Ways to cool down your hamster in the Summer Months!

Hello everyone! 


Nibbles here, Teddy and I are both so sorry for lack of posting.
Wait till we are off for summer break though and you will see such a difference 
in posting time periods& consistency :D 


Today I am going to talk about ways to cool down your hamster in the summer months! ( Speaking of summer ;) )


While you cannot spray your hamster with water, there are many ways to do other things to make their summer months as enjoyable as yours :-)




Hamsters originated in desert areas such as Syria, but remember they lived in cool burrows deep underground.


Note- Hamsters have very few sweat glands, so helping cooling them down is essential.


Note- Hamsters do best between temperatures of 65F ( 18.33 C ) and 78F 
( 25.56 C )


Hamsters can have many illnesses due to heat, including ; heart attacks,heat stroke, and are susceptible to kidney problems brought on my heat stress.


How To Prevent Hamsters From Becoming Over Heated
 Hamsters should always be kept in rooms where there is good ventilation or air conditioning because they will get sick and they could die if they over heat. If your hamster is sleeping on his back in a different place than usual, he may be trying to cool off. Hamsters will sleep on their backs if they become too warm, trying to get rid of some of the extra body heat through their belly's.


Signs A Pet Hamster May Be Over Heated
An Over heated hamster will be hot to the touch, have an overly warm nose and feet. An over heated hamster might be panting heavily with an open mouth and be lethargic. You might also observe your hamster laying sprawled out in the open with his feet stretched out behind him. Hamsters will do this so they can try to lose some of the heat through the bottom of their feet. They also may not eat or drink much, which can lead to dehydration.


How To Keep A Hamster Cool
During the summer it's important to make sure the room you keep your hamster in cool, even if you aren't home. There are several very effective ways to make sure your hamsters are kept cool in the summer. Most importantly make sure they always have fresh, cool water available to them. Hamsters can become dehydrated very quickly. With animals that are watered via a bottle, make sure the mechanism is functioning properly so that your pet can access the water that is there.


Freeze water bottles and wrap them in small towels or cloths and place them inside the hamsters cage. Wrapping them in a cloth first will absorb the condensation from dripping inside the hamsters cage and make sure if he lays up against the frozen bottle he won't get too cold.


Place their cage on the floor in the coolest part of your home. Tile floors stay cooler longer in the summer months.


Do not keep the hamster cage near or on the window sill or near a window. First of all, hamsters like to sleep during the day and will be bothered by the light and during the summer the area right near the window is going to be warmer than other places in your home.


Don't use a glass aquarium as a cage. Glass aquariums don't allow for air circulation and the inside of a glass aquarium may stay a couple of degree's warmer inside than on the outside. 


Always try to keep the room you have your hamster in at the same temperature. Constantly changing temperatures can stress hamsters and make them more susceptible to becoming sick.




Also another thing I do is put a large mug in Nibbles cage. It is cool so that when she becomes hot she can lay in it. I usually have some raisins or some treat inside for her :-)


Also bring your hamsters outside! It gives them vitamin D from the sun which is very important for them. I usually let Nibbles go on the grass for 15-30minutes. Be aware of dandelions though as these can may your hamster feel a bit ill, but it is not deathly. Nibbles loves to eat daisy's which is fine for your hamster. 


Note- In warm conditions try not to put your hamster in his/her ball inside. It has very limited ventilation holes for breathing and can make your hamster hotter.


These are some photos I took of Nibbles when I brought her out the other day&also the mug I have in her cage :-) Enjoy!

Hope you enjoyed!


Love,

A is For Active

Teddy’s Post!

Hi! I said I would post more often and I never did, did I? So I had an idea that would (hopefully) make me post more.

You probably heard of the April A-Z blog challenge thing, did you? I don’t feel like waiting ‘til April, so I’m gonna do it now. Maybe I won’t get to do it everyday. But I’m gonna keep doing it ‘til it is finished.  But whatever, I’m gonna start with A.                       A is for Active

Yes, hamsters are very active. Did you know they could run up to 7 miles or more on their wheel in one night? (Now you know.)So it is important to have a wheel and a ball for your hamster. I didn’t have a wheel before I got the extension for Teddy’s cage, because there was no room for a wheel along with her other stuff. If I had put a wheel in her cage, there would be no free space there. That’s why I put her in her ball every day. Even if you have a wheel, (which I do now) you should always put the hamster in a ball at least twice a week, so s/he can get used to his/her surroundings. If possible, put him/her in the ball once every day. Only leave the hamster in the ball for a period of 15-20 minutes, but if you don’t have a wheel, or you are cleaning out the cage, 30 minutes is ok. Just be careful, because there is a lot of dangers in your house that could easily harm your hamster.

Always:  

·      Make sure the lid of the ball is secured tightly.You don’t want to find your hamster having a snooze under the sofa!

·      Close all front/back doors, as lots of hamsters have  been seen having a merry roll down the road!

·      Keep an eye on your hamster when s/he is in the ball.

·      Cheak for cracks before you put your hamster in the ball.

Never: 

·      Let a cat or dog near your hammy when s/he is in the ball.This could frighten your hamster and even lead to longterm stress or injury.

