Hamsters, Chinchillas, & Other Rodents Thread: incredibly efficient poop machines!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Hamsters, Chinchillas, & Other Rodents Thread: incredibly efficient poop machines!

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

To Rat FAQ people who come to this thread: Let's try not to discourage people from getting a piggie/hamster/gerbil/mice in favor of a rat if they express interest in them.

Edit: This is a loving awesome thread, because not I won't feel like my rodents are being neglected in PI.

My girls. Black is Zora, DEH is Aya.

When they were babies!

My manly hamster, Creampuff, or CP. He's SO FLUFFY. Also he lives in a manly pink cage. :3:

Morty, the grey one, is the survivor of this pair of dwarf hamsters, and is a grumpy butt.

Nereid fucked around with this message at 07:30 on Nov 17, 2009

# ¿ Nov 17, 2009 07:12

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 03:00

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

drat Bananas posted:

I've considered it, but am not real big on aquariums. I used them when I lived with my parents and could hose them down in the back yard, but living in an apartment limits (non-pain-in-rear end)washing to the bathtub. This cage comes apart so it's easier to clean for me. Also the ventilation is better, and has a lot of attachments and extra compartments for happy mouse climb-y fun times.

I was hoping for something like "oh mice hate xyz vegetable! rub that on the bars!" but alas. If they don't like something it's probably because it's not good for them, or why else wouldn't they eat it? :/

I'll keep looking for interesting chewables to distract her. Come to think of it she's never had a wood toy before. I just remember with my gerbils, anything wood soaks up pee and isn't really washable after that. We'll see.

Aquariums are probably the best bet. If you clean them fairly regularly they're not going to get as disgusting as would merit hosing down in the back yard.

# ¿ Dec 16, 2009 05:12

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Candida albicans posted:

You'll just need to figure how to set up the food and water in there. Easiest way is probably trying to find some sturdy wooden house from pet store for example, high enough that it keeps food cup from being flooded with bedding but low enough that they can't chew the wire mesh. Then hang the water bottle there somehow, just high enough that they need to stretch themselves to get to the plastic parts. That way they can't be arsed to break the bottle and get water all over.

I have never put clips on my gerbil's cage unless they were chilling out in the same house as a cat because they've never tried to escape at all. I have a metal water bottle hanger that seems to work really well.

Also, it's a gerbil trait to bury their food, so it's actually better if you don't prevent them from doing this as it upsets the natural order of things. Mine ALWAYS cover their food - but it's always gone by the time I want to feed the next.

Ceramic food bowls are the best because they're heavy and can't be bulldozed.

# ¿ Dec 19, 2009 16:16

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Candida albicans posted:

Metal water bottle

Wish I had one, just can't find anything but the usual plastic ones over here. I recall one night passing by the aqua really tired and checking the gerbils before going to bed... just to notice the little terrorists ate the bottle and wet all bedding. Midnight facepalming and bedding changing is so refreshing.

I keep a tight lid on my aqua since it's one and a half meter drop if they manage to get out. Much less than that is enough to crack their front teeth in.

Wow, my gerbs have never gone after their very much plastic water bottle. It's just got a metal hangar. They've emptied it a few times into their bedding, but I kick their asses good for that.

By which I mean clean the tank.

# ¿ Dec 20, 2009 07:11

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Candida albicans posted:

welp
I tried to shorten my gerbils nails yesterday and it was one after another.

No matter how I tried it, I just couldn't get those squirmy little creatures of darkness to hold still long enough to clip even one nail. Thankfully they don't really "need" nail clipping, but some of their nails are a bit long so I figured to try it anyway. Normally they have one clay pot in their aqua that helps to keep the nails short, but not short enough in my opinion.

I then proceeded to plant sandpaper in their aqua with different methods but all they managed to do was trying to eat it

Next plan is to cover the entire interior of their sandbathing box with sandpaper. They love to scratch the walls of that so it might even work.

