Anyone own a hamster?

Spot In The Sky

Im 24 and thinking about getting one.
Any advice or warnings?
What is like the average monthly cost? How often do they have to see the vet?

PJaddicted

We had a couple of them when my sons were young. I find them adorable. I think the biggest cost will be getting a nice set up so it has a interesting life. We had a habitrail. It is a large cage with lots of plastic tunnels. Our hamsters also were taken out of the cage a lot and played with. Food is very cheap. You have to clean the cage often as they do smell. They don't live long, and none of ours ever went to the vet. We had Guinna Pigs that did have to go...they got cancer.

dawng

We had a hamster for about six months.

Stinky cage - constantly needed cleaning...and when the hamster got out it wanted to pee all over everything. Not pleasant.

Squeaky wheels - I swear we couldn't get that hamster a wheel that didn't squeak loud enough that our kid was in our bed instead of his room because it was too loud...which is how the hamster ended up in the garage.

Note - the garage is too cold for a hamster.

We now have frogs - and other than the fact that you have to buy them crickets every week or so and they do 'chirp' at night - they are very nice. You can't pet them - but they don't stink either. We got a terrarium and filled it with plants and a waterfall.

With the hamster and pretty much any other small pet - you'll have about $100-200 up front costs and minimal costs going forward. Have fun!

dunkman

they are extremely high maintenance... plus the noise of them on that wee fucking wheel will eventually drive you insane and then you'll snap and use a stale loaf to beat it to death.

i used to have a bison...

same thing happened to it.

sickgirl

My sister had two, but they started to attack and eat each other, seriously. It was really disturbing and ever since just thinking about hamsters creeps me out. Whatever you do don't get more than one.

WildChildRose

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfqNXADl3kU

Sian-of-the-dead

I've had several hamsters... here's a few things I learnt...

- They don't live long (one died from change of environment, one had lymph cancer and another died shortly after getting her home from the pet store... she went to sleep and just didn't wake up :? )
- They're nocturnal, therefore uninteresting during the day
- They get cranky and bite if you wake them up
- The wheel will indeed, drive you insane. As will the 'click click clicky' of the bottle as they drink
- They chew through even the toughest of cages
- They stink
- They wee/poo on everything

In the end I gave up and got a rat... He was awesome and lived for nearly 5 years. He didn't smell nearly as much as my hamsters, he was intelligent, woke when I got home from work and he was very sociable. If I were honest, I'd like another rat but now we have two killing machines in the shape of two male cats under the age of 1... Get a rat... I recommend rats... :geek:

Brony

they dont compare..

Wobbie

I had a bunch of 'em when I was a kid. Every single one was named Bengie.

They're cute...little twitchy nose, etc.

Mine never got a vet trip...just a dirt nap in a shoebox and then off to the pet store for another.

justam

Spot In The Sky wrote:

Im 24 and thinking about getting one.
Any advice or warnings?
What is like the average monthly cost? How often do they have to see the vet?

We've had hamsters before. They don't cost much, but they don't live long either. Food and bedding...$20 a month. They're also not very interactive.

We have guinea pigs and a chinchilla now. They're a bit bigger, and a lot more fun. They also live longer and cost more. They have to go to the vet once a year.

so-much-clearer

Don't get a dwarf hamster, they're less friendly and need constant taming. Get the teddy bear kind (Syrian I think).

I had one but I liked having rats better...

Drop The Leash 10

they dont eat, dont sleep

Drowned Out

I had one as a kid. Actually, two....then more. they (in)breed, imagine that. and yes, they eat their young too...
We kept one...I thought it liked to jump on the bed with me....turns out...not so much.

They're cute lil rodents, but personally...any caged pet is more hassle than they're worth, if your spare time is valuable...once the novelty wears off, it can become a chore pretty quick...if you're thinking hamster b/c you can't get a dog or cat, or as a first pet for kids - to teach them responsibility, life lessons, whatever....go for a goldfish instead...in a bowl, not a tank. a pet is a pet, you're stuck with the thing no matter what you get. a goldfish can go away quickly and easily if the experiment is a failure. If you decide you don't like the hamster, you have to get a snake, then it's the whole old lady who swallowed a fly thing
good luck.

Drowned Out

and ya I agree with whoever said rats make much better pets.... if you have your heart set on a caged rodent, they're pretty intelligent lil buggers, actually.

ZiggyStar

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

dunkman

ZiggyStar wrote:

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

you guys have gigantic spiders and killer fish... be happy with your lot!

ZiggyStar

dunkman wrote:

ZiggyStar wrote:

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

you guys have gigantic spiders and killer fish... be happy with your lot!

Where I live in north-east Australia, we get killer sharks, man eating crocodiles, a ridiculous number of poisonouse snakes, deadly spiders AND stingers in the ocean that kill grown men with one sting! I want to buy a block of land on an island and I'll have to content with ALL those!! Maybe not the crocs all the time...but there was one swimming near the island a few months ago until they caught it and killed it. :shock:

But we're tough where I live!

