I went over to my girlfriends tonight and as I was walking in I noticed a little Hamster or Gerbil just running wild on the grass outside her apartment building. I couldn't leave him be because he wouldn't have survived the cold night or else he would have been dinner for a cat. So I went into her apartment and we got a shoebox and brought him inside to decide what to do. She had saw a family moving out of the apartment a little bit before I got there so we have a feeling that they let him "free" as they left. It's very cruel to leave a domesticated animal to fend for itself

Looking at his cute little face I decided that he could live with me. I had at one time bought about a five gallon "critter" container where I experimented with letting a betta live in a lot more water but it turns out they seem to be happiest in about a gallon of water. So me and Amy went to Walmart and I bought some food, some bedding, and a excersize track thingy.

As soon as I got home I realized that my container was too small for him so tomorrow I am going to go buy him a bigger home.

I have no idea if he is a gerbil or a hamster or if it is a boy or girl but I decided to name him SAWYER so I really hope that he is a boy. Here are some picture of him as he was biting a hole through his shoe box as I was getting his house ready and one picture of him in his little cage.







So if anyone has any experience with gerbils or hamsters and know what he is I would appreciate any info or basically any info on keeping him as I have never had one.

It's a hamster!!!! (I have gerbils)

Your avatar is hot

awww


you rock for taking him in ... he will have a good home with you

Imago said:

Wow, I'm blushing as I just saw this thread:

http://www.prince.org/msg...86428?pg=1

Mach said:

At least until me and Amy get married and move in together because I showed Sawyer to the cat as we were leaving and she was licking her lips like it was dinner time

lovemachine said:

you'll need a cat proof cage

luv4u said:

I need to find out the sex for sure and get it a friend (I certainly don't want babies) when I get the bigger house. I need to google Hamsters and learn about them first I guess.

call around your neighborhodd to see if any of the veterinarians deal with pocket pets. they will be able to give you the best instructions on how to raise your hamster.

all i know is that they need vitamin C supplemented in their diet. i think. actually, just see a vet who knows and ignore me.

lovemachine said:

see a vet before you look on google. there is so much false and dangerous information about animals on the internet.

bkw said:

x infinity

bkw said:

wait until mrsbkw hears about this...

I thought this was going to be to do with that other thread.

where's gooey?

JasmineFire said:

Gerbils and mice love company.

Hamsters usually do best when they are by themselves - they will fight (and kill each other) alot of times when another one is introduced.

bkw said:

lovemachine said:

pet store or a vet

Here's a good site for info http://www.hamstercare.co.uk/

MuaPetahl said:

Gerbils are community animals, they love the company of another gerbil, they don't like being alone.

Hamsters are anti-social meaning they don't like having other hamster company, they do not do well being together. They are loners

Cute little bugger.

I'm so glad you took the lil guy in It was very sweet of you...he wouldn't have lasted long in the wilderness. He's very, very cute! I hope you guys are happy as roomies.

Am I the only one here impressed by the $89.00 for shoes????

purpleunderground said:

I certainly wouldn't buy $89 shoes at this point in my life (back in the day I would buy a pair of Docs or something and not think twice) but the shoebox is Amy's who claims she got it as a gift box from someone. She loves shoes but I've never seen her spend $90 either.

luv4u said:

thats what they said about my daughters guinea pig, come to think of it, the gecko too..... but both have done very well with buddies in the cage - they seem quite a bit happier really


so, my advice would be to go to someplace like petco... only because, if it doesnt work, and you will know pretty quick its not going to work, they will allow you to bring it back to them within like 10 days i think


cages, the best advice i can give you is not to get a cage with a mesh metal flooring, they are not good for your critter's lil feet... there is a cage that we got, i absolutely love.... its a fairly common cage, a bit more expensive, but worth it in the end - plastic bottom (looks kinda like a litter box) and a metal housing unit that fits over the top of it... its great for clean-up, dump the stuff out and wash it out with a papertowel and some safe treatments (not soap or too much bleach that cant be totally gotten rid of)....

anyway, thats my advice....well, that and get a hide for them and a wheel oh, i heard this on tv one day..... if your wheel starts making noise and its annoying, put a small drop of olive oil in there, it is safe for the hamster and it will stop the noise .... or, wait, was is vegetable oil ? ok, i dont know, but one works

enjoy your new baby he/she is real cute !

Aww. . .I love hamsters!

Yeah, if you do have a boy hamster, you may want him to live solo. Male hamsters will often fight with each other. Though, doesn't really hurt to try. And DON'T TRUST A PETSTORE EMPLOYEE to tell you the sex of the hamster. It's tricky to tell. Call a pocket-pet vet and ask if you can stop in to have it checked by a vet or tech there. I used to work for such a vet, and we heard a lot of "but they said it was a boy!" stories.

Hamsters are serious escape artists. Really, for having a brain the size of a pea, they're amazing. Get a good cage (no wire bottoms -- their feet can get stuck/broken), be vigilent about latching the doors, and if I were you I'd put up "found hamster" posters in your building. . . maybe the people released it, but it's entirely possible that it escaped.

Buy a high-quality pellet food in small quantities (so it's fresh), and feed some fresh veggies (and a little bit of fruit, if you like) every day. Change the water every day, and put the water container through the dishwasher every few days.

And get one of those hamster ball things so he can run around your house. They're incredibly amusing, especially if you've got cats.


don't-trust-Petco-edit
[Edited 4/24/06 8:17am]

I went to the store and bought him a 10 gallon glass cage. I also bought him a little food bowl and a hollowed out plastic orange to use as a bed..

Here is his little set-up. I really don't have any room for him so he's going to sit on a chair next to my computer where my bass speaker for the computer used to sit.





As for the sign....I've dropped about $50 bucks on the little guy so I will have to think twice about that one

lovemachine said:

He looks happy

yay! you adopted him.

poor animals.

you know, "look at me and how nice I am" threads, really only count when they are about people