New hamster owner needs help!

[uwu]

I am a new hamster owner and I am really worried for our little guy. We picked him up from P@H on Tuesday - he was the last male Syrian, he had been put out the back because he was a little older than the others and had started getting into fights. When we brought him home, he was super curious and brave - straight out the carrier, sniffing around, trying out his wheel, generally being inquisitive about his new surroundings. We didn't approach him with hands, just tried to get him used to us by talking to him.

Since then, we have barely seen him. He pops out for a quick drink around 10pm most nights, but he is very skittish and zooms back down his tunnel immediately. Other than that, we haven't seen him at all. My partner tried to offer a pistachio to him last night by "pinch feeding", but hammy was off down the tunnel. We haven't been able to have any out-of-cage time, which means I still haven't done any cleaning. I keep checking the corners and his multi-chamber hide, but there's no damp substrate that I can easily access and remove.

This is his enclosure - its a 120cm x 50cm x 50cm glass tank. On the right-hand side he has 12" of bedding which gradually tapers down to 5-6" on the left-hand side. He has chews, hides, toys, a sandbath, additional substrates, a 33cm Trixie wheel, lots of foraging salad, etc. However, I can tell that a lot of the stuff hasn't even been touched. In case anyone is concerned, the radiator behind the tank is not used! We usually have a cardboard topper on the right-hand side to give a bit of overhead cover.



Do we have a ghost hamster? Is there anything I can do for him? I have tried so hard to do all the research and give him the best possible home, but he seems so scared and jittery, I don't know what to do. Any feedback or advice would be much appreciated. Thank you

 

[RainbowBrite]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Firstly, I just wanted to say how impressed I am by the size of your tank.

It is perfectly normal for a hamster to be shy and take time to feel comfortable coming out so please do not worry. You have not even had him for one week so everything will be new to him. Hamsters are prey animals and it can take them time to feel comfortable. He is suddenly in a new home with new people so it will take time for him to adjust.

You may like to get a camera so you can find out what he gets up to. I find that really helps to reassure me. What is his name?

 

[Daisy]

Hello,

Congratulations on your new hamster!

This behaviour is quite normal for a new hamster (especially Syrian). In the beginning they are very interested in exploring their new environment but once it's all explored they feel able to relax and can become quite reclusive. I would recommend scattering some of his food around the cage to encourage him to be active, and leave some treats or fresh vegetables for him as well (make sure they're gone in the morning so you know he has been out at least).

I prefer to think of "ghost hamster" as the name of a behaviour, not necessarily a personality. So hamsters can act like ghost hamsters at one point and become more outgoing later in life. Some hamsters are always more reclusive than others. Your hamster probably just needs more time to settle in and might not always be a ghost hamster.

It's very early days for any spot cleaning so don't worry about that just yet. I'd give it two weeks at minimum but maybe longer if the tank doesn't smell at all.

Many people like to get motion activated cameras to set up near the cage, so they can see what the hamster has been up to overnight.

 

[elusive]

Hello & welcome to the forum.

You have made a lovely home for your hamster.

As the others have said this is normal for a hamster, it’s still very early days. I just talk to mine sitting by the cage even when they’re not out so they get used to my voice but other than that give them time to make themselves at home & begin to feel secure.
I wouldn’t check his house for a while yet as you want him to feel safe & be undisturbed in there.
Just give it some time & he will begin to emerge.

 

[Frida]

Hello and welcome to the forum

Your hamster's home looks great. Time and patience is the key to getting to know your new hamster friend.

What's your hamster's name?

 

[elusive]

Just to add about out of cage time, don’t be in any hurry.
Take it one step at a time, let him get confident just with you being around for a while before you begin to interact with him, just talking is enough to start with.
Once he gets a bit more confident you can try offering a treat from your hand in the cage, just keep your hand still & let him come to you, might take a little while but he will get there.
Once he’s comfortable with that then you can try taking him out to a safe area for a short while & gradually move on from there.
They’re all a bit different & some gain confidence more quickly than others but if you go at his pace you will probably make better progress.

 

[Maz]

Hello and welcome As the others have said, it's perfectly normal. It's only been a few days. Syrian hamsters can take 10 days to 2 weeks to fully settle into a cage and feel confident. Even if he was "a bit older" he could still be a baby, and they get frightened easily until they've fully settled in.

It's just time and patience. He needs time to scent mark everything in his cage to make it his own, and to adjust to a whole new environment with new smells etc. Talking to him through the cage is a good start, so he gets used to your voice and presence. Also some people do tissue scenting as well. Putting a few sheets of plain white toilet paper up your sleeve eg and leave it there for a while, then tear each sheet into strips and put the toilet paper strips in the cage in a pile - maybe near where he's nesting. He will pouch and take the strips to line his nest and they will have your scent on.