·      Put two hamsters in one ball.I’m actully not gonna bother to say how come, because it is just stupidity if you do.

·      Kick your hamster when s/he is in the ball.It could scare your hamster and also lead to longterm stress or injury.

·      Let the hamster ball near the stairs.Once, I had taken Teddy out of the cage and put her in the ball.The door was closed, and I was just cheaking my phone when I heard a loud noise coming from the landing.Teddy had somehow managed to push the door open and tumble down the stairs.Thank goodness she was fine but she was frightened and a little dizzy.

·      Let the hamster ball outside.

Ok, so that was a long post, and I hope this was helpful!Tonight,or tomorrow I’m gonna post about sutible bedding.So, thanks and bye for now!

♥ Teddy 

Reccomended Cages :-)

Hey everyone! Nibbles here ( Or as you can call me :O ) 


Today I'm going to be talking about some of the cages that '' Teddy '' and I recommend. 
First off I'm going to start off by saying my three recommended brands of cages and accessories are : 

• Habitrail.
• Rotastak
• Crittertrail

So what I have for my hamster Nibbles is the Habitrail Ovo Suite. 

I really like this cage because of the space and entertainment it provides for my hamster. 

As you can see above it has the main room at the bottom which contains a wheel that joins onto the 

stairs leading up to the food bowl. And underneath the food bowl is a hidey hut in which your hamster 

can nest. Also the food station and wheel can be taken out.

Then on your left you see the green small area which can be used for anything really e.g. Toilet ; Food storage ; Sand bathing area etc.. Then on the top you see the blue Travel compartment which you detach from the cage so you can use to take it travelling or used when cleaning the cage.  Also on the left you see the blue water bottle. Its a vacuum seal bottle and to vacuum seal it you must shake three times and wait till it stops dripping or it won't stop. 

http://www.habitrail.com/

Rotastak

Rotastak and Habitrail are more the of the same thing. Cages and accessories for hamsters.

Teddy has the Rotastak Tunnel of Fun cage.

As you can see there are three levels to this cage. The main area at the bottom is the biggest space for toys and the small bottle of water. This is also where you get to each floor. Coming out of the bottom cage is the biggest tunnel with a yellow ball for sitting or resting in. This is a wonderful feature to the cage as its act almost like a window so your pet can see. This brings us to the second largest area in this cage. This space has bit of barring over the plastic dome. I think this would be a good area for treats and the food bowl. Then there is the sleeping hut. You can add this just above the bottom floor as shown or make a third floor by adding it over the second floor. Just like every other hiding space its perfect for nesting in. Fill this with bedding and its the perfect place for your hamster to relax.

http://www.myrotastak.co.uk/

CritterTrail - 

Crittertrail is also just like Habitrail and Rotastak. My younger brother also owns a Syrain hamster and he has the CritterTrail Z.

You can see in the picture above that this cage is fun and spaceful. It also consists of three compartments. 

The main bottom floor is spacious and has the corner for the small food bowl , a corner with a small window which you can not see in the photo and a corner in which the water bottle hangs from. Here on this floor I would put the toys and treats owned my your furry little friend. There are two tubes leading to other areas in the cage. The first tunnel I will talk about is the tunnel on the right hand side. This leads up to the green hamster ball that your  hamster can run about in. What I really like about this is that you can detach the hamster ball , secure it with the escape proof door and let your hamster run about on the floor. Now the tunnel on the left leads you to the sleeping area. As I said with the Rotastak cage fill it with bedding and its a cosy place for your hamster to nest. What I like about this is that it opens easily and shuts easily. If you do buy this cage please note not to fill the sleeping area up with too much bedding as the door can open if too full. 

http://www.superpetusa.com

What I love about all of these cages and brands is that all the products are colourful and fun and something you would like to add too and have fun with :-) Highly recommended :D

♥Nibbles xxx

The First Post!

Teddy's post!


Ok,you can call me  Teddy,(in honour of my hamster)and welcome to our FIRST  post!Well,I hope you all had a great Hallowe'en,and I'm pretty sure it's time to be stocking up for the winter.So fill your CHEEK POUCHES with this handy winter info for your hammy!

• If you live in a place where it snows or freezes during the winter,it would be probably be best to stock up on bedding,sleeping fluff and food for your hamster.This prevents starvation if you run out of food and don't have access to anywhere close.
• Before the weather is bad,buy a few bottles of bottled water.This isn't just for you,but if the pipes freeze,it will mean your pet won't have anything to drink.So if you use bottled water,your hammy won't be left thirsty,and you can leave the water without changing it for around 2-3 days.
• Keep hammy-boo in a warm place.Hamsters can fall in a deep,coma-like sleep if their body temperature falls below around 5.C (41.F) which is like hibernation.To prevent this,keep his cage in a warm place,and wrap blankets around the cage.If the hamster goes into ''hibernation'',put his cage in a warm,dark place and leave it their for a few hours.Just before you turn the heating on at full blast,they can get heat stroke(I know,it's ridiculous since it's winter)in surroundings above 20.C(68.F).

Ok,theres a few facts,if you need help,just comment!

♥ Teddy!

(Sources:Hamster Family Pet Guide,by David Alderton.)