Everything You Need For A Hamster- The Basics

 Hey guys! Today I'm going to be going over the bare essential supplies for a hamster. First, let's talk cages. There are plenty of commercial cages out on the market today; the problem is they are often overpriced and not nearly large enough for your hamster. The minimum cage size for a Syrian Hamster in the US is 360 square inches, and for dwarves it's 288 square inches. Most of the commercial cages do NOT meet those requirements. You have two choices, to find a commercial cage that is large enough, or to make your own. I prefer the second choice; there are a lot of great options for DIY cages. Bin cages are incredibly popular, as are cages made from Ikea products. You can simply google DIY hamster cages, and you will find hundreds of results. Bin cages are inexpensive and easy to make, you can have quite a large bin cage for half the price of a tiny commercial cage.
 You will also need a safe bedding or substrate. Beddings to avoid are pine and cedar bedding, which can cause respiratory problems in your hamsters. Safe beddings are aspen and paper based beddings. Common brands are kaytee and carefresh. You will want to have a minimum of three inches of substrate at the bottom of your cage, since hamsters are burrowing animals.
 A wheel is another essential you cannot leave out, and there are a few types of wheels you can buy. The first is a comfort wheel, which is shaped like a traditional wheel and tends to be on the inexpensive side. Another wheel is the silent spinner, which tends to be more expensive. The flying saucer wheel is tilted at an angel instead of standing upright like most wheels. It's important for your wheel to have a smooth running surface, avoid wire or mesh wheels, as these can lead to broken legs and other injuries. I personally find that my dwarf hamsters prefer flying saucer wheels, and my syrians tend to like comfort wheels or silent spinners. Make sure that your wheel is large enough that your hamsters back doesn't bend while it's running.
 Proper diet is essential for your hamster, I won't go into serious detail here, but there will be another post explaining it. You will need to purchase a mix for your hamster that was a 15% protein minimum. Your hamster should also be provided with fresh vegetables (once again, I have a separate post detailing safe vegetables for your hamster.)
 Your hamster should also always have access to fresh water, whether from a bowl or a bottle. You should change the water at least every other day, if not every day. Finally, hideouts and toys are important to have in your hamsters cage. Hamsters should be provided with at least one hideout, if not more. Toys will help relieve boredom in your hamster, and provide mental stimulation; otherwise your hamster may become moody and destructive. Chews are also essential, unlike a humans, a hamsters teeth are constantly growing. You must provide something for your hamster to gnaw on, so it can wear it's teeth down.
 These are just the bare essentials you must provide for your hamster, there are a ton of other fun products out on the market that are safe and fun for your hamster.  Hamster make great pets, but you must provide them with a suitable environment for them to live long and happy lives.