Hamster Care Sheet

Hamsters are short-tailed, stocky rodents with a lot of personality.  

They can make wonderful companions, but it’s important to provide them with proper diet, housing, vet care, and enrichment to help them live their best happiest hammy life. 

What Hamster Supplies Do You Need?

To keep their hamster happy and healthy, pet parents should have these basic supplies on hand:  

• Appropriately sized enclosure 

• High-quality pelleted food 

• Treats

• Water and water bottle 

• Food bowl 

• Hideouts and nest boxes 

• Toys and chews  

• Tubes 

• Hamster wheel 

• Hamster-safe veggies and fruits (to offer as an occasional treat) 

• Soft, hamster-safe bedding 

Hamster Handling

Hamsters who are stressed or scared will readily bite and care must be taken with handling them. Holding your hamster with a soft blanket or towel may be helpful. 

It’s also important to now wake a sleeping hamster because they often become scared and will bite accidentally.

Well-socialized and unstressed hamsters can be carried in two cupped hands. 

They are very active and move quickly and don’t typically enjoy being held for long periods. 

Hamsters who aren’t used to being handled yet can be picked up in containers like hamster balls or small carrying cages. 

Recommended Home for Hamsters

Environment 

Hamsters can do well in almost any room of the house.  

However, don’t house your hamster in:  

• Rooms with wide temperature fluctuations 

• Direct sunlight on the hamster enclosure 

• Spots directly in front of open windows, air conditioners, or heating vents 

Pet Parents 

Hamsters are an appropriate pet for adults and children as long as the adults are the primary caregiver and always oversee children handling the hamsters.  

Hamsters are small and fragile, very fast moving, and will bite if stressed or scared.  

Small children often hold them too tightly, which may cause injury.  

As a result, older children who are comfortable holding them are a better fit. 

Other Pets Hamsters Can Live With 

No other animals can live in an enclosure with a hamster—including another hamster. They are territorial critters and may fight if housed together. 

Due to their small size and fast movements, it also isn’t safe to keep hamsters loose with other animals around.  

You can keep pets like cats and dogs in the same household as your hamster, but extra care must be taken to make sure their enclosures are secure and that they don’t interact. I 

t’s recommended to separate your cat or dog from your hamster by keeping them on different levels of your home or using a pet gate between rooms.   

Family Friendliness Level 

Hamsters do well in family homes.  

They typically enjoy the extra stimuli of having several family members interacting with them and they do OK with foot traffic and sounds.  

Care must be taken with small children to make sure they know how to safely touch the hamsters and keep their fingers away from the openings in the enclosure. 

Hamster Habitat

Enclosure 

Hamster enclosures need to have at least 450 square inches of continuous solid floor space, measured by length × width (L×W), not including shelves, levels, or tubes.  

Hamster cages should also have secured wire sides and tops. Bar spacings should be half an inch for larger hamsters like the Syrian and 1/4th inch for dwarf hamsters.  

Hamsters are escape artists—they can chew through plastic, wood, and even soft metals and learn to open cage doors.  

Many hamster parents add tunnel extensions to enclosures, but they must be thoroughly cleaned weekly and made from solid materials such as plastic.  

You also want to provide a hide box and a running wheel within the enclosure. 

Bedding 

A thick layer of bedding several inches deep should be provided so hamsters can burrow.  

Optimal bedding materials include unscented and un-dyed toilet tissue or recycled newspaper products. Wheat straw or aspen shavings are also alternatives if soft nest material like shredded paper towels is also provided for nesting material. 

Bagged “fluff” beddings are not recommended as they are an ingestion and obstruction risk, in addition to posing the risk of wrapping around and strangulating paws. 

Never use cedar shavings—these are toxic to hamsters. 

Feeding Dishes and Water Resources  

Hamster food is typically placed into small bowls located in the cage.  

Heavier materials like ceramic crocks (such as this Ware Slide-N-Lock Small Animal Bowl) are preferred as they are harder to tip over.  

Thoroughly clean your hamster’s bowl daily with a fragrance-free dish soap. 

Always offer your pet fresh, clean water through a secure water bottle and/or heavy bowl that they can’t tip over. 

Hamster Diet

Main Food 

The bulk of a hamster diet should come from a commercial pelleted diet with a 15–25% protein content. 

Like exotic pets, too much fresh produce can cause diarrhea in hamsters. Because of this, extra care must be taken when choosing fresh veggies. Make sure these veggies are high in fiber and are offered in moderation.  

Hamsters hoard and hide food so offering fresh produce can lead to spoilage. It’s best used as a treat.  

Make sure to remove any uneaten produce daily.  

