I have had hamsters in the past, and never once did I have a hamster that I liked :?. They all were biters and smelled worst than my rats and rabbits. I always clean cages every 4 days and spot clean inbetween, as well.
For rodents, rats are my top choice. They are just like little dogs.
Bedding: I wouldn't use carefresh. I personally think it is dusty and smells bad once peed on. I used Lavender Soft Sorbent with my mice, and loved it. Aspen works as well.
Wheels: You can either use a plastic covered wheel...such as a Silent Spinner. You could also use the BEST rodent wheel out there.....a Wodent Wheel. You can also use a mesh wheel. You can find all these at a pet store, but you may have to order the Wodent Wheel offline...if you can't find it at a PETsMART.
Food: I would feed a homemade grain mix that I (and many others) use for their rats, mice, and hamsters.
Here is
my grain mixture that my rats are currently on. I based my grain mixture off of other homemade grain mixtures. You can find all the ingredients at the grocery store....
- Wheat Puffs Cereal.
- Total Brand Whole Grain Cereal.
- Sunflower seeds (I use black oil).
- Organic Veggie Pasta.
- Egg Noodles.
- Whole Grain Oats (Quaker or the off-brand, old fashioned, not instant).
- Honey Bunches of Oats (plain kind or the kind with fried fruits).
- Organic Wheat Cheerio's.
- Puffed Rice Cereal.
You will also need to have a staple, such as a lab block. The highest quality lab block that you can get is Harlan Teklad. I suggest ordering Teklad #2018.
You can order it from this site:
http://www.theratshop.com/shop.php?cat=3
If you can't order offline, then the next best thing to get would be Mazuri Lab Blocks. You can get them from PETsMART, but for the price....ordering Harlan offline would be much cheaper and it is of much higher quality.
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER feed your small animals those nasty seed mixes from the pet store. They are full of junk that your animal doesn't need....making them fat and unhealthy. Not to mention, most lose nutrience from sitting on store shelves for so long.
Feeding your small animal a seed mix from the pet store is like you eating McDonald's for breakfast, lunch, and dinner....EVERY day of your life :shock:.
Always remember, a healthy diet leads to a healthier life
.
