Hi from Loki and I!

[Heamic08]

Hello!

I have a black haired Syrian hamster named Loki.

I had another blonde haired Syrian hamster named Thor, but sadly he passed away a couple months ago (he was my favorite hamster i’ve ever had- SUCH a sweetie!!)

Loki is around a year and a half! He’s more of a “watch” hamster as he doesn’t like to be held, doesn’t like to be interacted with. I got him from someone, so he wasn’t treated right. I think that’s why he’s so skittish.

He has tried to bite but hasn’t bitten me yet, so I don’t interact with him as much. I pet him, which he likes sometimes!

He’s in a big bin cage (it’s not the minimum enclosure requirements, but not the biggest enclosure!) I would like some tips on how to make his cage better. He doesn’t go on his wheel as much anymore- I don’t know if it’s age or not. He has a niteangel 12.8 silent wheel… He also has a sand bath which he LOVES!

Thanks for letting us join!

 

[Maz]

Hello and welcome. I am so sorry to hear about Thor - it's so hard when they leave us. Is that Loki in your Avatar? He looks so cute! I love black Syrians . Do you have any idea how old he might be? When our Syrians have got older I've usually adjusted the cage so they can't fall from anything - eg removed shelves or platforms and had everything at substrate level. But it depends how active he is and a low-ish platform can be ok for a while. It's unusual for a hamster to stop using a wheel. Assume it spins ok and isn't too stiff? Sometimes they only use it at night when you're asleep and it's dark. You could test that by putting a bit of paper substrate or strip of toilet paper on top of the wheel before you go to bed and see if it's gone in the morning.

You probably know that they find cage changes stressful so if he's happy in his bin cage and it's a decent size (which it sounds like) and he's getting older, then maybe just some tweaks and additions to his cage could make his old age better. Do you have a photo of it?

I have a rescue Syrian who also didn't like hands - he will now let me pick him up (without biting me!) but doesn't like being held still. He will sit in the crook of my arm for a minute or two though for a stroke! It took time for him to get this way though and I had to wear gloves when handling him at first.

 

[Heamic08]

Hello and welcome. I am so sorry to hear about Thor - it's so hard when they leave us. Is that Loki in your Avatar? He looks so cute! I love black Syrians . Do you have any idea how old he might be? When our Syrians have got older I've usually adjusted the cage so they can't fall from anything - eg removed shelves or platforms and had everything at substrate level. But it depends how active he is and a low-ish platform can be ok for a while. It's unusual for a hamster to stop using a wheel. Assume it spins ok and isn't too stiff? Sometimes they only use it at night when you're asleep and it's dark. You could test that by putting a bit of paper substrate or strip of toilet paper on top of the wheel before you go to bed and see if it's gone in the morning.

You probably know that they find cage changes stressful so if he's happy in his bin cage and it's a decent size (which it sounds like) and he's getting older, then maybe just some tweaks and additions to his cage could make his old age better. Do you have a photo of it?

I have a rescue Syrian who also didn't like hands - he will now let me pick him up (without biting me!) but doesn't like being held still. He will sit in the crook of my arm for a minute or two though for a stroke! It took time for him to get this way though and I had to wear gloves when handling him at first.

Hi! Yes, Loki is in my avatar!

I think he’s around a year and a half- but not sure. I’ve had him for over a year. I know he was on his wheel last night cause I saw him.

I will take a picture of the enclosure when I get home!

I will try the gloves! When I do spot cleans on his enclosure he lets me pet him and doesn’t try to actively come and bite me like he first used to when I got him, so it is definitely an improvement!!

 

[RainbowBrite]

Hello and welcome. It is lovely to have you here. I am very sorry to hear of Thors passing. Loki is so beautiful. I think it is very positive Loki likes being pet sometimes. My hamster only comes out when I am not around.

 

[Maz]

They are sometimes very different out of the cage than in it. Even when our Syrian was out of the cage, he would bite or threaten to if I put my hand near him - except when he was on the same level as me (eg sitting on the sofa) - I could kind of slide a hand under him there. They often don't like things coming from above. If he's about 18 months then technically yes he's getting older but some of them live until about two and a half or even longer. But they can slow down a bit.

 

[Maz]

When our first Syrian got older and couldn't climb (stiff back legs). I just added a few things at floor level - like a cork log that was an interesting texture - it was something he could climb over without hurting himself and a nice big tunnel he could go through as well.

 

[Member ID2]

Hello and welcome to the forum!

So sorry to hear of Thor's passing. It's awful when they leave us but our happy memories will live on.

Strangely enough, our Syrians don't use their wheels much in their cages but they use the ones in the playground when out of their cages. The older and rattlier the better.
One hamster after another of course.

Yes, let us have a look at your set up to see if there's anything you could add.

 

[Maz]

I just wanted to add, Loki may behave differently now you just have the one Syrian. When I had two Syrians at the same time I found it difficult to give them both enough attention. And the more gregarious one tended to get the most attention. My other one (Moo - he was black and white) was more shy and didn't like being handled much. They were both shy actually but Moo was the shyer of the two.

Anyway when they're the only hamster they sometimes bond with you a bit more. They can also sense when you're sad I reckon and be quite a comfort.

 

[Coco61]

Hi and welcome here. Loki is a lovely looking hamster and lucky to have found such a caring home with you.
Sorry about Thor as he sounds like he was your real heart ham.

 

[Riven]

Hello and welcome! Loki looks so sweet. Sorry to hear about Thor. Feel free to post about him in the rainbow bridge section when you are ready.

We can give you ideas on what to add to Loki's cage. Just upload a photo

 

[Maz]

Don’t worry we won’t be critical about his cage set up! Just offer ideas for his old age