a shot will help. This is only temporary, and you need to get to the hospital straight away. Use an air purifier. This will trap most of the harmful particles in the air, and relieve most of your symptoms.

Visit a doctor to look for treatment options. Allergies come and go, and sometimes they even suddenly disappear. But you should still seek a professional for medical help. A word from Teddy I hope you found what you were looking for in this article.

I know us hamsters are very fluffy and cute, but we sometimes do cause allergies. How do I clean it right? Do I need to spot-clean every few days? In some cases it can be once ever two weeks. This is because several hamsters pee, poop, and leave bits of food in more numbers than just one hamster. And these are the activities that make a cage messy. So more hamsters in a cage equal more frequent cleaning. That means there will be lots of poop, food, and pee in the bedding.

This is easy to clean, since hamsters always choose one corner of the cage to pee in. Pooping can be done anywhere though. The pee corner will be the one farthest away from the nest. So simply removing the bedding from that corner will be enough to remove the smell.

There will be a white, dry spot under the bedding, which will not come off easy. It depends on whether your hamsters share a nest, or just the cage. It varies from hamster to hamster. Finding the pee corner is easy enough, though. Aside from that, droppings will be absolutely everywhere. In the nest, in the food bowl, under the water bottle, sometimes sticking to their fur rarely, but I saw that on Teddy a could of times and he took it off real quick. But they do look bad, and some people spot-clean them just to make the cage look better.

He never eats all of the food at once, but he makes this huge stash of food, just to be sure h always has enough. They might start to smell, so taking them out fast would be a good idea. I say this because there are some people who do it wrong, even if they have the best intentions. Those are all honest mistakes, and can be easily corrected. Leave the hamster a piece of his old bedding and nest. Do not rearrange the cage unless absolutely necessary.

Hamsters rely on smell and memory to navigate their cage, and are not keen on changes. Provide enough bedding, but keep it reasonable.

The hamster needs to be able to move about his cage. This varies from hamster to hamster. Digging hamsters need more bedding than runners, for example. Hamsters are very sensitive creatures. Chief among them being scent and cage layout. But they have a great sense of smell, and they rely on it heavily. Leaving them a handful of their old bedding, even with a few droppings, will make the place seem familiar. The nest should have as much of his old nest as possible, without being too dirty.

Giving him a completely new set of paper towel strips to use as a nest, without some of his old nest, is going to be hard on him. Also, changing the location of his hideout where he builds his nest is not okay.

This is especially true if you own a blind hamster. This is only recommended if you finish cleaning his cage in under half an hour. It should have a bit of bedding in it as well, a hideout and a few objects to keep him distracted. Baiting him with a bit of food in your hand works best. Set them aside and check which need to be scrubbed, if any of them do.

About the bedding, changing the whole thing once per week seems to be the best bet. There will be bits of poo, but not too many, and the cage will start to smell a little, but not bad enough to be noticed from across the room. We use a litter scoop to dig out the bedding and keep things sanitary. For example this one.

For a while we did it like that, and got bedding all over the floor, even when we tried to be careful. A scoop will just make life easier. You can check out the listing on Amazon here, and read the reviews as well. Sometimes it will need a complete rinse, sometimes it will be decent. Or, you can use a moist, clean towel to wipe down the cage and remove most of the dust.

Deep-cleaning in case of illness or too many stains Sometimes you need to deep-clean the cage. For example if the hamster is very ill, lives in a temporary quarantine in a different cage, and this one needs cleaning. You will need a hamster-safe disinfectant from your local vet. Use it as the bottle says, and make sure you scrub the affected ares very well. Whichever you use, make sure to rinse everything very very well. If you can still smell it, it will be way too much for the hamster.

If it needs a scrub with unscented soap, do that too. The bedding will stick to those parts and mold will have an easier time forming.

Food stains will come out too. There are some objects that become much too dirty and need to be completely replaced. Make sure to sprinkle bits of his old bedding all over the cage. If you hamster is a runner like my Teddy, this is enough bedding.

Place every object the way it was before you cleaned the cage. The hideout, the food bowl, the water, toys, everything.

Best to let him redecorate his home the way he always does. Make sure his food bowl is full, and his water bottle full as well. Place the hamster back into his home Putting the hamster back into his cage will be fairly easy. Once the hamster is safely in his cleaned cage, everything is done. Yes, if you think the cage gets a bit too smelly from time to time you can do this.

