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Dwarf Hamster Care – How to Take Care of a Dwarf Hamster

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This is primer to dwarf hamster care. We’ll be adding on to it from time to time as we learn new things about how to take care of dwarf hamsters. You may skip directly to any section or read the whole thing if you’re just getting started.

  1. Getting the right supplies
  2. Feeding your dwarf hamster
  3. Keeping your dwarf hamster clean
  4. Playing with your dwarf hamster

Getting the right supplies

dwarf hamster care - cute robo dwarf hamster face

Getting the right equipment for your dwarf hamster is an important first step if you want to care for your dwarf hamster properly. I’ve described in detail the items that the new dwarf hamster owner needs to get on the front page of this site. This is a brief recap of the items you’ll need:

Feeding your Dwarf Hamster

dwarf hamster food mixGiving your pet the right food is an important part of dwarf hamster care. It’s a good idea to give your dwarf hamster a hamster mix that has a wide variety of food in it or specially formulated food for hamsters such as the Oxbow Healthy Handfuls Hamster and Gerbils Complete Stabilized Food. Don’t use food mixes made for other animals as the nutrients in them are different from what your dwarf hamster requires.

A tablespoon of food should be sufficient per dwarf hamster per day. Your hamster should also always have access to fresh water in a water bottle.

Besides hamster mix, you can also supplement your dwarf hamster’s diet with fresh food.  These should be given in moderation (once or twice a week) and variety. There are many fresh foods that you can give to your hamster but you should always give new food in small amounts to see if your hamster is able to accept it.

Also, as dwarf hamsters originate from a desert environment, too much fresh food that’s high in water content can cause diarrhea. You also do not want to give your dwarf hamster food that’s high in sugar (most fruit). This is especially so for Russian dwarf hamsters (i.e. Campbell’s, Winter White and their hybrids) as they are prone to diabetes.

Some fresh food that are safe for dwarf hamsters:

Asparagus, acorn, alfalfa sprouts, basil, bean sprouts, buckwheat, bran, chestnuts, chickweed, chicory, clover, dandelion flowers and leaves, dill, endive, flaxseed, green beans, kale, oatmeal, pumpkin seed, parsnips, sesame seed, squash seed, sunflower seed, spinach, turnip.

One way to give fresh food without worrying about the water content is to dehydrate/dry them first.

You can also feed your pet insects such as crickets, mealworms and grasshoppers from pet shops.

Food that you should not feed your dwarf hamster:

  • Anything with pesticides/insecticides on it
  • Anything sticky (will get stuck in their cheek pouches)
  • Anything sharp (will pierce their cheek pouches)
  • Processed food (canned food, candy, chocolate, snacks, etc)
  • Salted seeds and nuts
  • Citrus fruit (orange, lemon, lime, grapefruit, etc)
  • Onion and garlicdo not feed your dwarf hamster tomatoes
  • Kidney beans
  • Bitter Almond
  • Avocado
  • Potato
  • Tomato
  • Eggplant
  • Fruit seeds
  • Watermelon

When in doubt, just play safe and don’t give anything you are unsure of to your hamster. A more complete and super well-organized food chart can be found here. We also have a list of food that we give our hamsters on a regular basis.

Keeping your dwarf hamster clean

Your dwarf hamster should never be bathed in water. However, you will need to keep its cage clean. The frequency of cage cleaning and bedding changes will depend on how large the cage is and how many hamsters are in it. It is advisable to clean a small cage at least once a week. Larger cages can get away with fewer cleanings in between.

Tips for keeping a cage clean and odor-free:

  • Use a highly absorbent bedding such as Carefresh Ultra Pet Bedding
  • Spot-clean every day by picking out soiled bedding
  • Remove any uneaten food (especially fresh food) daily and replace with new ones
  • Hang charcoal near your hamster’s cage to absorb the smell. Keep out of hamster’s reach.
  • Once a week, change the bedding and clean the cage with hot water
  • Use vinegar to remove any bad smell and rinse well
  • Be sure to clean the accessories too (wheel, potty, hamster house, etc)

I’ve found that most of the smell comes from the accessories especially if your hamster likes to pee on them. In that case, I clean the accessories more frequently and make fewer bedding changes. Check your accessories to see if they’re the culprit before throwing out your bedding — I made the mistake of cleaning the cage every three days when I first had my hamsters because I didn’t realize all the smell was from the wheel!

You can also buy special sand and a hamster bath house (or make one) for your pet. Most hamsters will happily roll around in sand to get their coats clean.

Playing with your dwarf hamster

Try to play with your dwarf hamster (especially robos) daily so that it remains tame. Hamsters are nocturnal and most active in the early morning and during evenings. When possible, play with your hamster when it’s awake and active.

Tips for playing with your dwarf hamster:

  • Alert your hamster to your presence by allowing it to sniff your hand/finger
  • Don’t startle your hamster by grabbing it from behind
  • Use a toilet roll or cup to hold your hamster if you’re not sure how to pick it up
  • Hamsters have sensitive ears. Avoid making loud noises
  • Set up a play area with “walls” so your hamster won’t escape
  • Don’t hold your hamster at a height. It may jump off your hand and injure itself.