Water 

Water should be provided in sipper bottles or bowls that are cleaned when refilled.  

Be careful to examine the tips of the bottles for chewing damage and inspect the bedding below the bottle daily for accumulated moisture.  

Ideally have several water bottles or bowls to change them out daily with fresh water.  

It’s ideal to deep clean the water bottle tip with a scrub brush and dish soap.  

Even if they are dishwasher safe, make sure to scrub out the waterspout daily to prevent overgrowth of harmful bacteria. 

Treats 

Commercial hamster treats are readily available, including apple snack sticks, very occasional yogurt drops and dehydrated fruits.  

Fresh fruits and vegetables also work great as treats, especially during time out of the enclosure so hamsters can’t store the fresh food where it might spoil. 

Supplements 

Hamsters fed from a nutritionally complete pellet diet don’t need any supplements unless a veterinarian has identified a specific nutritional deficiency. 

Foods to Avoid or Are Toxic To Hamsters: 

• Apple seeds 

• Raw beans 

• Raw potatoes 

• Almonds 

• Citrus 

• Garlic 

• Onions 

• Chocolate 

• Sugary foods 

• Salty foods 

• Red meat 

Hamster Daily Care

Feeding 

Hamsters are nocturnal, so it is recommended to offer new food in the evenings or before bed.  

Hamsters should generally be offered about a tablespoon of food daily, although this can vary by species so it’s always recommended to check in with your exotic vet about your pet’s needs and current body condition. 

Grooming 

Hamsters rarely have any grooming needs from their humans.  

They do a very good job of grooming throughout the day and keep themselves very clean.  

Long-haired hamsters occasionally need help removing debris from their hair. In this case, they can be brushed with hamster-specific soft brushes. 

Offering sand baths to your hamster once or twice a week is also a great option for enrichment and it will help them clean off excessive oil in their coats.  

It’s important to remove the sand bath after about 15-20 minutes to prevent any eye irritation or respiratory irritation. 

Exercise 

Hamsters are very active pets.  

They enjoy running, climbing, and tunneling. You can support these habits in several ways: 

• Maintain bedding several inches thick in the enclosure for tunneling and burrowing. 

• Include a running wheel that’s at least 8 inches in diameter for large hamsters such as the Syrian, and 6 inches in diameter for dwarf hamsters. This should also be made from a solid material so their toes can’t get stuck. 

• Tunnels can be included in the enclosure or in a separate play area, but care must be taken to clean the tunnel weekly. Tunnels must be made of a solid material (like plastic). 

• Exercise balls must be about 7–8 inches in diameter and cleaned after every use. Use tape to secure the lid so it can’t open accidentally. 

Disinfecting and Cleaning 

Spot-clean your hamster’s enclosure daily and remove any soiled bedding or any uneaten hoarded food in their nest box or cage so it doesn’t spoil.  

Every week, all bedding should be removed from your hamster’s enclosure, all surfaces cleaned, and bedding replaced.  

Use small pet enclosure–specific cleaners (like Nature's Miracle Small Animal Cage Cleaner Spray) or diluted vinegar to clean the enclosure.  

Tunnels can be submerged in diluted vinegar to soak.  

Inspect the enclosure for areas you hamster may chew and check that all doors and edges close and attach properly.  

Enrichment 

Hamsters are high energy and super chewers. Provide various toys for running, climbing, and tunneling in addition to wooden toys to chew. 

Hamster Veterinary Care

Annual Care 

Your hamster needs to be seen by an exotic veterinarian once a year for a wellness exam.  

Be sure to transport them in a secure small pet carrier or take their entire enclosure.  

If you’re transporting just your hamster in their carrier, take pictures of their enclosure and all the products (food, toys, etc.)  you use.  

Your veterinarian will want to assess their setup as part of the examination process. 

Signs of a healthy hamster include:  

• Alert, curious disposition 

• Clean hair coat with no hair loss 

• Clear, shiny eyes 

• Clean nares 

• Clean ears 

• Nails and teeth that are not overgrown 

Call your exotic vet if you notice:  

• Weight loss 

• Wet, fecal-stained hair around rectum 

• Wounds or trauma 

• Lumps 

• Coughing, wheezing, sneezing, nasal discharge, or other respiratory difficulties 

• Diarrhea 

• Anorexia 

• Drooling 

• Overgrown teeth 

Common health conditions in hamsters include:  

• Diarrhea 

• Wet tail 

• Bite wounds 

• Demodectic mange 

• Cancers 

• Alopecia (hair loss) 

• Malocclusion 

• Hypothermia 

• Amyloidosis 

• Cardiomyopathy 

• Rectal prolapse 

• Cushing’s disease 

• Eye bulging