#kaytee

Omg hi thank you so much for sending this ask this has literally made my day to get to talk husbandry <3

This post will probably get long so I'm going to put in a break shortly! I'll title sections so you can skim fr whatever info you'd like easily!!!

Chinese (Dwarf) Hamster Cages

(just some random stuff before we get into husbandry):: To preface, while Chinese Hamsters aren't 'technically' dwarf hamsters, they are still referred to as such in pet stores and in most resources outside of the hamster community, but when I refer to a Chinese Hamster it's the same thing!

Out of the 5 species of hamsters in captivity this is also the hardest one to find, they generally don't sell well due to their mouse like appearance (which imo makes them the most interesting species), as well as because they are a almost exclusively solitary species unlike 'true' dwarfs. If you're buying from a pet store be sure they actually have some before you go, if through a breeder or a rescue it'll probably be much easier (but if from a breeder/rescue definitely check their minimum adoption requirements as they vary from organization to organization).

The males have.. very large testicles. It looks very silly but does not affect them so do not worry if your hamster is really silly looking, it adds to their charm.

All husbandry advice will be based on US standard, please note that the recommended standard often differs wildly from country to country, I will be referencing both the CHA and the OHC though as the CHA sucks and is full of insane people who are literally a clique and will come for people not in their clique (specifically referring to breeders). The OHC has a majority of the same breeders on their list but the people who run the association itself are less insane.

The minimum recommended size for a healthy happy dwarf hamster is 450sq inches, or at least 30"x15" (per https://ontariohamsters.ca/). Lets look at some options:

Got gauges on my birthday in 2022.

Seems like I only get stabbed on holidays 😂

So I told my roommate that I'm a pirate after my piercer made that joke due to their size.

( @easterntribesdarkmajick )

And he said that if I put on guy liner & shapen my beard, I'll look like Hook.

So I told my best friend this, excuse the typo.

And then my girlfriend agreed.

Most people with small animals have seen the brand Kaytee, as they make cheap products that are widely stocked in pet stores since they’re bright (with unsafe dyes) and have things like “gourmet” (full of unhealthy treats) slapped on them. A lot of new owners see these things and are drawn in by that as well as the low prices, and that’s understandable. You want pretty, yummy things for your puffs! However, their products that range from shoddy to downright toxic and dangerous. 

A good example of this is their dangerous “fiesta mix” which is half pellets and half unsuitable treats like peanuts, which are WAY too fatty to be used for even an occasional treat, and peas and corn which can cause bloating and GI stasis.

Even their potentially harmless products are garbage, as I discovered when my partner brought some of their timothy hay home by mistake. I noticed most of it was the inedible parts of the grass, so I decided to sort out a small amount to see how much was actually usable.  

This was how much I started with (sorry for the blur):

This is that bundle sorted into the actual hay, the leaf of the grass, and the straw, the hard stem that they won’t eat. Left is the hay.

Next, I further separated the technically edible parts by the large and green pieces that the chinchilla will ACTUALLY eat, and the small and brown bits, the ones that will fall to the bottom of the feeder and not be bothered with and the stuff that was dead when harvested and thus gross. 

The tiny pile on the right is the final result. That’s probably 10% of the product by mass. The stuff I normally get from Sweet Meadow is nearly 100%, and a fraction of the cost by weight/amount of product.