The Thriftier Hamster
While some animals certainly work for their living, most pets are a luxury item. In our book we encourage minimum wagers to invest in plants rather than pets, and I still stand by that advice. Properly caring for an animal comes with a lot of financial expenses and time cost, and you shouldn’t get an animal unless you can properly care for it. (We’re not suggesting you get rid of your loyal dog of ten years. Just that it’s not wise to add another mouth to feed when you’re on edge financially.)
But I confess, I’ve always wanted a hamster. I had promised my nephew a fish once he’d potty trained successfully. Once we started looking at the pet store, I convinced myself a hamster would be just as cheap and easier to care for (you’re free to laugh at me now), so I talked my nephew into a different pet.
I’ll also confess that I’ve probably spent at least $700 on this Hasmter so far. So no, I haven’t changed my mind about pets being a bad idea for someone on a tight budget. Some of those expenses were necessary, some weren’t. I failed to do proper research before purchasing my pet. If I had, it probably would have saved me a good portion of that money. However, in the meantime, I’ve learned things that have helped bring the cost of hamster care down, so I figured I’d do a post about those since there’s a fair chance many of you either have a pet already or ignored our advice on this subject.
This is Gryffin. (He’s a Gryffindor.) He’s a Syrian hamster and large for his breed. He’s also apparently smarter than average and recognizes certain words and commands.
Tip One: Start off by buying the large, nicer cage.
I bought a Hamster Kit which included the cage, a wheel, a bowl, a water bottle, removable bedding tray and bedding. In concept this was a good thrifty starter kit. Except it was not a well designed kit. The wheel was too small, the bowl was too large, the water bottle was huge and took up too much space inside the cage (online reviews said it leaked, but mine wasn’t too bad in that regard). The bedding tray is actually a good feature since it protects the bottom of the cage from wear and tear, but the instructions weren’t clear that by “recycle” they meant wash and re-use, not put in with normal plastic recycling.
While hamsters like cozy places to sleep, they also have a lot of energy that needs to be burned off. So space to move is important for keeping a happy hamster. (Unhappy hamsters bite or chew through their cages.)
I ran up a lot of my costs by replacing various components of the kit with better made ones. New bowl, new water bottle, new wheel, and then adding tubes to expand my hamster’s space to move. If I’d taken a little more time to research and read reviews, I could have bought him a much cooler habitat for the same amount of money. (The tubes are all additions, all that's left from the initial kit is the cage at the bottom.)
Tip Two: Figure Out What You’re Going to Do With Him While Cleaning
Properly cleaning out all my hamster’s tubes takes thirty minutes to an hour. Apparently no one told him animals go in the corner. Dishwashing liquid seems sufficient for cleaning the cage and tubes, but the hamster can’t just run loose while I clean. I have a travel cage for him where I keep his dust bath and an aquarium where I’ve set up a hamster retreat where everything is edible or gnawable, even the straw bedding. He also has a ball, which he will happily run around in for 20-minutes solid, but after that he gets hungry and needs to take care of hamster business. (P.S. I don’t recommend hamster balls on carpet.)
Tip Three: Supplement with backyard greens and fresh scraps.
Dumping any old scrap into your hamster’s bowl is not good care. But there are a number of foods you can share with your hamster or pick from your yard (or any place you’re reasonably sure hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals.)
I did buy Gryffin a $16 bag of “gourmet” hamster food, which is probably varied enough to sustain him by itself. But I managed to make that bag last for 6-months by ignoring bag instructions and supplementing his diet with fresh greens from the yard and scraps. The bag suggested giving him 2 tbsp per day and tossing out the remainder. My large Syrian almost never eats that much. Usually I give him 1 to ½ tbsp of the mix, and place some vegetables on top. He loves Zucchini, carrots, most any leaf, and apple cores (no seeds). Since my nephew won’t eat apple core or skins, feeding them to the hamster makes good use of those scraps. He’ll eat the zucchini stalk and rind that my mom trims off.
I don’t toss out the remainder unless there’s some sign he’s pooped or urinated in it (which he normally only does when it’s down to the pellets. He doesn’t like those.)
Gryffin also loves dandelion leaves and wild violet leaves (both of which are safe for humans as well) and those grow plentifully in this area. This may take some additional research, but it’s not a bad idea to acquaint yourself with backyard edibles.
Not every scrap or wild growing thing is good for hamsters. Here’s a couple lists to get you started.
http://hamsterific.com/hamsterific-university/acceptable-hamster-food-list/
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2010/11/11/common-harmful-pet-hamster-treats.aspx
Tip Four: Buy Bedding in Bulk
For the first few months of hamster ownership, I bought 3-packs of bedding trays because it seemed easier and looked like as much as I would be getting in the bulk pack. I didn’t realize how densely the bulk bags were packed. The paper bedding in plastic trays came out to about $3.33 per week. Whereas $7 bulk bag of wood curls lasted about 4 months. One pack of the trays was probably a good investment. I now clean and reuse those to help protect the bottom of the cage, but in general, the bulk bedding is much thriftier.
Unscented and unbleached toilet paper, ripped or shredded, might be acceptable cheap bedding, but not newspaper (ink is not good for them). I’ve played it safe with the store bedding. But toilet paper might be cheaper.
Tip Five: Dog Biscuits
I probably dropped $20-$30 on hamster treats before discovering that dog biscuits were hamster friendly. (Here’s some guidelines on which ones are and aren’t: https://youtu.be/bRsBXSEYyiM.) I purchased a $1 bag of dog treats at Dollar Tree with 5 different flavored treats, and my hamster loves them. Since he only gets 1-per-week, this one bag should last for several months.
Tip Six: Make Use of Loyalty Programs
I bought my hamster and a lot of my hamster gear at Petco mainly because it’s the closest pet store to my house. They have a great return policy, which was very helpful when my hamster escaped his new play pen in less than 10 minutes. (The product would probably be great for most hamsters, but Gyrffin is larger than average and smart.) I replaced it with a glass aquarium, bought during a sale, and set up a “play pen” for him, because I needed a secondary space where my nephew could pet him and clean him.
Comparison shopping is helpful too, but my Pet Pals card has given me rewards and access to relevant coupons. There’s no rule saying you have to buy all your pets supplies at the same store, but if there is a store that’s reasonably priced and convenient, consider signing up for their loyalty program.
Tip Seven: Hamster Potties and Dust Baths
You can buy hamster potties. I’ve bought two, one with a cover and the other for the corner of his cage. But I haven’t been able to train him to use it as a potty. I think they’re a worthwhile attempt, but the litter is probably more expensive than the bedding. He loves the variation in texture, but I haven’t managed to convince him of the advantages of using the toilet in one spot.
I did see a suggestion recently to use toilet paper instead of litter, and may attempt that, since it’ll be easier to spot when he’s used it and cheaper to replace.
His first potty has been transitioned into a dust bath. I bought a spray shampoo, but Gryffin hates it. The dust bath and a brush is probably sufficient since hamsters groom themselves regularly and don’t need soap and water baths in the same way some other pets do.
Do you have any thrifty pet tips? If so, please leave a comment below.