So, how to properly care for hamsters? First, let's talk a little about how these animals behave in the wild. The fact is that, organizing its housing, the hamster divides it into zones that are very similar to the rooms in the dwelling of an ordinary person. You will understand this if you observe the hamster for a while. Properly organized dwelling for such an animal, this is where there is a bedroom, near which is a closet and toilet. If you break the location of these "rooms" to your pet, such interference in its space may very much not like. Also, do not move the cage with the hamster from one place to another. It is unreal for nature to move itself by itself. Therefore, hamsters tolerate such "crossings" quite painfully.
It is necessary to clean the cage for a hamster once every three to five days. Try not to break his zone and not bring the animal discomfort. Remember that if you do not do the right thing, the hamster will start to fear everything and serious diseases can develop. The fact is that in the wild, if a hamster takes away a storage room, he can simply die of hunger. Being in a cage, the animal retains its instincts, and if you destroy the pantry or take its supplies, for a hamster this will be a real blow. Therefore, try to clean it properly.
Those who start a hamster for the first time, can be surprised that he constantly drags everything from the feeder into the pantry and asks for more. Do not be afraid that the animal will change or ignore his requests. In fact, the hamster simply believes that he needs to fill the pantry, and only after that he can safely eat. Encourage the wishes of your pet, even if you understand that he behaves funny. It's just an animal that is subject to instincts and does not have the intelligence that a person has. Also, never break his pantry when cleaning. Most often, it looks like a bunch of food, carefully covered with sawdust and paper. From time to time the hamster will move the pantry along the cage, thus hiding and confusing its potential enemies, who could take away the food from it. Do not return the food to its original location. If you constantly produce such "experiments" over an animal, he will stop eating and will run around the cage with food behind his cheeks. You can remove from the cage only the missing foods that your pet can poison.
In order to qualitatively care for the hamster, the general cleaning in his cage needs to be done once a week, a maximum of two. The frequency of cleaning depends on how many pets you have and how large the cage. But, at the same time, try every day to clean the corner in which the hamster has a toilet. Of course, if you do not do this, the hamster will not be particularly affected. But you will have to smell an extremely unpleasant specific hamster smell.
Never remove the cage, leaving the hamster inside. Before you start cleaning, transplant the animal into a container, for example, a three-liter bottle. Only after that start cleaning. First remove the litter and wash the pallet or the aquarium, if the animal has such a "house", water, in which it is first necessary to dilute a small amount of salt, soda or sand. In addition, shampoos can be used to harvest cells, which are designed specifically for the care of rodent housing. The composition of this detergent is harmless to the animal and perfectly copes with the various dirt that can accumulate in the cage for a week. But, no matter how harmless the shampoo is, it is not recommended to wash the animal itself.
It is strictly forbidden to clean cells and aquariums with powders and soaps. A hamster may have an allergy to these substances, or it will simply be poisoned. In addition to the cage, once a week you should thoroughly wash the drinker and make sure that the water in it is always clean and fresh. In order for the hamster to feel comfortable after cleaning, put in the cage a few sawdust and paper taken from the old litter.
For hamsters, the temperature regime is very important. Make sure that the animal is not supercooled or overheated. The ideal temperature for hamsters is from twenty to twenty-two degrees. If it changes more than three to four degrees per day, the hamster can fall into a hibernation.
Animal health is another point that must be observed with proper care. Never do self-medication. Still, it's a rodent, not a man. Therefore, with conventional medicines you can damage your pet and worsen his condition. If you notice that the hamster looks painful, sleeps for a long time, sneezes, itches, immediately take it to the veterinarian. Only a specialist's consultation will help to quickly identify the disease and prevent consequences that will be extremely sad and undesirable.
Always remember that for a hamster you need not only to look after, but also pay attention to it. In fact, rodents are very attached to their masters. Try never to give the animal to someone for a while. Hamsters begin to miss and literally in a few days can die of longing for the owner. Even if other people take care of him properly, fed, patted and played with the animal, this can not produce any result. Attachment of hamsters and other rodents is much stronger than cats and dogs, considered very faithful animals. Therefore, if you are going somewhere, take the cage with your pet with you. It does not take much space, but you will always be sure that your hamster is alive, healthy and happy.