Posted by Ken on December 4, 2009 · Leave a Comment
If you often find yourself asking the question “how to ensure my hamster lives longer?” then read on. There are essentially three areas that you should concentrate on when looking after you hamster that if you get right should ensure that you have a pet that lives at least two years and potentially even more, up to 3 years. When you consider that a hamster at 3 years is broadly equivalent to a person aged 80 and over you will understand that if you can provide an environment in which your hamster lives to 3 you will have been successful in providing a happy and safe life for your pet.
Your Hamster Cage
You should purchase the largest hamster cage that you can afford. The larger the better. Ideally the sides of the cage should be wire mesh to ensure good ventilation. Hamsters do tend to be quite territorial so when trying to answer your question “how to ensure my hamster lives longer” you should think hard before housing more than one hamster per cage as you run the risks of fights breaking out. You should cover the base of your hamster cage with some wood shavings and provide some straw bedding. Don’t place the cage in direct sunlight or in draughty location as these can both cause health issues. Then provide your hamster with plenty of toys to play with and keep the cage clean.
Feeding Your Hamster
Always keep fresh water available in a bottle. Give you hamster fresh food every day in a feeding bowl in a corner of the cage. It may be worthwhile placing the bowl in an area that is easily accessible and therefore easy to clean. You might also give your hamster fresh vegetables and occasionally some fruit and also supplement its diet with occasional vitamin supplement tablets.
Keep Your Hamster Healthy
You should provide a wooden gnaw to ensure that they are able to keep their tooth growth under control. Generally speaking if you keep your hamster cage clean and your hamster well fed you can have a reasonable expectation that your hamster will live a clean and healthy life for several years.
And that’s it really. Hamsters are really very easy animals to look after and can give you hours of fun if you do look after them. So if you want to know “how to ensure my hamster lives longer” you should give you hamster a large cage, feed it a good diet, provide an active play area and keep its living environment clean you should have no problems.
Filed under Big Hamster Cages, Large Hamster Cage · Tagged with Big Hamster Cages, Large Hamster Cage, large hamster cages, moist wood shavings, no direct sunlight, no draughts, string metal bars, ventilation, wire mesh, wooden shavings
Posted by Ken on October 16, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Hamsters are greedy animals and require tons of space for themselves! The common hamster cage is within the square foot range. Hamsters are animals that are always on the go and can travel miles at a time. Although a cage is not the ideal solution it solves the purpose just fine! When shopping around for a hamster cage, make sure you find one as adaptable to the environment as possible. You can create an environment in the cage by adding some wood shavings to the floor, some toys and don’t forget a cozy place to sleep for your little buddy!
Placing your hamster in cardboard or wooden boxes is not the best idea! Hamsters have teeth much stronger than human beings and can chew their way right through them. Picking a hamster cage is easy but you need to be careful as to which one is right for your pet! The hamster cage can be made of plastic with a hamster wheel and toys too! If you to decide on a plastic cage for your hamster make sure the plastic is thick on the base and has metal bars all around! Get one with a lift up lid or a large opening which will help you when you clean the cage.
Many experts suggest using aquariums as hamster cages! Aquariums are spacious, easy to clean and can be accessed from the top. Keep in mind hamsters cannot sustain high temperatures so if using an aquarium as a hamster cage them make sure you replace the glass on the top with a wire mesh that is sturdy and tough. The size of the wire mesh should be around 1 by 1 centimeter.
Now that you decided on a hamster cage, it’s time to create the environment! Just keep in mind that no matter what home you decide to go with, the environment is what will make your hamster grow and live to its fullest! The floor of the hamster cage must consist of wooden shavings for comfort. Try to keep it within 2-3 inches thick and try to use wet wooden shavings! Eventually after playing for a while the hamster with chew up some of the wooden shavings so it’s a great idea to keep the shavings moist!
You can use cedars in you hamster cage as well but it is not recommended as they produce oils that may be harmful to your hamster. When cleaning the hamster cage take your hamster out first and keep it in a safe place like a hamster ball! Then clean and get rid of all the used dust and bedding and wipe it with a soft cloth. Cleaning your hamster cage once a week is an excellent idea!
Filed under Hamster Cage · Tagged with aquariums, Big Hamster Cages, cedars, cheap hamster cages, Dwarf Hamster Cage, dwarf hamster cages, Hamster Cage, hamster cages, hamsters cage, hamsters cages, Large Hamster Cage, large hamster cages, pink hamster cage, plastic cage, Rotastak Hamster Cage, rotastak hamster cages, wire mesh, wooden shavings