He is probably coming out at night, exploring, when he feels safe and it's his normal active time.

It really is just time and patience until he feels confident. You can actually visibly see a change in them by about 10 days when they can seem a bit more gung ho and confident.

So do the talking and toilet paper for a few days. Put food out around the same time early evening (he will get in the habit of coming out for his food). I also put the daily veg on a separate dish furthest away from the house or nest, to encourage them to get used to crossing the cage (they can't resist the smell of the veg). Although a scared baby hamster may still wait till the lights are out!

I am not keen on the term ghost hamster personally and don't think there is such a thing. A lot can be about environment and timing. They do all have different personalities and some will be much more gregarious and others more lazy. Male hamsters can sometimes be more "stay at home types" (having said that I have one who is the other extreme!), so getting them in the habit of coming out for food early evening is a good start, because as the hamster gains confidence and gets into that routine of coming out at feeding time, it's an opportunity to offer them a "taxi" (eg a tube) to walk into to have some out of cage time in a playpen or other safe enclosed area, when you can start doing some hand taming and the hamster will get more familiar with you. It's about familiarity, and also building trust.

Generally, most hamsters don't like a hand in the cage anyway as it's their territory. They can behave completely differently out of the cage.

I'd give it another week before tempting him out for out of cage time. It can be frustrating, but he will hear you if you talk to him!

 

[Member ID2]

Hello and welcome to the forum!

Everything has already been said and there's nothing to worry. Give him time and stock up on patience.

I love your enclosure and set up but hope that you have a meshed lid to cover it.

 

[uwu]

Thank you everyone for your advice - and for welcoming me to the forum It's reassuring to hear that this is pretty normal behaviour.

We were really lucky to see him venture out for a little longer yesterday, he was very interested in some new chews I had added. And this morning, I see that the cauliflower floret is missing Hopefully, with time, he will soon feel more at ease in his new home.

And I totally forgot to mention, his name is Bean!

 

[RainbowBrite]

Bean is such a cute name. It is lovely he has been out for a little longer and is enjoying the chews and cauliflower.

 

[Zara]

Hi and welcome to the forum. Bean is a fabulous name. Lots of helpful info already given above. I’m sure in time he will start to show himself more and you can start taming, he’s just settling in at the mo

 

[elusive]

Good to hear he’s getting a little braver & you’ve seen more of him.
Bean is a really sweet name.

 

[Frida]

Bean is a cute name. Glad you've seen a little more of him. It will take time and patience but it will be well worth the wait

 

[Jain]

Thank you everyone for your advice - and for welcoming me to the forum It's reassuring to hear that this is pretty normal behaviour.

We were really lucky to see him venture out for a little longer yesterday, he was very interested in some new chews I had added. And this morning, I see that the cauliflower floret is missing Hopefully, with time, he will soon feel more at ease in his new home.

And I totally forgot to mention, his name is Bean!

As Bean has already started to show himself abeit briefly I think this is a sign he is going to be fine and you will get the pleasure of his company its early days and hard to be patient I know I've been there and used to be concerned that I had a hamster that I would never see 5 months later totally different story by the way I didn't have to wait that long he just gradually got better and better at interacting with us

 

[Hamster Haven]

Welcome! We have Cinnamon, a male Syrian, and he is a bit more reclusive like Bean, but very gentle as well, which you may find Bean to be once he is acclimated. For comparision, we've had Cinnamon since April 1st, and he was about 2 months old, I think, when we got him. Cinnamon will often stay hidden when we are around, but a few nights a week we can tempt him, using food, into a "transport" (for us it's an upside down plastic igloo). When we transfer him to a pet play pen or a section of the room that is protected against escape with plastic barriers, we let him explore for awhile and he's become comfortable being picked up and held for a 10 seconds or so (he doesn't get upset after that, just wants to keep moving around). Cinnamon only lasts about 20 minutes or so before I can tell that he wants to escape or retreat to a hideaway, which I use as a cue to bring him back to his cage. He'll often take any treats we've given him back into his hideaway then, but he'll pop his head out for a few seconds if I offer him an extra treat at the entrance to his hideaway. I put a camera up on some nights, as others have mentioned, so I can see that he's very active on his wheel and foraging for several hours a night. I used to keep it up nightly, but now that I've seen his routine regularly, I only do it once in awhile. It's a great option, especially in the beginning if you're not seeing Bean much, or if you have to have someone look after him if you leave for a few days. Can't wait to hear more! Start a "diary" for Bean in the Syrian section of the forum if you wish so that we can follow your progress!