A dirty cage can actually lead to Wet Tail. I'm sure most of you know that wet tail is caused by stress. Not many people believe this, but hamsters are very clean animals. They like their cage to be neat. Almost every day I will see my hamster stuffing his cheeks full of poop and unloading it all in the back left corner of his bin cage. Anyway, you must clean your hamster's cage once a week. If not this may lead to wet tail. Sine hamsters love a clean cage if you don't clean it your hamster will get stressed out. There's nothing he can do about it except develop wet tail, and that will leave you wondering why you hamster died all of a sudden even he wasn't that old.
HAMSTER BEDDING: Not many people think about what kind of bedding they're using. Here's something that all hamster owners should know: DO NOT USE PINE, OR CEDAR BEDDING! Pine and cedar bedding can get stuck in your hamster's feet. The main problem that hamsters experience with pine and cedar bedding is respiratory problems. So please do not use pine or cedar bedding! The bedding I recommend is carefresh premium soft bedding. I use the colored bedding. That is a little bit more expensive, but I think that the colored bedding makes the cage more pretty. (Even if the hamster is a boy) So please take caution on what bedding you use. Note: in the winter you can use a little bit of toilet paper to help keep them warm, because toilet paper traps the body heat better than regular bedding. (It is also safe if they accidentally swallow some, because the toilet paper will biodegrade and not clog their system.)
CLEAN CAGE: Hamsters clean themselves. However, their cages do not. It is required that you clean your hamster's cage one a week. Hamsters are very clean animals, so they love they're cage to be clean. There are pet disinfectant bottles that you can also use to clean they're cage with. But only use that once a month. Every other week, use regular hand soap and warm water to clean their cage. Unfortunately, I know someone that cleans their hamster cage with a disinfectant wipe. That is a MAJOR NO NO. Do you know how toxic disinfectant wipes are?! Honestly, I think that is being lazy with cage cleaning, because anyone should easily get the idea to clean their hamster cage with warm water and soap. I really don't have anything else to say about cage cleaning, but if you have any questions, feel free to check out my blog!
WATER BOTTLE AND FOOD DISH: I refill my hamster's water bottle every two days, and clean it once, or twice a week. There are bottle brushes available at your local pet store. I don't have a bottle brush, but I would like to get one. When you clean your water bottle fill it with steaming how water, let it sit for about a minute, then run some water through the metal "straw" to make sure the straw isn't clogged, after that wrap the straw with paper towel, then run the straw wrapped in paper towel with steaming hot water. Let that sit for a minute as well. After you have done all of those steps, fill the water bottle with cold, and fresh water. Now moving on to the food dish, I just always wash My hamster's food dish when I clean his cage. So simply rinse out the food dish with water, then add soap, mix the soap in with a wash cloth, once again rinse with how water. (make sure all of the soap is out, and just use regular hand soap.)
GROOMING YOUR HAMSTER: I am going to start off with the angora Syrian Hamster. Groom your Angora Syrian Hamster every day. There are actually many different things you can groom your hamster with. I use a toothbrush to groom my hamster. (Unused of course.) Tooth brushes are the perfect size, and they get dust from the bedding out of they're fur. This works for long haired hamsters and short haired hamsters. Another grooming tool mainly for angora hamsters is a mini hair pick, use this to pick through knots in your hamster's fur. those are the two main hair grooming tools that will help you the most with hamster grooming. For more information, go to the Hamster Health page.
BATHING YOUR HAMSTER:
I have heard some cases where people give their hamster a bath with water. NEVER give any type of hamster a bath, or let it swim. Hamsters should not get wet. If they get wet, the natural oils in their coat will wash off, and hamsters can't get the natural oils back. Since the oils in the coat are gone, the hamster's coat will no longer trap the heat in the hamster's body. This causes your hamster to get very cold, catch a cold, and die. If you think your hamster needs a bath, give it a sand bath. At pet stores you will most likely find Chinchilla bath sand. Chinchilla bath sand is what you will need in order to give your hamster a sand bath. Your hamster will most likely enjoy rolling and playing in the sand. A few people I know use baby wipes to clean their hamster. That is a big NO NO. First off, hamsters are capable of cleaning themselves the way you would with a baby wipe. But a sand bath is used for cleaning deep in the fur. Baby wipes also irritate the skin. Just because baby wipes are safe for babies, doesn't necessarily mean they are safe for hamsters. Baby wipes contain chemicals that will irritate your hamster's skin, leading to a rash. Unfortunately, most hamster owners don't check their hamster's skin for irritation. Last, I've never heard of this. But if you do this, STOP: Clean your hamster with a regular disinfectant wipe. I don't know how someone would think this is right. But I do know someone that cleans their hamster cage with a disinfectant wipe. I just don't want that person to get the wrong idea.