I tried and I just stopped bothering. Sigh. Almost lost one of my girls to a nail clipping adventure. :saddowns:

# ¿ Dec 23, 2009 21:28

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Gustav posted:

Can anyone tell me off-hand what type of hamster I have here? It's definitely dwarf-sized, but I don't know enough about the various subspecies.

Tried to google it, but only got more and more confused.

And can I safely assume it's female from the lack of obvious gonads? I've only had syrians, rats and gerbils and none of those leave any room for doubt.

Looks like a fancy dwarf - but it's hard to tell genders on dwarves, their gonads are smaller than normal rodents

# ¿ Jan 3, 2010 03:46

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Males have pretty big gonads, it's hard to miss. Chances are she was already pregnant when you got her.

# ¿ Jan 6, 2010 03:58

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Megalodon posted:

This is my experience as well. I used to always have those colorful plastic cages as a kid, and my hamsters managed to chew their way out every time. An aquarium is going to be a lot easier to clean and probably cheaper.

This. My hamster currently lives in a wire cage because he likes to climb and I spoil him, but he's gotten out twice in the past week and he's going to be moving into a fishtank as soon as I can get home.

I've had three dwarf hamsters in my time, and all of them came from the same PetCo, and were very well lived - you could contact local petstores and see if they have any dwarf hamsters up for adoption, but keep in mind that you will probably never be able to handle one of these since they will most likely be poorly socialized and it will be an uphill battle to get them to be even grouchy.

The cool thing about dwarfs is that if you have two of them, they'll be happy; but they're happy by themselves. Robos are far more social and need friends.

# ¿ Jan 12, 2010 22:09

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Lumi posted:

Thanks for the reply guys, a lot of it is quite helpful.

This actually sounds like a pretty decent idea. I'll take a look more into the things that I can put in there. What's a good sized aquarium for 2 hamsters?

10 Gallon long should be fine.

# ¿ Jan 13, 2010 19:04

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Man-Rider posted:

Well fudge... I just learned that gerbils are illegal in California where I live.

There are people who help people like you. The internet is your friend, you just have to look for them.

# ¿ Jan 17, 2010 22:56

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Help! My hamster got a little chill and now he's hibernating!

He's currently chilling out on a hot water bottle with a towel in between them with a sock on top of him.

He's taking sugar water, but should I be doing anything else?

# ¿ Jan 22, 2010 18:41

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Nereid posted:

Help! My hamster got a little chill and now he's hibernating!

He's currently chilling out on a hot water bottle with a towel in between them with a sock on top of him.

He's taking sugar water, but should I be doing anything else?

He's drinking more regularly now, which is really a good thing. :3:

# ¿ Jan 22, 2010 19:06

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

maplecheese posted:

I bought some stuff!

That's parsley (a mix of curly and flat for some reason), spinach, romaine, a great big green bell pepper, and a little tiny red bell pepper. $4.04. Not too bad for Canada in the winter, I think.

Oooo, looks like a delicious stir fry. Can I come over?

# ¿ Jan 22, 2010 21:24

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

drat Bananas posted:

Question: Do mice prefer lots of open space to run around in their cage, or tons of tubes and boxes, or just a middle ground?

I save all my TP and paper towel rolls and egg cartons, and they're starting to back up and I'm considering just throwing them all in there next cage-cleaning for an uber playground. But I have no idea how to tell if she's like "Weeee in and out and under and over and-!" or "Goddamnit I can't get anywhere in here!" :/

Uhhhh, just put them in now. They love that poo poo.

# ¿ Jan 23, 2010 18:49

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

drat Bananas posted:

There. Of course she goes straight to the food bowl first. I didn't put everything in but hopefully she's entertained this week.

Click here for the full 704x528 image.

I don't know if she'll start shredding them, but if I put all that in with my gerbils, those tubes would be GONE by the time I get home from work tonight. I love mice though. :3:

So darling.

# ¿ Jan 23, 2010 20:48

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

rear end Crackers! posted:

Would a pair of male gerbils have enough room in a 10 gallon aquarium tank? My little brother has one, and I'm trying to convince my parents that at least two would be best.

