How About A Hamster?
Are you thinking of adopting a hamster? Maybe one of your friends has a hamster or you've seen them in pet shops. These cute little creatures are fun to watch and quite easy to care for. Before you talk to Mom and Dad about bringing one home, there are several things you need to know.
Their Habits
Hamsters, in their wild habitat, live underground and come out at night to search for food. In your house, you should keep them in a room that doesn't have a lot of sunlight and away from a lot of noise of other animals or family members. Hamsters sleep a lot during the day so it is best to let them sleep and save your play time and feeding time until the later afternoon or the evening.
Hamsters like to burrow and hide. That is why you need to buy material to put on the bottom of their cages and give them a little house or box to hide in. They also like to crawl through tubes and hide in them. You can buy hamster houses or other accessories at the pet store.
In the wild, hamsters move great distances looking for food. They are used to a having a lot of exercise. That is why they will need a wheel or some type of exercise equipment. They also like to chew or gnaw on things so they will need special chewing toys and food they can gnaw on. These toys also help keep their toenails trimmed.
You don't have to worry about bathing a hamster. They keep themselves well groomed. If there is a smell from the hamster cage, it means that the bedding needs to be changed or they have fresh food that has gone rotten.
Hamsters are always active and burn off a lot of energy. They need to have water and food in their cage at all times.
Their Cages
The cage should be large enough so your hamster can run around and not bump into all the toys. The experts say there should be at least 2 feet of space in the cage for running. The bigger the cage, the better for your hamster!
Some people use a glass or plastic aquarium. They are good for keeping the bedding inside but they are harder to clean. You must have a plastic top with small holes in it in order to let the hamster breathe and to keep it from escaping. There are special lids you can buy at the pet store that have clips for the water bottle and wheel. If the plastic lid does not have clips, you can buy a freestanding wheel and water bottle. Do not use a metal screen because the hamsters can chew through them.
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