HAMSTER BEDDING: Not many people think about what kind of bedding they're using. Here's something that all hamster owners should know: DO NOT USE PINE, OR CEDAR BEDDING! Pine and cedar bedding can get stuck in your hamster's feet. The main problem that hamsters experience with pine and cedar bedding is respiratory problems. So please do not use pine or cedar bedding! The bedding I recommend is carefresh premium soft bedding. I use the colored bedding. That is a little bit more expensive, but I think that the colored bedding makes the cage more pretty. (Even if the hamster is a boy) So please take caution on what bedding you use. Note: in the winter you can use a little bit of toilet paper to help keep them warm, because toilet paper traps the body heat better than regular bedding. (It is also safe if they accidentally swallow some, because the toilet paper will biodegrade and not clog their system.)
CLEAN CAGE: Hamsters clean themselves. However, their cages do not. It is required that you clean your hamster's cage one a week. Hamsters are very clean animals, so they love they're cage to be clean. There are pet disinfectant bottles that you can also use to clean they're cage with. But only use that once a month. Every other week, use regular hand soap and warm water to clean their cage. Unfortunately, I know someone that cleans their hamster cage with a disinfectant wipe. That is a MAJOR NO NO. Do you know how toxic disinfectant wipes are?! Honestly, I think that is being lazy with cage cleaning, because anyone should easily get the idea to clean their hamster cage with warm water and soap. I really don't have anything else to say about cage cleaning, but if you have any questions, feel free to check out my blog!
WATER BOTTLE AND FOOD DISH: I refill my hamster's water bottle every two days, and clean it once, or twice a week. There are bottle brushes available at your local pet store. I don't have a bottle brush, but I would like to get one. When you clean your water bottle fill it with steaming how water, let it sit for about a minute, then run some water through the metal "straw" to make sure the straw isn't clogged, after that wrap the straw with paper towel, then run the straw wrapped in paper towel with steaming hot water. Let that sit for a minute as well. After you have done all of those steps, fill the water bottle with cold, and fresh water. Now moving on to the food dish, I just always wash My hamster's food dish when I clean his cage. So simply rinse out the food dish with water, then add soap, mix the soap in with a wash cloth, once again rinse with how water. (make sure all of the soap is out, and just use regular hand soap.)
GROOMING YOUR HAMSTER: I am going to start off with the angora Syrian Hamster. Groom your Angora Syrian Hamster every day. There are actually many different things you can groom your hamster with. I use a toothbrush to groom my hamster. (Unused of course.) Tooth brushes are the perfect size, and they get dust from the bedding out of they're fur. This works for long haired hamsters and short haired hamsters. Another grooming tool mainly for angora hamsters is a mini hair pick, use this to pick through knots in your hamster's fur. those are the two main hair grooming tools that will help you the most with hamster grooming. For more information, go to the Hamster Health page.
BATHING YOUR HAMSTER:
I have heard some cases where people give their hamster a bath with water. NEVER give any type of hamster a bath, or let it swim. Hamsters should not get wet. If they get wet, the natural oils in their coat will wash off, and hamsters can't get the natural oils back. Since the oils in the coat are gone, the hamster's coat will no longer trap the heat in the hamster's body. This causes your hamster to get very cold, catch a cold, and die. If you think your hamster needs a bath, give it a sand bath. At pet stores you will most likely find Chinchilla bath sand. Chinchilla bath sand is what you will need in order to give your hamster a sand bath. Your hamster will most likely enjoy rolling and playing in the sand. A few people I know use baby wipes to clean their hamster. That is a big NO NO. First off, hamsters are capable of cleaning themselves the way you would with a baby wipe. But a sand bath is used for cleaning deep in the fur. Baby wipes also irritate the skin. Just because baby wipes are safe for babies, doesn't necessarily mean they are safe for hamsters. Baby wipes contain chemicals that will irritate your hamster's skin, leading to a rash. Unfortunately, most hamster owners don't check their hamster's skin for irritation. Last, I've never heard of this. But if you do this, STOP: Clean your hamster with a regular disinfectant wipe. I don't know how someone would think this is right. But I do know someone that cleans their hamster cage with a disinfectant wipe. I just don't want that person to get the wrong idea.