# Hamster help!



## Hammylover123 (Oct 2, 2012)

hello i was wonderinng if anyone could help me with something. My beautiful syrian hamster is just over a month old now and i still havent held her. everytime i have gone near the cage to pick her up or stroke her so has either run away or jumped back. im scared if i pick her up she might dart out of m hamds and hurt herself. me and my dd tried to pick her up a week ago and she ran out of my dads hands and we had to chase her around the living room floor. I was thinking about getting an s.a.m playpen nd a finger groomer and try and work around it that way. iv even tried lifting her into her ball but she wont have it - she has to climb in herself im worried im being horrible owner if i dont help her. please see my other post on her hamster cage too and help if you can thanks x


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## Adopter (Aug 24, 2012)

Start by offering her bits of food treats, through the bars of the cage and talking quietly to her. 

You could also buy a Hamster ball, open the door of the cage and encourage her to go into that. From there sit on your bed with her and let her come out of the open ball when she's ready in her own time. Speaking gently to her , maybe encourage her again with some special treats. 
Being on a bed is a far better place because if gives her the chance to be with you and feel comfortable around you and you handling her, but also gives her the chance to run around the bed without it meaning she's escaped because you can stop her from jumping off the bed . Does that make sense lol.

That's what I do with my Syrian hamster anyway.
I'm sure now though she thinks she's a dog lol, we've only had her since April as a rescue, we started this routine with her from day 1 of having her on the bed and at first she would run around the bed and ignore us, but now she sits inbetween us on the bed and just lays there, I'm sure she thinks she's a dog lol. 
Then when she starts to want to jump off the bed , I put her in her ball and she runs around the apartment for a while before bed time lol.
When you do hold her, wrap your hand gently but securely around her entire body from her neck down, securing her but gently in your hands.

She will get used to it , just takes time and patients. 
Good luck x


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## Lara1988 (Aug 8, 2012)

My 7 yr old used to put a towel in the bath and sit in it to get used to handling her hammy Colin. If he jumped it was a soft landing, and we didn't need to worry about him doing a runner.


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