10 gallons is fine. Introduce them slowly, if you do get them - on neutral ground at first. boys get along great though. :3:

# ¿ Jan 25, 2010 21:05

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

I would honestly say that I'd rather something smaller and easier to clean. My two guys lived in a 10 gallon with a gigantic wheel and two little houses so they could have their own space and were happy as clams.

e: My one complaint about that cage is that there's very little ventilation.

# ¿ Jan 27, 2010 18:14

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Lumi posted:

I guess so. I'm still kind of new to the scene but most pet store experiences so far have been pleasant except for this one and its sister stores. The appalling thing about it all is that they put all the hamsters in the same cage while not knowing their genders.

There's a pet store like this here as well. :\ I went there looking for gerbils not realizing how bad it was and they actually asked me if one of their 5 week old gerbils was old enough to be put back in with his mother to make more babies.

# ¿ Feb 5, 2010 00:34

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Blacknose posted:

I can't decide if I want to get a group of robo hamsters or a syrian. I'm not too worried about not really handling robos (I already have a hedgehog to provide my fat butted wobbling about needs) but it would be cool to have a big lardarsed syrian. I'm slightly concerned that if I get a group of robos at some point the group might fall apart as I can't really have 2 or 3 separate cages for them. Equally I've wanted robos for ages. However there is an awesome syrian available to me who looks just like a slightly dark coloured wombat. She's a cutie

I've got no idea what to do

Get the syrian. At some point you're gunna want to cuddle. Robos are sort of dicks.

# ¿ Feb 5, 2010 03:52

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

I would go into the store/adoption center and just hold both syrians and robos and see which ones really bond with you. This is how I got my syrian and he's the best little guy ever. :3:

# ¿ Feb 5, 2010 04:16

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

you need to break the spring in there, it's too powerful for their little tongues to push back.

# ¿ Feb 6, 2010 05:36

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

I recommend petco brand water bottles, they're quite fantastic. :3

# ¿ Feb 7, 2010 03:26

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

CP is the best football fan ever.

# ¿ Feb 8, 2010 03:53

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Lumi posted:

Finally got two Russian dwarfs, both guys. They're adorable

They don't seem to be running too much on the wheel though. One of them is quite fat so it seemed like he couldn't fit on the small 4.5" silent wheel, but after getting a bigger 5.5" which should fit either of them they still don't show too much interest in running. Is there anything that I can do to induce them to exercise?

Jack poo poo. They'll figure it out on their own if they want to, if not, they'll be fat. :3:

You can get a small ball (get a 4 inch, the fives will be too big for them to move) and see if they will run in that.

# ¿ Feb 15, 2010 05:56

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

I would feed a bit more than usual and then don't stress about it as long as she's got water.

I feed my hamster every other day or so because it forces him to eat the food he doesn't like.

# ¿ Mar 2, 2010 07:17

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

McCloud24 posted:

Last hamster/aquarium questions, I swear.

I know one of the big issues with putting a hamster in an aquarium is air circulation to keep ammonia from building up. If I planned on getting a wire top to prevent escape, etc., in my 18 inch high tank, what would I have to do to make sure that air circulation doesn't become a problem? Is it just a matter of more diligent cleaning than with a cage?

Also, and I don't know if my tank is tall enough to warrant this, if I were inclined to add a second floor or something, do they make things like that fitted to various enclosure sizes, or is there a particular way to make them yourself?

They sell fitted enclosures, you can find them at even your local walmart.

Also, if you have a hamster, clean the cage once a week or it will stink to high heaven. The build up of ammonia (this isn't a fish tank with, you know, actual fish in it, so it's not going to be a life or death issue) isn't going to be an issue if you just clean the tank. Airflow shouldn't be an issue unless you don't have a wire covering for your tank.

Don't worry, it's not bad to keep a hamster in a fish tank, it means that they can't get out, which is far better than any other enclosure that you can buy.

# ¿ Mar 24, 2010 18:03

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Rodent Mortician posted:

Pet store employees aren't necessarily the most reliable founts of information...

This is a ridiculous generalization considering how many PI goons also work in pet stores.