That’s all about it for dwarf hamster care. Check out the rest of our site for more tips and tricks on how to take care of your hamster!

Best Hamster-Themed Gifts

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Shopping for hamster lovers

With December approaching, many of you have probably already started shopping for holiday gifts. I thought I’d make a list of hamster-themed gifts that you might want to put in your shopping list (or wishlist!)

Photo Credit: jpockele

Photo Credit: jpockele

Beware of the Hamster & Beware of the Dwarf Hamster Sign

These magnet and steel signs are great for hanging outside your room (if that’s where you place your hammies) or near the hamster area. Both measure 8.2 * 5.8 inches. I personally prefer the dwarf hamster one:

Chatimals The Talking Hamster Hampster

If hamster plushies are your thing, a Chatimal is much more entertaining than any Zhu Zhu pet. And it talks too! Watch this and tell me you don’t want one for yourself:

Hamtaro Anime DVD

Hamtaro is an anime series about a hamster and his friends and their many adventures. It’s one of the very few cartoons about hamsters that are actually good. Hamtaro is more than ten years old but is still pretty popular in some parts of Asia. I should have bought some Hamtaro stuff while I was in Japan!

Cute Hamster Calendar for 2017

I don’t usually like receiving calendars as gifts but I wouldn’t mind one like this. This calendar measures 7 x 7″ and features a cute hamster for every month of the year.

A Hamster Cookbook

I bought this book a while ago and haven’t had the chance to write a proper review. The book is full of photos and recipes of cute treats that you can make for your hamster. It’s kind of like a 2 in 1 gift if you get this since your hamster (or your friend’s) will be enjoying its results 😀

No Idea What to Get?

I’m sure anyone would appreciate a gift card ^_^

How Much Food Can A Hamster Stuff In Its Cheeks?

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You’ve probably seen your hamster stuffing food into its cheek pouch. If you’ve wondered how much they can put in those cheeks, here’s a BBC video with a Syrian hamster stuffing its pouch full of dried nuts and fruit. But it’s not just a random nom-noming video, at about 40 seconds into the video, you can see an X-ray of the hamster stuffing that food all the way to the side of his hips

It turns out a Syrian’s cheek pouches extends all the way to the hips and that’s how they’re able to pack so much away.

Here’s another video of one pouching way too many carrots:

Dwarf hamsters can do it but obviously due to their size difference, they won’t be able to get as much in. Here’s one of a Russian dwarf hoarding some sunflower seeds:

And this is not quite related but I feel obligated to include a video of Ichigo, my Roborovski hamster cracking open a lot of sunflower seeds he stored in his pouch.

How to Clean a Hamster Cage

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Hamsters are very clean animals and in order to keep them happy it is important that their cage is cleaned on a regular basis. It is recommended that you clean your hammy’s cage at least once a week especially if it’s a smaller one. Larger cages can go without full cleans (just change some or all of the bedding) for a longer time. Hint: Having a potty/toilet in the cage will help confine most of the mess in one place and make it easier to clean.

how to clean a hamster cageThere are a number of steps that can be followed to ensure that your hamster cage is as clean as possible for your hamster:

1. Keep your hamster safe. Hamsters are surprisingly quick and may be difficult to catch if they escape. You can keep them in a play area or an exercise ball you are cleaning their cage as this will allow them to explore without putting themselves in danger.

2. Remove all toys, hideouts, tunnels, and other accessories. These can then be washed with warm, soapy water. You can dry them off with a towel or leave them to dry while you are cleaning out the rest of the cage. It is important to ensure that all the soap is completely washed away as this may make the hamster ill if they ingest any.

3. Remove all wood shavings (also known as sawdust in some countries) and bedding. The easiest way to do this is to place one end of the cage in a plastic bag and then tipping the contents of the cage into the bag. You will need to make sure that the cage is completely empty before moving onto the next step which means that you may need to scrape some bedding off the bottom of the cage. The corners in particular should be checked to ensure that none of the shavings or bedding is remaining. Hint: Good bedding/wood shavings can keep the cage clean and odor-free for a longer time, reducing the need for frequent changes. Find out which ones I recommend here.

4. Use a disinfectant that is designed to clean hamster cages. This type of disinfectant will not contain any chemicals that may harm your hamster. Your hamster will also be able to recognize their cage as they will have put their own scent on it and using a mild disinfectant will ensure that the cage is cleaned properly but does not get rid of this scent. This disinfectant should be left for the amount of time that is indicated on the instructions in order to allow it to dry completely before the new bedding is added to the cage. Some people also use a mixture of 1 cup water and 1 cup vinegar instead of a commercial disinfectant.

5. Put fresh wood shavings and/or bedding in the cage. The bedding should completely cover the floor of the cage and enough should be provided for the hamster to keep themselves warm when they are asleep. If you place the bedding in the area of the cage where they usually sleep then they will arrange it so they are comfortable.

6. Replace all the toys and other accessories. If you can try and put them back in the same place as they were before. Your hamster will have arranged all these toys to where they want them and they will remember where they have placed them in the cage.

