# Is it ok to wake sleeping hamsters?



## Hazelwykes1952 (Apr 6, 2011)

I've heard you shouldnt wake up hamsters when they're sleeping or during the daytime instead of at night as it shortens their lifespan-is this true?
What if you cant have them out at night cause they dont get up until after you've gone to bed-cant you have them out first thing in the morning instead-especially if they're awake and still playing in their cage.

I have three singly kept roborovskis-who do tend to get up again in the mornings-especially as i move them from the living room into my bedroom to sleep away from the noise of the tv-they wake with me moving their cages if not already still up-so would it be ok to handle them etc in the mornings instead of evenings Or should i just leave them till evening & wake them earlier & should i just leave them in the living room all the time and not move them regardless of my son having the tv on very loud all day with his computer games-would loud tv and other household noise stress them-as well as waking them up in the daytime.

I wouldnt wake a syrian hamster in the daytime to handle it as they can get very grumpy-but is it different with dwarf hamsters as they tend to come out during the daytime from time to time.


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## Tigerneko (Jan 2, 2009)

If the hamster is up and about, then I don't see anything wrong with 'disturbing' them but I certainly wouldn't wake a hamster up for no reason, I wouldn't like to be prodded and poked and woken up so I always think the same for animals 


I'm trying to get my new Syrian used to me at the moment and I have been waiting for him to get up first, which seems to be between 9:30-10:00pm, and then I get him out in his ball, let him run around and let off some steam, and then take him through to the bathroom and handle him in the bath as he's still a little bit jumpy. But no, no matter how much I wanted to handle him, I wouldn't wake him up. I ended up not being able to handle him yesterday because he wasn't out until after 11 and by then I was in bed, but I think it's better to leave him be for a night than stressing him out and waking him


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Yeaah I agree! I wouldn't wake a hamster unless I absolutely had to. But if a syrian is up during the day it is probably just for loo/drink/food so I don't bother mine cos they will still be sleepy. Saying that there are times I have had to particularly for medicine etc and it does no harm (i don't think) physically,....they will just be grumpy as you say


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## Pomegranate (Nov 15, 2009)

My Syrian won't wake up during the day for love nor money, so I let her be. My dwarfie sometimes gets up during the day though, especially mid-morning, with no help from me; his sleeping pattern seems a lot less rigid.


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