# ¿ May 2, 2010 02:35

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Hamsters are nocturnal, it's perfectly normal for them to sleep all day. You got a wheel for her?

# ¿ Jun 5, 2010 04:35

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

TLG James posted:

Myself and my gf are the new owners of a black bear hamster. Anyways, we have the hamster in a 10 gallon tank with one of these toppers.

http://www.amazon.com/Super-Pet-First-Home-Topper/dp/B0006IUL64

It seems pretty good. The highest platform that doesn't have the food bowl in it would move on its own so I ziptied it to the cage so it doesn't move now.

Anyways, I have a few questions.

She seems very timid. She does NOT want to be handled. She will do everything in her power to avoid being picked up. She doesn't bite or anything though. Is there something I can do to get her used to us? So far the only way we can get her out of the cage is to put her running ball into the cage and she'll climb into it.

Your set up looks good. You just have to give her time to warm up to you. Give her treats, apple, yogies, carrots, stuff like that - keep it in your hand and just sit there with you hand in the cage, get to her associate your hands with good things.

She's probably young, they're the nicest and friendliest hamsters ever, so just give her time.

quote:

She also loves to climb. Something I did not realize. She will climb up to the top on the wire section and usually drop down. She also found out she can squeeze between the plastic first level and the ramp and jump down. Do I have to be worried about this? I have enough soft bedding in there that she seems fine, but it makes me worried.

Does she have a wheel in the cage? something to run on? Hamsters have HUGE territories in the wild, and they will run literally all night. So she needs something to keep her entertained. My ham also does that, but he only likes to do it when he's really bored/has no food.

quote:

Also the topper came with a little water bottle. It seems to work fine but the hamster goes crazy on it like she isn't getting enough water out. I took it out and just pushing the ball bearing in a bit brings out a drip of water, but she is putting enough force on it to lift up her little house. Another concern? I put in a plastic top of a pill bottle with water and she drank it up..

I have a bottle like that, what I would recommend is either you get another one, or jam the spring that's inside the water bottle that's keeping it from leaking constantly so there isn't so much pressure on the ball that your ham's tongue has to push in. Sure the bottle will leek on occasion, but it'll be easier for her to drink. Until you do this, put a shallow bowl with water in there.

quote:

She also seems to like to chew on the metal bars. I put in a chew stick, so hopefully that'll satisfy her. But she seems to want to escape!

Again, I think she might be bored, put in some toilet paper tubes/paper towel tubes, a wheel, some stuff to chew on. Give her stuff to do and she won't be so set on escaping.

# ¿ Jun 29, 2010 04:30

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

cat with hands posted:

My pigs are getting spoiled rotten with fresh clover, dandelion and timothy. How can I ease the transition come fall?

go to a local food co-op. see if piggies like chard/kale/collards. ???? success.

# ¿ Jul 6, 2010 01:09

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Mice are stinky, get gerbils!

# ¿ Jul 25, 2010 04:02

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

drat Bananas posted:

The best mouse in the world has passed away I would like to share her story, because I sure as hell am not going to be able to fall asleep right now.

In March 2009 I was browsing the Facebook marketplace because hey, free ugly furniture for broke college kids. I came across this picture in a "free to good home" listing.

Living in a no cats/dogs apartment, I was excited to see an allowed pet up for grabs, supplies included! But what the hell is all over her?
I sent a message to the girl listing it (girl also fosters a tripod pit bull, aww, animal nuts) and asked her what the hell. As it turns out, they found the mouse wandering around an apartment parking lot covered in acrylic paint. What the hell is wrong with people? There's a video on Youtube of her and her friend cutting the paint out of her fur, but the squeaking is heartbreaking and I do not want to look for it right now.
So of course I took her in, played with her, let her crawl and poop all over me and my things, and fell in love with little Mona (named after the Mona Lisa because of the paint thing, and also I had been calling her Missy waiting to come up with a good name - apparently Mona is vaguely Italian for Miss)
Mona was the only roommate I liked for the next year and she was a great stress reliever around finals. She was also a great ambassador for her species: SO many of my friends and family loved watching her and occasionally holding her. She never bit a single person once. I've had hamsters and gerbils, so this was a surprise. My mom referred to her as her "Grandmouse"

