Hamsters are nocturnal creatures. They are active and playful when it’s sundown. And that naturally means generating noise at a time when you need peace.
You can sleep with a hamster in your room. It is better to manage the noise you hear from the hamster instead of keeping it from making any noise. Here are a few tips for sleeping with a hamster in your room.
Foster a Productive Relationship with Your Hamster
Hamsters are hardwired to be active at night as a defense mechanism against predators. However, you can take specific steps to train them to sleep at night.
This can be done by providing them with daily activities and experiences. However, it would help if you never forced any actions on your hamster.
You should respect their primal instincts and sleep schedule. If you are patient enough, you can find more time to bond with your hamster in your room.
Once you have built a strong bond with your hamster, you will get fewer sleep interruptions in your room.
Your hamster is more likely to be awake at the same time as you if you have fostered that friendly relationship. But this takes time, patience, and the following tips.
Pro tip: It is easier to change the sleep schedule of a dwarf hamster. This is because they are social creatures who are more active during the day.
Cage Maintenance: A Happy Home is a Happy Hamster
Hamsters are prone to stress and nervousness. They are, after all, tiny creatures that are vulnerable to predators.
This is why you should provide them with a cage that makes them feel safe and protected. The location of the cage is of particular importance.
Here are some of the things you should consider when choosing a location for the cage:
- The acoustics of the room (including the presence of ultrasonic wavelengths)
- Lighting around the room
- Keeping the temperature at the required range
- The presence of other pets around the room (cats and dogs could spook your hamster)
Another factor to consider is cage cleanliness. The cage will likely accumulate odors and smells that will make your room unpleasant.
This often happens when the cage is allowed to get dirty. Leaving the cage dirty for too long harms your hamster in California.
Clean the cage at least once a day. Dump all the fecal matter out at least once weekly and clean the cage.
Mix water with a mild detergent before drying the cage thoroughly. The cage should be kept away from direct sunlight and drafts.
This is because exposure to sunlight will make the smell worse for you and create health complications for your hamster.
The hamster should be kept in the room if you can provide it with ideal temperatures. The temperature range of 60°F to 75°F is suitable for your hamster and can send it into hibernation.
If you like to keep the room cold when sleeping, it is better to relocate your hamster to a different room. Make sure no one can disturb the hamster, including pets and children.
You can slowly change your hamster’s sleep cycle by feeling and playing with it earlier in the evening. This will keep your pet excited around your schedule.
Note that hamsters sleep for 12 hours a day. They may wake up a few times to eat or to use the bathroom.
Do not wake up your hamster if it wants to sleep. Sleep deprivation turns hamsters into aggressive creatures, and they may bite you.
Dwarf hamsters are more likely to change their sleep patterns around your schedule. Some hamsters don’t require any training to sleep at night.
This is because their pet stores are active during the day, and the hamster grew accustomed to that schedule. Confirm this with the pet store employee!
Daily Routine for Interacting with Your Hamster
Hamsters like to live in solitude and enjoy their own company. They do require some attention from you daily.
Your hamster will get irritable if you ignore it. You should play with hamsters before bedtime to train them around your schedule.
This way, your hamster won’t spend all night causing a fuss and asking for your attention. You can keep them occupied with chew toys.
Hamsters like to chew things because their teeth grow constantly. Chewing on something allows hamsters to file their teeth.
If you don’t provide your hamster with something to chew, such as a branch, it will start chewing on the cage. This will generate a lot of noise that could keep you up at night.
The hamster will eventually escape if the cage is made of wood or plastic, the hamster will eventually escape! This is why you should keep chewable items around your hamster to keep it preoccupied.
Hamsters require plenty of exercises. This is why you should provide them with a large wheel.
If the wheel is too small because it could harm your hamster in California.
A small wheel will force the hamster to arch its back unnaturally. Make sure to choose a sizable wheel that gives your hamster lots of room to play with.
Turn the Lights Off
The easiest way to change your hamster’s sleeping schedule is lighting. Hamsters use light as a cue to know when to wake up or sleep.
