Simon's Page
February 18, 2006 - November 7, 2007
Hamster Journal
April 9, 2006
Today my mother and I went and found Simon, my second pet hamster. Simon is a teddy bear hamster with the usual coloring: golden fur, a white belly, and brown marks on his cheeks.
I was able to pick him up myself at the store and when we got home. I'm not sure how long that'll last, but I will try to hand tame him.
After we got home, Simon spent most of the day asleep, but in the late evening he started exploring his new home. He does a lot of digging, and seems startled everytime he goes somewhere new.
April 11, 2006
This would be the extent of Simon's bravery, poking his head out of a hole where the add-on potty goes when I took it off to clean. Mostly he's been hiding in his bedroom, at least while I'm awake. I hope he's healthy.
The extent of Simon's bravery
"Point that camera somewhere
else, lady, I'm trying to sleep!"
This is Simon's bedroom
April 13, 2006
Simon decided to block up the tunnel to his bedroom with fluff. It might have been him trying to clean, or because he was trying to shut out the world. Either way, his bedroom was needed cleaning and he wasn't budging. I had to scoop him out of the bedroom and dump him another part of the cage. And then he tried to dig his way out through the add-on sand room.
In the meanwhile I cleaned the room and emptied the tunnel. I think he's still recovering from the move.
January 4, 2007
It has been a long time since I wrote about my Simon. So far, he seems alive and well. 
He lives in the little room at the top of the 3-story cage, even though I just replaced it with a brand new one.
The smell of the room probably seemed off to Simon, but I put most of his bedding and the freshest of his hoarded treats in there, so eventually he realized it was his room. Also, I used the old tunnels instead of new ones, since they would smell most like home. It took less than an hour for him to figure out where he was.
Simon remains a very, very spoiled little hamster. I'm continuing a tradition here. Of course, it's easy when you use your frequent shopper discounts on the cages, getting them for 10% off retail.
The Hamster Man managed to scratch the heck out of the old cage, especially his bedroom, so I figure I'll be freecycling that once it no longer smells like him. Simon gets a brand new bedroom, and some otherwise deprived small mammal gets a free 3-story home with some new pieces
January 21, 2007
I bought Simon some fun new toys and treats yesterday. This Snak Shak is totally edible while being really cool-looking and totally sturdy. It has not become Simon HQ, but I have seen him enjoying the privacy of the hutch.
February 27, 2007
Simon's started acting like an old man. He's slower, and seems to be spending more time in bed. Of course, I'm always anticipating the death of pets, ever since losing a canary and a guinea pig when I was a child. And, of course, I've had the chance to watch one hamster age.
September 1, 2007: Hamster Rant
I swear, I will only know that Simon has passed when I go to clean his toilet and it's clean. I rarely see him up, the loser.
November 7, 2007: Simon passes away
Simon got very sick. I think, based on my research, that it was mites. I couldn't get him help in time. I had an appointment with a vet for first thing tomorrow morning, but when I got home tonight I found out it was too late for the little guy. Rest easy, Mr. Fluffy.
Hamster Basics
Make sure you have a good setup before bringing your
hamster home. Not only does this ensure you are prepared for your hamster,
but your scent will be more prominent than the scent of the store where
you bought the housing and other supplies, so the hamster has less adjusting
to do and will be more familiar with you.
Get a water bottle that doesn't leak too much. The first bottle I bought leaked most of the water out of the tip, which wasn't exactly useful. Simple ball-bearing water bottles seem to work fine.
Hamsters are loners, so do not try to make them live together. Only experienced hamster breeders can do this without allowing the animals to be harmed or killed. I completely identify; if I had to share my condo with other adults, I'd fight for territory rights.
Buy your hamster from a reputable pet store or breeder. I bought Simon (and the late Hamlet) at Pet World in Natick, MA.
Do not try to hand-tame your hamster for the first
couple of days after bringing it home. Give it a chance to settle into
its environment. Do watch it and talk to it to get it accustomed to your
presence, and to start learning its habits.
Make sure your hamster has plenty to do and space for exercising. I know that without variety I would get bored, and Hamlet is the same way.
Two good websites for hamster information: a site for information is www.hamsters.co.uk
and a funny site is www.hamsterific.com
Three good books for hamster information: My
Hamster and Me by Peter Hollmann, Hamsters:
A Complete Pet Owner's Manual by Helga Frietzsche, and Training
Your Pet Hamster by Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville.
Also: see my hamster
booklet. This is in PDF format, so if you don't have Acrobat
Reader you'll need to get it.
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