Over time I developed questions that I ended up asking at a mouse-centered forum. I was quickly yelled at for keeping a female mouse by herself - she needed at least one buddy to be remotely happy apparently. But that's troublesome to a college kid who's constantly changing leases and (will be) moving cities. If one in a pair dies you need to get another buddy for the living one, and endless cycle not really fit for me, or anyone who would have been able to take her in (Facebook listing was in a college town, honestly she's lucky not to have ended up snake food)
I keep kicking myself about keeping her as a single mouse for over a year, but I keep reminding myself that I gave her a really good life compared to her alternatives. Mice live 1-2 years, and I had her for 17 months. She was full grown when I got her, so that's a pretty long life right? She was also treated to the best available foods, treats, chews, and snacks thanks to my constant Googling about mouse care. She even was treated for mites a couple months back, something I daresay not many mouse owners would do.

Click here for the full 720x540 image.
All in all, I feel like we had a good run. I learned SO much, and I will probably opt for mice over any other rodent in the future. She will be dearly missed. RIP Missy Mona Mousie.

I had a solitary rat for three years and while people might think that he did not have a fulfilling life, I like to think that I was his buddy rat. I loved that little dude so much.

# ¿ Aug 18, 2010 03:42

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

The hamster sounds elderly and is probably going. I would see if you can't put it down for a low cost (if at all) from area vets, but I know that mine charged $150 to put down my ailing rat.

Please don't judge people for not having mountains on funds on hand at all times for small animal veterinary care, people. It is some of the most expensive out there, and a lot of vets know that they can charge out the rear end because of it.

# ¿ Sep 20, 2010 02:47

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Naffer posted:

Nope, he was too busy trying to eat it to try to pouch it. We didn't let him pouch it and finish it later because it'd be an awful lot of sugar.

Here is his brother Simon eating something healthier:

This is cute but I avoid lettuce as a snack all together because of the risk of wet tail. :ohdear:

Research says it's just iceburg lettuce that does this but I like to err on the side of caution.

# ¿ Mar 24, 2011 03:19

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 03:00

Nereid: Sep 17, 2009; I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar

Cassiope posted:

I read the first few (a while ago) and last few pages more recently but don't seem to have seen it mentioned. What is the best diet for hamsters?

My little cousin is about to be getting a hamster and I want to advise her well. Are those seed mixes okay or are pellets better? Are there particular things you need to make sure to supplement into their diets?

So far my 3 pieces of advice for her are:

1. Use an aquarium for the cage
2. Don't use wood shaving bedding
3. Get a syrian not a dwarf (my personal preference, plus they're more interactive/docile?)

She's ten and a pretty responsible kid, she is insistent on rescuing a hamster and not buying from a petstore. I'm all on board with that attitude but there doesn't seem to be an overabundance of hamsters in rescue here. How bad is it to buy one from a pet store?

I would say that using aspen bedding is fine for a hamster, my long haired guy loves to shred it up.

Honestly, you can try to rescue a hamster or get one from a breeder, but the problem with those is that they're more likely to have issues. Like not wanting to be touched or biting problems (or oddly, fear of being picked up, but Rocky was a weird bird.) Even if you rescue, the hamster is probably raised in mills and the females could be pregnant because of incorrect sexing (although how you could do that with giant hamster balls is beyond me) but they're generally healthy and more friendly at pet stores.

My 10-year-old brother also has a hamster and he takes really good care of her. They're a good starter pet.

I personally feed my hamster Hazel Hamster or Ecotrition. Both of which have a lot of good stuff in them and not a lot of junk. He gets veggie ends when I cook and loves pretty much everything. You want to look for a food with not a TON of sunflower seeds. Hamsters are picky little shits so you're probably not going to get lucky and get him/her to eat all of their food ever.

Also those mice are DARLING. :swoon:

# ¿ Apr 27, 2011 13:02

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Hamsters, Chinchillas, & Other Rodents Thread: incredibly efficient poop machines!