They know it’s time to wake up and begin the food search at night. You could darken the room during their sleep sessions.
Note that artificial lighting isn’t always suitable for your hamsters. Avoid blue or white light near
your hamster’s cage. These light colors can trigger depression in hamsters (as well as humans).
Maintain a Stable Room Temperature
Temperature fluctuations are not suitable for your hamster. Places in the house, such as garages and hallways, are not ideal for hamsters.
Basements are also unsuitable for hamsters. Any rooms with drafts are poor choices for hamsters.
This doesn’t mean you should keep your hamster near an air conditioner or heater. All these scenarios can create problems for your hamster.
For obvious reasons, keep the hamster’s cage away from direct sunlight. Sticking to stable temperatures, preferably in the 60°F to 75°F range is best.
Soundproof Your Bedroom
Ultrasonic sound levels are not audible to humans but can disrupt your hamster’s sleep cycle. This is because they are rodents, like mice and rats, and respond to ultrasonic sounds.
Hamsters have a powerful sense of hearing that they use for navigation. They use their hearing to make up for their horrible eyesight.
This is why ultrasonic sounds are irritating to your hamster. Common household appliances such as microwaves, televisions, and computers emit ultrasonic sounds.
You can keep these electronics in your room or hamster: pick one. Electronic appliances will prevent your hamster from having good sleep sessions.
If possible, you should try to soundproof your bedroom from outside noise. This can be done by adding a layer of drywall made of sound-absorbing materials,
It’s an additional expense but it can do wonders for your hamster’s sleeping schedule.
Be Patient
Changing your hamster’s sleep schedule will take time. However, your efforts will pay off in the end if you’re patient and trust the process.
Try not to change your pet’s sleep schedule too quickly. Doing so will cause undue stress to the hamster and affect its health.
Make small changes and monitor how they impact your hamster’s mental and physical health. Experiment with different routines until you find something that works for your pet.
Choose a Healthy Diet for Your Hamster
Hamsters need a good diet with healthy and balanced meals. There are certain food groups that you should avoid because they are not ideal for your hamster’s digestive system.
This includes citrus fruits and onions. The food should not be sticky or sharp. They can get caught in the hamster’s cheeks and lead to infections.
Finally, don’t allow your hamster to get overweight. This can be remedied by providing them with plenty of playtime and exercise. A large wheel and plenty of chew toys are good ways of keeping your hamster occupied.
Who Sleeps With Their Hamsters?
Many hamster owners prefer to sleep with their furry friends at night. This is because we treat our pets as members of our own family.
So if the hamster is technically a family member, keeping them out of our room is harder. The only problem is that hamsters are nocturnal creatures.
Most people have bad sleep habits, and a nocturnal pet could worsen the condition. Most people experience sleep deprivation and sleep apnea. Could a hamster make the situation any worse?
Sleeping with a hyperactive hamster may not be the main reason we get low-quality sleep. Several studies discuss all the factors that disrupt our slumber
This includes stress, exposure to light, and sleep positions. Experts believe that light exposure in particular, can disrupt our sleeping habits. It can upset the circadian rhythm and trick the brain into thinking it’s time for wakey-wakey.
There are a few disadvantages of keeping hamsters in your bedroom; these include:
- Bad odors
- Flies and rats
- Occupying too much space in your room
It is up to you to decide if you like your furry friend enough to put up with the inconveniences.
Wrapping Up
If you are allergic to hamsters, we recommend finding a different place in your home. It could be a separate room, such as the drawing room.
Avoid keeping your hamster in basements, garages, and hallways. Never forget to clean up the cage and scoop out waste regularly.
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My name is Everly. I am a Milwaukee-based mom of 2 and have been a proud owner of many hamsters throughout my life. Like many of us, my introduction to hamsters happened when I was very young. My family saw several hamsters come and go through the years, and I enjoyed playing with them, but I never fully appreciated them until I grew up and my own children decided to jump on the hamster bandwagon. At that point, I was determined to learn all I could about caring for these adorable pets. Read more