new hammie

Question
QUESTION: ok well my other hamster died. I got a new one. My new hamster is a girl and she was separated from the boy hamster but she is always in her wheel sleeping and when she goes in she carries her bedding with her. My mom thinks shes making a nest to have babies. but she wasnt with boy hamsters. Do you know what she is doing?

ANSWER: Hi Heath,

All hamsters make a 'nest' to sleep in - whether they are pregnant or not and they will use anything they can get hold of to make it.

It may not be a good idea for her to make her bed in the wheel.

Please see one of my previous answers on what to do if your hamster makes her bed in the wheel.

Please let me know how you get on.

Kind Regards,

Tammy

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: ok thanks.. well its me again. my hamster has been pooping ALOT but its not diarea she just poops A LOT!  I dont know why or how. Can you please tell me why?

ANSWER: Hi Heath,

this is probably nothing to worry about - all hamsters produce different amounts - it depends entirely on each individiaul hamster.

Kind Regards,

Tammy

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: lol. hi ITS ME AGAIN!! lol i know im probably annoying. Sorry though. well.. you said it wasn't good for her to make a nest in her wheel.  Why not..? O yeah and she had this really bad stench. Her ball is all smelly and everytime she gets in it it stinks up again. I wash it daily but it smells REALLY bad!

Answer
Hi again Heath,

it is not a good idea for her to make a nest in her wheel because then she may find it hard to use the wheel for exercise.

It sounds as if she may be using her wheel to go in the toilet in too!

It sounds as if your hamster is all mixed up lol!  This is probably just because she is young, so dont worry about it - you just need to teach her the correct way to do things.

First you need to clean out her cage completely so there is no smell of her anywhere - it is best to use a safe pet disinfectant.

Do not put the wheel in or any toys at all - just put a thick layer or sawdust or shavings and food and water, also put in something for her to sleep in (either a box or house or just some bedding) - nothing else - try to keep the food and water at the same end of the cage too.

Try to keep one corner of the cage free from anything - she should use that corner as the toilet - it may be best to try and put a small, very shallow, plastic or cardboard box in that corner with no lid, so it is easy to keep clean.

Put her in and leave it like this for about a week or until she is using the correct sleeping place and correct corner for the toilet.

Dont worry if she gets it wrong a few times - you may have to completely clean the cage and do all of the above again.

You may have to do this quite alot of times until she finally gets it right, but it will be worth it in the end.

Once she does finally get it right try not to rearrange the cage at all - after cleaning the cage always try and replace the food, water, bedding and toilet areas in exactly the same corners or sides of the cage they were in.

Once she has it right you can then start to reintroduce the wheel and the toys, but always take them out if she starts to sleep in them or use them as a toilet - it is best to introduce one at a time too.

Good luck and let me know if you need any more info.

Kind Regards,

Tammy