I said I have a trick I can tell you about, and I will right not. See, hamsters will always pee in the same corner. So placing a bowl or half of a plastic hideout in that corner, filled with chinchilla sand is going to act like a litter box.

The sand will clump up and you can remove the clumps when necessary. Or, you can throw out the sand altogether and replace it every few days. But it needs to be sand, not dust. Many chinchilla bath sands even if they say hamster sand or small rodent sand are great for hamsters, but there is a problem. As far as I could find online, none of the formulations are sandy, they are dusty, more like flour.

If you were to press the sand with the back of a spoon, it would keep its shape. This is not alright, since hamsters are very sensitive and inhaling that much dust can be lethal for them. So whichever brand of sand you use, make sure it is sand, and not dust. It can be more on the granulated side, it will work well.

Most of them are made of dried up sea shells and minerals, which is alright. Us hamsters are fairly easy to take care of, but we do need regular cleaning and we need your help with that. If you want to know more about us hamsters, you can check out the related articles below. Not only with an infection, but with any other eye problems as well. Read on to find out how to help your hamster when and if he develops eye problems. My Teddy Syrian male had a sticky eye a couple of times, but he survived just fine.

Or it could be from many other reasons. The point is that your hamster has an infection and needs your help. For the most part, an infection can be noticed if the eye is red, puffy, hot to the touch. The best thing to do is to bring your hamster to the vet as soon as possible, so he can prescribe a round of antibiotics. The treatment can last up to 2 weeks in some cases, and your hammy might be required to stay at the vet for a couple of days.

For future reference, the veterinarian you should look for is an exotics vet. This is the kind of vet that can help with your hamster, guinea pig, snake, and parakeet as well. The infection can be contagious, and hard to deal with if all hamsters have it. Saline solution is basically just distilled, salted water. If you use tap water, be sure to boil it very, very well and them let it cool to room temperature.

Heat the water either distilled, or sterilized tap water , and dissolve the salt and baking soda Let cool to room temperature Store in the clean glass jar or cup Get a clean cotton pad or cotton bud, and dip it in the liquid. It needs to be wet, but not soaked so you get the hamster wet. Use a clean pad or bud for each wipe!

You must keep the saline solution clean. The solution is good for 24 hours, tops. If anything gets into it, or it looks odd or cloudy or dirty, throw it out and make a new one. Hamsters are different than humans, and not only require different doses but they also process medicine differently than us.

Not only that, but it can get very frustrating for the hamster. He might try to paw at his eye and cause further damage. In this case the solution is a lot like with the infection. Make a batch of saline solution, and keep it at room temp. The difference is that the crust will have to soften. Again, scruffing the hamster will help keep him still while you wipe his eye. I used one of those sterilized baby wipes you can get at the pharmacy.

Not baby wipes from the supermarket! It can be less dangerous than the infection we talked about earlier. It can come about as an irritation because of dust in the bedding, a scratch, a small injury, an overgrown tooth.

Anything, really, since conjunctivitis is just the inflammation of the tissue surrounding the eye. In extreme cases the entire half of the face could be swollen. Most of the time the discharge is clear in conjunctivitis.

This is another case where you should separate the sick hamster from the other hamsters. The upside, if you will, is that hamsters barely use their eyes anyway. They use their sense of smell, and their sharp hearing to navigate and live a happy life.

However a cataract, as far as I know, is not treatable. It could be both eyes, it could be just one, and it could be a larger spot, or just cloudy, blurred eyes. In most cases, cataracts forms as the hamster ages. The eyeballs have tissue surrounding them, and especially behind them. This can become inflamed, and push out the eye a bit. It can be painful for the hamster, but is treatable. Your veterinarian will be able to give the hamster a treatment for this problem, but until then there is not much you can do for your friend.

In some cases it could be a tumor growing behind the eye, since hamsters can develop tumors as well. Not all bulging eye cases mean a tumor, do no worry. It could just be a severe case of conjunctivitis. Consider upgrading. Hello I have a question I let my hamster run around in the ball for a half hour it has its runner inside of his cage but it still seems super hyper what can I do to entertain it more he has the wood chewing toys and stuff I think I'm going to try the toilet paper roll but what else can I do.

My hamsters name is Nuttela and im still curious about saw dust, should I still use wooden shavings or should i get shredded tissues. If I should were do i get them from.

This article is very informative thanks poppy for emailing me back the answer I was worried about her. You all have to treat it with care and make sure it's used to all of you. DO NOT all go and try to play with it at once; it'll be really frightened if you do that. Anything made of wood the hamster can chew, tubes they can crawl and hide in, anything your pet store suggests :. Hamsters are a lot of responsibility.

