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charlie (a.k.a ricky rat) says hello!

  • Thread starter Thread starter charlieqhel
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charlieqhel

Hi! I'm a new hamster owner and this is Charlie. I just got him yesterday and he's staying in a temporary enclosure for now as I'm currently making him a better and bigger one. I'm making sure to play with him as much as I can so until he moves to his new enclosure. He is a sweet and playful boy. He is still scared of me but he is slowly beginning to trust me. Tips would be appreciated!! I'm trying to make him live the best life :)

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Hello and welcome.
He is such a gorgeous little boy.
There are quite a few tips on the home page on taming, but if you have only just got him, he is probably settling in and just needs some time to adjust.
Can't wait to see and hear more about him
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. Charlie is lovely, looking forward to hearing more about him.

Sorry I can't resist "Charlie says always tell your mummy before you go off somewhere" (One for those who were partying in the 90's)
 
He is so sweet! He looks tiny. How old is he? I would definitely let him settle and get used to you before upgrading him.
 
Maz said:
He is so sweet! He looks tiny. How old is he? I would definitely let him settle and get used to you before upgrading him.
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He is about 2-3 months old. I'll be sure he feels safe before he moves!
 
Steve said:
Hello and welcome to the forum. Charlie is lovely, looking forward to hearing more about him.

Sorry I can't resist "Charlie says always tell your mummy before you go off somewhere" (One for those who were partying in the 90's)
Click to expand...
Thank you! We will make a visit to the vet for his legs soon (he can't use them), I'm just waiting until he feels safe with me.
 
Hank said:
Hello and welcome.
He is such a gorgeous little boy.
There are quite a few tips on the home page on taming, but if you have only just got him, he is probably settling in and just needs some time to adjust.
Can't wait to see and hear more about him
Click to expand...
Thank you! I'm letting him explore his home and around my room (with me watching of course) for now.
 
Oh poor Charlie, what's wrong with his legs, has he hurt himself?
 
Unfortunately, he hasn't been using his back legs since I got him in his home. I don't know what caused it...
 
It was in another thread Steve. She found his legs didn't work when she got him from a not particularly great place.

I wonder if he is a runt. He looks quite small and I've known of a runt with back leg problems before. What does he weigh?
 
I had an elderly robo with mobility problems once and what I did in the end was use hemp mat on top of normal substrate. The normal substrate underneath was to give cushioning and raise everything to normal height, plus it meant I could push things down in the substrate so the entry was at floor level, and cut the hemp mat around it. It was a reasonably firm level surface to get about on - they can struggle to walk on squishy substrate. But I left one corner with a gap in the hemp mat in case he decided he wanted to dig :-) He didn't bother digging and loved his set up as he could get about quicker. I'll see if I can find a photo.

You might find a really large cage isn't suitable for him either. Something at least 80cm x 50cm would be good though.
 
Here are the photos. Rodipet sells hemp mat. You can get quite a large piece and cut it to the shape and size you want. So although it made a level surface, it didn't necessarily need to be flat. His multiroom house was on the floor of the cage and I scooped out some bedding in front of the entrance so he had a hemp "ramp" sloping up either side of the house entrance onto the main hemp mat level, which also enabled him to get up onto the house roof without having to climb as the hemp mat sloped up to the house roof. The hammock was hanging low on a level with the house roof so a) he could just walk into it and b) it made a kind of roof/dark area over his house entrance. He was quite old and I wasn't worried about him chewing the hammock and he didn't attempt to. He absolutely loved it - he would sit in the middle layer and eat his veg and snacks.

I cut out two or three large pieces with cut outs around the wheel base and saucer base and sand bath so they were low for him to get into (they were pushed down into the substrate underneath).

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Thanks Maz.
Sorry charliechql, I have just caught up on the other thread. Poor Charlie, how great that you have taken him in to look after him. Get well soon little hamster.
 
He is very cute! I hope he gets the use of his back legs again soon
 
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Hi Maz!
Thank you for your suggestions and inspos, I'll figure out what's suitable for him. Also, I don't think he is a runt. The lovely boy was one of the biggest babies in his cage. I'm thinking that he might be even younger than 2 months old, considering how small he is.
And I have happy news! He is attempting to use his left leg; Not while he runs, but while walking. He is quite active and curious, I have high hopes that he is going to be okay. Thank you for everything. I'll make sure to update if anything happens.
 
Ah that's great news! I'm wondering if he's under 6 weeks old maybe but it's hard to tell from the photo.
 
Here's another photo of him. I gave him a pinch sized carrot piece to enjoy. He might be under 6 weeks old by the fact that he sleeps too much. He is a destroyer when he wakes up, though, that's why I assume he is healthy. And I know the bedding here is TOO little; I made some tall areas of bedding in case he wants to dig but he doesn't seem interested so far.
 

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He's very sweet :-) He's probably hiding away a bit. It can take them a good two weeks to feel confident in a cage and that can be quite a special moment when they are suddenly out and about more and looking happy and confident and enjoying their environment. Once they've "claimed" it and familiarised with it. I wouldn't worry about too much bedding at this stage especially when he's still not quite there with his legs.
 
His pictures are beautiful ❤️ It's great to hear that he is improving and using a hind leg, that looks very positive!
 
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Great update re his trying to use his left back leg. He really is a beautiful looking hamster.
 
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