# So I'm a hamster mom now...



## xoxofreak5000 (Jun 26, 2013)

​Meet George! (Formerly Mickey, but I changed his name because Mickey Mouse sort of freaks me out).

He's only about 2 months old and he came from a breeder, so I'm optimistic about his health and his temperment is great. He's very gentle and friendly for a hamster. Not to mention probably the cutest little hamster I've ever seen. George is a rescue from a friend who suddenly became pregnant and can't take her allergy meds anymore.

Does anyone know of any good references for Syrian hamster care? I've done a few google searches, but if anyone knows of a decent forum or care guide I'd be really grateful! Mostly I'm concerned about common health problems in Syrians and maybe some guides on ideal cage setup - he's got a ten gallon with a wire cage topper and plastic levels, but I'm sure there are some things I could do to make his home a bit more hamster-friendly. I've never kept hamsters before!

My rats are actually responding pretty well to him, but they've been extra clingy today - either because of the smell or because they couldn't free range for very long yesterday because I was babysitting.


----------



## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

For a cage a starter "rat" cage is usually good. From the picture he doesn't look like a Syrian hammy but I can't really tell. The oxbow hamster food is really good and they appreciate fruits and veggies as well. Also from my experience with hamsters they don't like to be woken up and they will stare at you with a REALLY face . The times my hammy was most active was from 8pm till 6-7 am. Anyway congrats on your new pet!!!


----------



## xoxofreak5000 (Jun 26, 2013)

Thanks for your reply!

He's definitely a Syrian, since the breeder only deals in that type of hamster, he's just very young so his proportions are all out of whack at the moment. His ears are pretty huge for his head right now, which is adorable but unfortunately temporary.

I do have a starter rat cage on hand, but that'll be filled with babies within a few months and my experience with gerbils says that a wire cage would be a huge mess for tunneling rodents. I might decide to move him into a 20 gal. tank that I had kept my gerbils in before, but I'm not sure if hamsters would actually appreciate some wires for climbing. I'll do more research on that front.

The nocturnal thing is something I'll need to get used to, since my gerbils would mostly sleep through the night with a few exceptions, as have my rats. Lucky for George I take morning and afternoon classes at college and I'll be working weekends so I won't be tempted to bug him while he sleeps! He's quite photogenic so I'm hoping to get some of those grouchy faces on camera for posterity.


----------



## FallDeere (Sep 29, 2011)

Definitely a young syrian.  He's a cutie! Congrats on your new pet. I hope you'll post lots more pictures as time goes on. ^_^

As far as care guides, I don't really know of any, but I do know a youtuber who gives a lot of good hamster info. Erin's Animals, I believe. She also may have some care guides to recommend if you watch her videos. I know she is always talking about a forum with good info.

Best of luck with your new baby. <3


----------



## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

Aww what a cutie. I've never seen a baby Syrian so sorry for the mix up. I hope you can give us some pics.


----------



## MomToRats (Dec 25, 2014)

what a cutie , I love teddy bear hamsters


----------



## maplexcutie22 (Nov 7, 2011)

I grew up having hamsters and currently have a little red eyed white boy named Hiccup. I keep my boy in a large sterilite bin with a rectangle cut out in the lid, and wire zip tied over it. I use carefresh bedding and always throw a handful of Timothy hay in with the new bedding since he likes nibbling it or nesting in it. He has an 8 inch wheel, large food dish, igloo, little 'hamster playground' to play on, half of a coconut, an edible log and a hanging bird toy. They plastic bin is super easy to clean, roomy, and cheap. 

He started out eating Oxbow but hated it. So I now mix Hazel hamster and oxbox together and he loves it. He gets fresh veggies, fruits, millet, eggs and cooked chicken occasionally.

He is very friendly, loves my dog (a boston terrier mix) and is very calm. When i first got him, as a baby, he would SCREAM if you even came near the cage, let alone try to hold him. He never tried biting though. That only lasted a week and now hes sweet as can be!


----------



## xoxofreak5000 (Jun 26, 2013)

Wow everybody, thanks for your help!

George is settling in pretty nicely and I've decided to let him stay in the 10 gal. with the wire cage topper since it allows for non-messy tunneling and also more ventilation - and more walking space than the 20 gal. would since there are ramps and levels in the wire cage topper. I have moved his cage around a bit and replaced his plastic house with some leftover wooden furniture from my gerbils that George seems to appreciate. He also has one of those plastic wheels(?) that looks sort of like a flying saucer and he seems to like that, but I let him run around in a plastic hamster ball whenever I can catch him awake - he doesn't usually wake up until 10 p.m.! So far I've not been able to find any non-seed mixes in my area so I might order some Oxbow offline. He's shaping up to be a very sweet and gentle pet but I definitely still have a lot to learn about him!

As I said George doesn't wake up until super late but I have managed to get one more (non-blurry) pic of his adorable face:


----------