I definitely think cleaning your room is a good start! Strong smells, whether it's dirty clothes or old food, can really upset a hamster. If you prove to your dad you can keep your room clean and are ready for the responsibility of taking care of a pet, he might get you one. Just remember you have to clean its cage every week and you need to give it fresh water and food every day. You also need to play with it and get it lots of toys to keep it happy and entertained. Small hamsters don't live as long but they also don't need such a large cage.

Syrians are bigger and very cute but they need more exercise and bigger cages. You also can't put more than one Syrian in the same cage. Sorry to hear that. Put some treats near her cage. Be very still and quiet and you might hear her rustling about. If she escaped her cage, buy a better one. When you take her out in the future, don't let her out of your sight. What a mischievous little girl. What a relief she never got hurt or squashed while she was out. Yes, you have to be careful with wet fruit and veg as it can cause diarrhea.

Thank you for the cute story. This is really informative! I never knew many of these things. I have a Guinea Pig named Ivy, and had hampsters as a kid but not as an adult. As a kid I just thought about feeding it and holding it, there is a lot more to it. You know your stuff! Your photos are adorable and your advice is sound. I haven't had hamsters in years. I had one in college who was a master at escaping her aquarium even though it had a metal top on it with "latches.

It befuddled me. She would always end up in my closet climbing my sweaters, peering at me sweetly. The exercise ball you referred to helped a lot. I'd often give her empty tissue boxes and oatmeal boxes in her aquarium as well as toilet paper rolls to keep her interested, plus hamster snacks, fruits and seeds.

I do recall having to limit the wetter fruits and vegetables because of the incidence of wet tail. Her name was Hannah Jayne. Hi there! Thanks for your article. Hopefully hamster owners will as well. This is a very informative article.

I learned a lot of about hamsters that I didn't know. Very cute pictures too. Thanks for sharing! Hi Louise! Thank you for commenting. Hamsters are super easy to take care of and such sweet little things. Before I got Zelda and Hemingway, I got an older hamster and he was actually free because he was already a year and a half old. I named him Shakespeare and he was the sweetest thing, really cute and affectionate. Had him for about seven months before he passed away.

They may be small but they are lovely little animals. I love hamsters. They are such cute little creatures. I used to have a hamster years ago. Had him quite a while too. I shall have to consider getting another one. Health Problems. Freshwater Pets.

Freshwater Aquariums. Saltwater Pets. Saltwater Aquariums. Exotic Pets. Guinea Pigs. Pet Ownership. Animal Welfare. Farm Animals as Pets. Welcome to PetHelpful. Related Articles. By Brett Winn.

By Barbara Fitzgerald. By justmesuzanne. By Darla Sue Dollman. By Tammy Winters. By Rock Artist. By Rachel Koski Nielsen. By Sandra Ivonne. By Holle Abee. Unfortunately, hamsters don't come with care instructions. While caring for a hamster isn't difficult, it does help to have at least a basic understanding of what you're getting into when you keep one as a pet. A hamster might seem like the perfect pet for a small child, but this is not the case.

They require careful, gentle handling, may bite, and don't generally feel safe in smaller hands. Always make sure that your hamster's chow, whether block or kibble, is served in a bowl or dish of some sort. Hamsters may ingest their bedding otherwise, and this may cause serious health issues. Hamsters don't like to eat leftovers. For optimum nutrition, keep you pet's feeding dish about three-quarters of the way full, and change her food out on a daily basis. Supplementing your hamster's regular food with small pieces of fresh fruits and vegetables is a great way to help your pet enjoy her food while getting balanced nutrition.

Make sure that fresh offerings do not exceed around twenty percent of her diet. Fruits and vegetables are not a complete a diet as hamster chow. Depending on the type of cage you keep your hamster in, you will want to spot-clean her bedding removing feces on a weekly basis, changing her entire bedding once per month. Hamsters groom themselves, and often do it more than once a day. There is no need to bathe, comb, or otherwise supplement your pet hamster's grooming practices.

It is a best practice to take a pet hamster to see your veterinarian once per year, regardless of her apparent health. Health concerns to watch out for include sores on her feet, blood in her urine, loss of appetite, loose stools, overgrown front teeth, bald patches in her fur, wheezing, and running nose.

Hamsters need daily exercise. If her cage is not equipped with a wheel for running, then consider getting her a hamster ball to run inside of.