Following the above steps will ensure that your hamster has a clean environment in which to live and this can go a long way to keeping them happy and healthy. Don’t forget that the hamsters food should be replaced every day and their water refilled as often as is needed.

Photo Credit: bsabarnowl

How Long Did The Oldest Hamster Live?

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If you google for the age of the longest-lived hamster, you might come across a few web sites stating that it was 7 years, and some even quote the Guinness World Records as the source for this information.

There’s even a book that claims to tell you ““How To Make Your Hamster Live For 7 Years Or More”.

That’s a really long time given that most hamsters live for only 2 to 3 years.

Recently, I found out that you could search the Guinness World Records online and naturally I wanted to verify if the hamster age record was true. I couldn’t find any information on it at all so I asked the Guinness World Records on their facebook page.

This was what they said:

how long did the oldest hamster live guinness world records

It turns out the oldest hamster was from the UK and lived only for 4.5 years, not 7. So now you know 🙂 And I definitely won’t be getting that book.

My winter white hamsters are currently over 1.5 years old and I hope they have a long way to go.

How old is your hamster and how long did your oldest live? I would love to hear your comments below!

Why Do Hamsters Eat Their Own Poop?

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why do hamsters eat their own poop

Hamsters are cute little furry animals that lots of little kids have as pets. They sleep during the day, run on their little wheels, and have a weird little habit….eating their own poop. You may wonder why on earth would they do something so disgusting but the answer is simple. Hamsters are coprophagic, this means they consume their own poop for nutritional reasons.

Due to the way their digestive system is set up, hamsters do not get all the nutrients they need the first time the food passes through their system. So once it comes out in poop form, they eat it again to receive the nutrients their bodies did not absorb the first time.

Although it does seem odd to us humans, it is very normal for not only hamsters but also some other animals to eat their own poop (rabbits do this too!)

Hamsters do not eat all of their poop though, only the ones that can get additional nutrition from. The other type — the ones that you see all the time in your hamster’s cage — is passed out and not eaten.

This coprophagic behavior most often occurs at night and the hamster eats the poop almost immediately when it is passed out. Most owners do not even know that their hamsters do this.

I’ve only seen it once or twice in a few of my hamsters although I’m sure it happens a lot more. Have you seen your hamster eat its poop?

Are Hamsters Herbivores or Omnivores?

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hamsters herbivores omnivoresNot everyone knows this but hamsters are not herbivores. Perhaps because hamster mixes look like they contain mostly plant-based food, some people think that hamsters eat only plants.

However, hamsters are really omnivores and they eat both plant and animals (mostly insects). In fact, if you look at the ingredients in many commercial hamster food, you’ll find animal proteins such as chicken, shrimp, fish, or even beef in them.

In the wild, hamsters may occasionally feed on insects, worms, and other creepy crawlies. As pets, they also enjoy a mealworm or two now and then.

Here are some non-plant foods that you can find in pet stores for hamsters

1) Dried mealworm

Mealworms are very high in protein and fat. They are good as an occasional treat. My dwarf hamsters go crazy for them but the Syrians completely ignore them. You can give your hamsters live mealworms too but I prefer using the dried ones instead because they might pouch the live mealworms and get bitten (yes, mealworms bite!) inside their cheek pouches. Also, I’m squeamish about live worms. You can get these from Amazon. The packaging says it’s for birds but hamsters can have them too.

2) Dried grasshopper

Grasshoppers are very high in protein although they do not contain as much fat as mealworm. Again, the dwarf hamsters go crazy for them while the Syrians are not interested at all. When I gave this to my hamsters for the first time, the winter whites went for the grasshopper immediately when I put it in their cage. However, the Roborovskis did not recognize this as food at first and only took a bite after I left it in their cage for a while.

3) Dried shrimp

I didn’t think the hamsters would like this since shrimps are probably not in their natural environment. But they did. Again, only the dwarf hamsters liked them and the Syrian hamsters avoided them (they actually looked away when I put it in front of their faces — I think this has a strong smell that Syrians don’t like). The ones I got were marketed for hamsters, but you can use brine shrimp for fish too.

4) Beef cube

cut beef for hamstersThis is a really weird treat that I got from a pet store in Japan. The ingredients show a mix of various meats including chicken and beef. There’s also cheese and some other stuff in it that I couldn’t translate. All of the hamsters including the Syrians love this but it’s not a very healthy treat so I wouldn’t get this again

Besides the above food you can get from pet stores, you can also give these to your hamster:

5) Cooked plain chicken

All my hamsters seem to really like this. It’s also a good treat for growing or pregnant hamsters since it’s high in protein

6) Cooked plain salmon

Again, another favorite food. If you give your pet salmon or any other fish, make sure there is absolutely no bones in them.

Some things to note

  • These are treats and should be given sparingly.
  • Contrary to what some people think, giving your hamster meat does not cause them to bite.

For more non-plant food you can give your pet as well as fresh fruit and vegetables, check out https://dwarfhamsterblog.com/dwarf-hamster-food

And if you’ve tried any of the food above or have other suggestions on what you can give hamsters, please feel free to leave a comment below