How to keep a hamster cool

[Hank]

I've tried to find this, but would appreciate some advice. It's getting pretty hot where I am, and I was wondering what is an acceptable temperature for a hamster, there seems to be varying advice on this? What are the best ways to keep her cool and what signs to watch out for, that she is getting too hot?
Thank you

 

[elusive]

A fan can help but not aimed directly at the cage.
You can also try putting something like a tile or even the sand bath in the fridge for a while then put that in the cage.
If there’s any direct sunlight in the room it’s best to keep the windows & curtains closed too.

 

[RainbowBrite]

You can do things like put any ceramic or terracotta hides in the fridge and give them to Jas when they are cold. You could try putting her sand in the fridge and putting it back in her sand box when that is cool. You could get a marble tile or what is known as a cooling tile for her to sit or lie on.

 

[Maz]

I sometimes alternate two mugs between the fridge and the cage. A ceramic mug on its side is a cool place to go and sit. You can also put a bag of frozen peas on top of the cage for a cooling effect (you might need to alternate two bags of frozen peas if they defrost quickly!). Although watch for her chewing at the bag through the bars - if she can get up there. I haven't heard of that being an issue yet. Or maybe sit the bag of peas on something like a piece of paper so she can't chew the bag directly through the bars.

In addition to the fan and other things mentioned (if you have a fan, which I don't).

Sometimes they abandon the nest and either lie in the open or sit in a ceramic hide if they feel too hot.

 

[Maz]

Thank you for starting the thread Hank - I'm going to sticky it for future reference

 

[Hank]

Thank you for the ideas

 

[Hank]

I know you can't give ice, but is fridge cold water okay?

 

[Maz]

Hmm. It's probably ok. We tend to keep our bottled water in the fridge anyway but if it's extremely cold it could be a bit too cold. Definitely not ice cold water as that could lead to shock. It's better to cool the environment rather than the water in my opinion.

 

[elusive]

I wouldn’t give very cold water either, they don’t drink much anyway even when it’s hot so it probably wouldn’t help & could be too much if they drink it.
If you’ve got spare water bottles you can fill them with chilled water & attach them to the outside of the bars to help create a cool spot.

 

[Hank]

I wouldn’t give very cold water either, they don’t drink much anyway even when it’s hot so it probably wouldn’t help & could be too much if they drink it.
If you’ve got spare water bottles you can fill them with chilled water & attach them to the outside of the bars to help create a cool spot.

That's a great idea, hadn't thought of that

 

[Member ID2]

I give a tiny piece of chilled water melon which they seem to appreciate. It's like us eating an ice cream which is a welcome treat but doesn't cool us down.

 

[Maz]

I remember one year it was incredibly hot and I couldn't get the room cool and it was an open plan room with kitchen at one end - and I just left the fridge door open! Not a great idea if you have a lot of food in the fridge, but I didn't at the time and what was there stayed cold enough for a few hours!

 

[Member ID2]

Thank you for this thread, Hank. It reminded me to put Clive's tile back in.

 

[Maz]

The heat doesn't seem to be making Raffy lethargic lol! Our house does seem to stay quite cool inside though as it's old with thick walls and not very big windows.

 

[Lovelyness]

It looks like it's going to be pretty hot next week (at least it is in the south east of England) I'm going to be out at work on a couple of the days so won't be able to use a fan for Blossom. I'll leave the curtains closed to reduce heat, and I'm going to the garage in a bit to hunt for some tiles...I know I have a box of them in there! Any other ideas, given that I'm going to be out during the hottest part of the day? I read about putting a mug in the cage...what about the handle? I don't want her getting her head stuck!

 

[Socks Mum]

Pyrex should stay cool for a bit, or a plate. I think they lose heat from ears and paws. I've ordered some Scratch and Newton cooling pods, just ice pods really. You can get cool pods with chemical gel in them, but have to keep them where they can't be chewed or risk leaking

 

[Lovelyness]

Looks like the ice pods need to be in the cage so they can sit on them. I think we all know what Miss B would do with it

 

[Maz]

That's a good point about a mug handle - although I think the handles on our mugs have quite large gaps and there'd be no risk of a head getting stuck Instead of a mug on it's side, some people use a terracotta plant pot on it's side, if you have one of those.

I think during the day she'd be ok as they're asleep. However, if it's very hot the night before they can decide to sleep put in the open somewhere.

 

[Lovelyness]

Blossom now has a couple of tiles in her cage, on top of platforms. I left her rodipet ceramic toilet empty too as I thought it would be an extra place she could go to cool down (NB she is no longer using it to pee in!). This clearly wasn’t correct tho as Blossom herself put some bedding in lol

 

[Maz]

Ha ha. Well of course she did If they see an empty thing they fill it She can always take the bedding out again if she feels like it. Our house stays quite cool inside on hot days so it would have to be really hot for the hamsters to be affected.