Re: Question for hamster owners...

by Artistwolf Sat 22 Oct 2016, 9:10 am

You could use Kaytee Clean & Cozy instead; it's a lot cheaper than carefresh and basically the same thing.

by AnonymousMouseOwner Sat 22 Oct 2016, 10:05 am

Artistwolf wrote:You could use Kaytee Clean & Cozy instead; it's a lot cheaper than carefresh and basically the same thing.

Really? I thought they came with the same price-tag, and I have always used CareFresh because it goes on sale a lot, and they send me coupons sometimes Razz

. I will check out the prices of Clean & Cozy.
Edit: From what I'm seeing on Amazon, Walmart, and PetSmart, it is about the same price...?

by CanadianExport Sat 22 Oct 2016, 10:46 am

The one way I have found to get Kaytee Clean and Cozy cheap is to buy online from petco and spend enough to get free shipping. It is always on sale online and it is always free shipping if you spend over $50. Petsmart can also have sales as well online. I think aspen would be fine though, as long as it is not too dusty. That is what I saw used a lot on hamster hideout.

by Artistwolf Sat 22 Oct 2016, 12:22 pm

Really? Oh, sorry, the prices must have changed since last time I checked.

by MesaMouse Sat 22 Oct 2016, 1:03 pm

CanadianExport wrote:The one way I have found to get Kaytee Clean and Cozy cheap is to buy online from petco and spend enough to get free shipping. It is always on sale online and it is always free shipping if you spend over $50. Petsmart can also have sales as well online. I think aspen would be fine though, as long as it is not too dusty. That is what I saw used a lot on hamster hideout.

Sometimes you can catch a Petco online sale with Free Shipping regardless of the dollar amount so it pays to set up a Petco account to receive their sale emails. Re aspen: as CanadianExport noted, a number of hamster parents use it on Hamster Hideout, Hamster House and Hamsterific -- just like paper bedding, you can end up with a dusty batch of aspen and just need to "shake it out" before adding it to tank. I use Clean and Cozy in Imogene's tank and playpen but am thinking of going to aspen for the playpen or perhaps as a mix in both.

Just as a side note, I've now had Imogene for 12 days now so she has gone through 3 estrus cycles (Syrian hams go through estrus every 4 days) and hasn't been stinky at all! I know my allergies haven't deadened my sense of smell because I sure can smell other "unpleasant" things so I must have been very lucky in my choice of ham!

by AnonymousMouseOwner Wed 26 Oct 2016, 10:31 pm

We were kind of in a hurry, but I looked at the syrians while in a pet shop today. They were only $10, I always thought they were $20-$30! But who cares about the price Razz

. They were so cute! I can't wait till I am able to get one. They had about 5 in a 10 gallon tank Worry

. There was a variety of colors, most of them were blonde. I forgot to look if the ones I was watching were male or female, but I didn't get much of a chance to see their personality anyway. Most were sleeping, only one was awake grooming. They were only about the size of a fist, they must have been young, right? They get fairly large, I thought. Anyway, I definitely am looking forward to getting one once I get the proper supplies!

by AnonymousMouseOwner Wed 26 Oct 2016, 11:17 pm

Oh, and, do hamsters NEED a water bottle guard or are they ok without one? I usually make my own water bottle hangers out of some wire. But if needed, I can purchase a water bottle guard. I haven't noticed the mice chewing the water bottle so I've never needed one. They use the same size bottle as the mice, right?

by MesaMouse Thu 27 Oct 2016, 12:21 am

AnonymousMouseOwner wrote:Oh, and, do hamsters NEED a water bottle guard or are they ok without one? I usually make my own water bottle hangers out of some wire. But if needed, I can purchase a water bottle guard. I haven't noticed the mice chewing the water bottle so I've never needed one. They use the same size bottle as the mice, right?

Yes, they can use the same size bottle as mice and yes, they definitely need a metal bottle guard as they chew everything in sight.

When I went shopping for my Syrian girl, I waited until evening (around 7:30) to insure that they'd be awake at PetSmart. Although they had quite a few ladies, all living separately, only Imogene was actually awake and active. By the time I'd held her and decided to take her, a few of the others were also up and grooming. So, if at all possible, try to go see them in the evening so you can get an idea of their personalities, if any are ill/lethargic, etc.

by AnonymousMouseOwner Thu 27 Oct 2016, 12:39 am

The problem is that the pet stores we go to are 45 minutes away. Plus the store that I get all my animals from closes at 8:00 on weekdays and even earlier on weekends. I try to avoid PetCo now because I've gotten sick mice from there. All my mice from the mom and pop store we go to have been super healthy. It is a mom and pop store, but it's super huge, you'd think it's a chain. My dad once got a gecko from PetSmart and it suddenly died for no reason, then he got another one from PetSmart and it was sick, so I'm kind of hesitant to get any animals from there. So my only option basically is to go to my favorite pet store sometime in the afternoon... I do try to look at the animal and handle it to make sure there are no signs of illness before purchasing.

The hamsters were all sleeping together in a giant pile when I was there Love

.

And, oh, ok, I will get a bottle guard Laughing

by Wienermom Sun 30 Oct 2016, 3:53 am

We had two dwarfs when my daughter was small. Sugar and Spice...
Spice was adorable and sweet as can be. Gentle and even-tempered.
Sugar, was the hamster spawn from hell!! Aggressive and a big time biter. But she didn't start out this way. Had to separate them after awhile.
My husband joked when we first got them they were like an old married couple as Sugar started out just going around minding her own business. Spice was ALWAYS right behind her justa yellin'! (he said he knew which was the husband).

by Wienermom Sun 30 Oct 2016, 4:24 am

Idk why, but it isn't posting my entire comment. Must be a limit
Here's the rest! (Hopefully!)
This went on for several months until one night Sugar Lost. His. Censored

.

by Wienermom Sun 30 Oct 2016, 4:25 am

She starts fighting with Spice and they were always going at it and we ended up keeping them separate. And that's when her whole demeanor changed. We could still play with Spice but never again with Sugar.
So I don't think it's the type of hamster you have its more genetics. Or possibly tired of being bullied? Or as BH said, maybe she was RELLY, REALLY upset that they couldnt afford a divorce?!!

by AnonymousMouseOwner Thu 03 Nov 2016, 4:11 am

I've been reading A LOT over on Hamster Hideout, and I've learned a lot. The minimum, according to them, is 450 square inches. Oh and, I also learned they need a lot of bedding, like 8 inches (?), I never knew they burrowed so much like gerbils. I looked at the aspen bedding at a farm store, and they had HUGE bags for $11, however, they were not as finely shredded as the aspen I used to get for the mice (before I knew aspen was not the best for them). Is that ok? If not, is the finer shredded aspen more money, and where can I buy it at the best price?

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