guidelines

Guidelines for "OUT" time

To make sure your hamster stays safe while playing outside his cage, the following guidelines are recommended:

The most important thing you must do while getting your hamster ready for regular OUT times is to watch him very closely the first few times. Does he dig, chew, or flatten himself to escape rooms? Watch the way he explores a room- he will quickly show you what you missed while playing freely. Is there a hole/cubby you forgot to plug? A wire/cord you forgot to cover? A door that he could escape from underneath?

The safest time of day for "OUT" time is usually at night when the family is in bed- minimizing the risk of Hammy getting stepped on.

Always sweep/vacume the floor your hamster will be playing on. Be especially careful for items such as: dropped medications (fatal to your hamster) screws/bolts (choking hazard) art supplies (could be toxic) and so on...

Always make sure other house pets are confined while your hamsters is out playing.

Never underestimate a hamster's "flattening" ability. I've watched my hamsters flatten themselves enough to slip under a door that was barely off the ground one inch. If you do not want your ham to explore outside the room he is in, block off the area under doors firmly with a towel.

Many hamsters are diggers- and will tear up your carpet to get out of a room. If yours is a digger, you may have to always supervise his out-time to keep your carpet intact (Note: My Ziggy tends to dig- but I noticed that it is always in areas that he knows will lead out of the room, such as digging the carpet up just under a door because he feels the air. Just as I block off doors because of "flattening" (my dwarves are bad about it) I can also use this method to keep Ziggy from digging, because he cannot feel the air coming through from another room. So far, so good.

All hamsters chew!!!, Make sure cords and wires of all types (electric, phone, computer, etc.) are pulled upward out of Hammy's reach, or covered properly while Hammy is exploring the room.

If your hamster free-roams your entire house at night, be sure to leave a note for family members so that your family will be extra careful where they step. I do NOT recommend free roaming all night unless your hamster is an at least one year old, and is so tame that he comes when you call him by name. This usually does not happen until around the age of 2 years. I do not recommend this sort of roaming for dwarves- one or two rooms at a time is fine for them.

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