South of Seattle

ZiggyStar wrote:

dunkman wrote:

ZiggyStar wrote:

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

you guys have gigantic spiders and killer fish... be happy with your lot!

Where I live in north-east Australia, we get killer sharks, man eating crocodiles, a ridiculous number of poisonouse snakes, deadly spiders AND stingers in the ocean that kill grown men with one sting! I want to buy a block of land on an island and I'll have to content with ALL those!! Maybe not the crocs all the time...but there was one swimming near the island a few months ago until they caught it and killed it. :shock:

But we're tough where I live!

ZiggyStar

South of Seattle wrote:

Fucking tragedy that is!!! Very very very very fucking sad. He used to catch a lot of crocs near where I live.

PearlOfAGirl

That's probably one of the few animals we never had as a pet.

Thoughts_Arrive

ZiggyStar wrote:

dunkman wrote:

ZiggyStar wrote:

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

you guys have gigantic spiders and killer fish... be happy with your lot!

Where I live in north-east Australia, we get killer sharks, man eating crocodiles, a ridiculous number of poisonouse snakes, deadly spiders AND stingers in the ocean that kill grown men with one sting! I want to buy a block of land on an island and I'll have to content with ALL those!! Maybe not the crocs all the time...but there was one swimming near the island a few months ago until they caught it and killed it. :shock:

But we're tough where I live!

Queenslander ay?

dunkman

ZiggyStar wrote:

dunkman wrote:

ZiggyStar wrote:

I always wanted a hamster because you can't get them here in Australia....now I'm glad we can't.

you guys have gigantic spiders and killer fish... be happy with your lot!

Where I live in north-east Australia, we get killer sharks, man eating crocodiles, a ridiculous number of poisonouse snakes, deadly spiders AND stingers in the ocean that kill grown men with one sting! I want to buy a block of land on an island and I'll have to content with ALL those!! Maybe not the crocs all the time...but there was one swimming near the island a few months ago until they caught it and killed it. :shock:

But we're tough where I live!

geek fact no.1

you dont have a lot of poisonous snakes.... you have a lot of venomous snakes.... poisonous snakes are snakes which if you eat would kill you or hurt you... venomous snakes is different.

go bamboozle all of your friends with this newly attained knowledge... they will be forever in your debt

ZiggyStar

dunkman wrote:

geek fact no.1

you dont have a lot of poisonous snakes.... you have a lot of venomous snakes.... poisonous snakes are snakes which if you eat would kill you or hurt you... venomous snakes is different.

go bamboozle all of your friends with this newly attained knowledge... they will be forever in your debt

Ahhhh, get fucked!

ZiggyStar

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

Queenslander ay?

Townsville, North Queensland to be precise!

Thoughts_Arrive

ZiggyStar wrote:

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

Queenslander ay?

Townsville, North Queensland to be precise! [/quote]

Carn Cowboys!

Carn Storm!

ZiggyStar

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

ZiggyStar wrote:

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

Queenslander ay?

Townsville, North Queensland to be precise!

Carn Cowboys!

Carn Storm!

LOL!

Spot In The Sky

the hamster would be for me- ive never had a pet and want something fun.
the worst news im reading on here is that the cage smells so you have to change it often- how much of a hassle is that part? how long does it take? how often do you ahve to do it?

dawng

Spot In The Sky wrote:

the hamster would be for me- ive never had a pet and want something fun.
the worst news im reading on here is that the cage smells so you have to change it often- how much of a hassle is that part? how long does it take? how often do you ahve to do it?

honestly - they're not that much fun...I am enjoying the frogs much more. I've known folks who have had rats before and they weren't as bad...

cage - if you don't want it to smell, you have to change at least the area they use for the bathroom daily - and then clean out the entire cage weekly - as in put the rodent somewhere else, empty the whole thing out, and clean it with soap and then refill.

STOP!!! Don't do it!

adropinthepark

I had a couple as a kid.

They are stinky SOBs. I don't remember the wheel ever bothering me, but I did have to get used to getting bit straight through my finger. OUCH.

They're cute with their buggy little eyes and quieter than guinea pigs - at least mine were.

dunkman

seeing as they seem to die a lot... i wonder if i could use this as an excuse to get some days of work... you know like dog-owners do?

I cant come in today boss... my hamster died.

Jennytree

I've not much experience with hamsters, but I live with two degu squirrels and a rabbit. The squirrels are hyper, and stay in the cage. They have a wheel too, but we're well used to the squeakyness of it. They don't smell as long as you clean the cage out every week or two. Very easy to look after really - you can play with them when you like, and ignore them when you like as there's two of them and they keep each other company. Easy to feed too.

The rabbit lives in a cage in the kitchen. He's also very clean, and needs his cage cleaned every week but the litter tray should be cleaned every day or two as he won't use it if it's messy. He's beginning to run around the kitchen now when we let him out. He loves it! He enjoys carrots, basil and apples