# Chinese Dwarf Hamster HELP!



## tom12349333 (Sep 4, 2010)

Hello!
Im getting two chinese dwarf hamster's tomorrow and ive been reading up on the internet about them fighting. And a way to prevent this from happening is by giving them enough space. SO i thought id take a photo of my tank ive prepared for them to see what you guys think.
Here's the picture:









Its a 2foot aquarium with 3 levels, wood shavings for bedding.
theres tubes leading to the different floors.
a silent wheel (medium)
a water bottle next to the wheel (hasnt been fixed to the glass yet, doing that tomorrow)
a toilet in the corner of the bottom floor which you can see.
some pieces of wood pine wood to chew on and a little two story house.
Im going to replace the house when they get a little bit bigger tho.
and a little coconut in the corner at the bottom.
oh and the food bowl in the middle.
is this okay?

Thanks guys!
p.s sorry about the picture quality!


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## blue butterfly (Jan 3, 2010)

Wow, that tank looks fab, I'm sure your hammies are gonna love it 

I had 3 dwarfs that I just very recently had to seperate (had to take 1 out as the others were biting him)
I was told to get them all their own wheel, water bottle, food bowl etc in their cage so they all have their own stuff.
You might want to consider getting another wheel etc to try and stop any arguments in the future. Oh and also, make sure there is more than one place for them to sleep as they don't always wanna sleep in the same place together.

Hope that helps.


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

think your ment to have 2 wheels as well as food bowls and water bottles as they can't guard over it.

looking good though!


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

I dont want to put a downer on your really lovely tank but when they get older you might want to get one without the shelves as they can become territorial over the different levels. As Blade said they will need 2 of any high value items so thats bottles, food bowls and wheels (scatter feeding might also be a good idea). Having said that a long time ago I got 2 chinese hammy brothers who lived in a cage with three levels, they had one of everything and they never had a fall out so I suppose its also down to the nature of the hammies too.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Yes it does look good but you might want to consider a different bedding as shavings can cause respiritory problems. But yes looks brill! xx


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

niki87 said:


> Yes it does look good but you might want to consider a different bedding as shavings can cause respiritory problems. But yes looks brill! xx


Is that for hamsters too? I thought it was just rats and mice.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

thedogsmother said:


> Is that for hamsters too? I thought it was just rats and mice.


Oh really? Oh well I don't know. I read somewhere that advised against it for guineas....I thought so it was for all small animals. But am happy to stand corrected!


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Just googled it and yes they are considered an irritant to hamsters too and can lead to chronic chest complaints, glad I dont use them now. I use aubiose for all my rodents.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

thedogsmother said:


> Just googled it and yes they are considered an irritant to hamsters too and can lead to chronic chest complaints, glad I dont use them now. I use aubiose for all my rodents.


Oh never heard of that...where do you get that if ypu don't mind my asking? I use carefresh but i find it stinks lol but it also so expensive. So been looking round for alternatives. Seen that eco bed stuff so was gonna give it a try. xx


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## Daisymoo (Apr 14, 2010)

niki87 said:


> Yes it does look good but you might want to consider a different bedding as shavings can cause respiritory problems. But yes looks brill! xx


Do you mean the woodshavings that you buy from [email protected]???? I have always used that for my hammys  !!


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## Daisymoo (Apr 14, 2010)

thedogsmother said:


> Just googled it and yes they are considered an irritant to hamsters too and can lead to chronic chest complaints, glad I dont use them now. I use aubiose for all my rodents.


Is Aubiose good then?


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

niki87 said:


> Oh never heard of that...where do you get that if ypu don't mind my asking? I use carefresh but i find it stinks lol but it also so expensive. So been looking round for alternatives. Seen that eco bed stuff so was gonna give it a try. xx


I think you can get it from lots of places but its sold for horses primarily so if you have a place that sells stuff for horses locally then that would be the best place to start, I think Srhdufe saw a small bag in a pet shop but it costs a fortune to buy it that way. The big bales I get from a place in Wakefield cost £8 for a huge bale that lasts ages. If you call this number 0800 3891703 then they can tell you where your nearest stockist is.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Oh thanks yeah will do!! xx


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## tom12349333 (Sep 4, 2010)

thankyou so much for all your advice! i will definitely buy another food bowl and water bottle however there isnt room for another wheel so maybe i could down size the wheel to small wheel and then have two small ones? would this be okay
The small wheel's are about 4.5 inches high (the medium one which i have is 6.5)


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

auboise is also avaliable here

AUBIOSE HEMP BEDDING 20KG

i get the cardboard squares from them and there delivery service is great.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

blade100 said:


> auboise is also avaliable here
> 
> AUBIOSE HEMP BEDDING 20KG
> 
> i get the cardboard squares from them and there delivery service is great.


 OK brill...nice to have the recommendation! xx


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## forgotten~myth (May 30, 2010)

I didnt think you were supposed to keep chinese dwarfs together?
Might be wrong but...:


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## forgotten~myth (May 30, 2010)

niki87 said:


> Oh really? Oh well I don't know. I read somewhere that advised against it for guineas....I thought so it was for all small animals. But am happy to stand corrected!


Just seen this... I thought so too... I think it is the same for degus.


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## Lady Sol (Aug 20, 2009)

> I didnt think you were supposed to keep chinese dwarfs together?
> Might be wrong but...


You can keep them in groups, though like all hamsters they may fall out with each other.


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## forgotten~myth (May 30, 2010)

Lady Sol said:


> You can keep them in groups, though like all hamsters they may fall out with each other.


Oh... Okay, I stand corrected!


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## Jazzy (Apr 15, 2009)

I think once they mature you may have to buy another cage. I had three and they all ended up in separate cages. My sister had two brothers together and one used to bully the other one. She came down one morning and one of them was eating the other one.

I've always used woodshavings for my guinea pigs and hamsters and never had a problem. I do put hay on top though for the guinea pigs and they seem to spread it out although one of my piggies prefers sleeping on the shavings to the hay - he's a bit strange.:laugh:


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