Hamsters are a popular pet across the USA. They’re small, cute, and relatively easy to care for compared to larger pets like cats and dogs. However, they aren’t a low-commitment pet, and you need to make sure you keep an eye on any changes you notice in how your hamster acts or smells.
Your hamster likely smells bad because its cage isn’t clean. Hamsters are very clean animals and usually only smell if their cage is dirty. However, if your hamster smells bad, it could also be due to unclean bedding, something happening with its diet, poor airflow in the cage, or health problems.
Throughout this article, I’ll go into detail on the most common reasons why your hamster might have started to smell bad. I’ll also give you a good idea of how your hamster should smell. Keep reading to find out more!
How Should Your Hamster Smell?
To start this article, let’s look at how your hamster should smell normally.
Hamsters are small domesticated rodents that are often kept as pets.
However, since hamsters are part of the rodent family, some people, especially people in big cities like New York where mice and rats are a concern, might have the misconception that they are inherently dirty or smelly animals.
That couldn’t be further from the truth.
Contrary to popular belief, hamsters are incredibly clean animals and often groom themselves.
Because they’re frequent groomers, hamsters don’t usually have a smell that you can notice from any distance. If you snuggle your hamster, you might notice an odor that is a mix of musk and bedding because all animals have some sort of smell.
However, this scent should be mild and really only perceptible at a very close distance.
A strong smell is typically a sign that something is wrong and shouldn’t be ignored or thought of as “normal.”
Read Is Vita-Sand Safe for Hamsters?
Reasons Why Your Hamster Smells Bad
It’s completely normal to be concerned if you’re used to your hamster’s typical scent and you’ve noticed they start to develop a foul odor.
However, before you start jumping to worst-case scenarios of what might be causing the smell, it’s essential to know the main reasons for it.
Who knows, there might be an easy way to reverse your hamster’s bad odor and get your little friend back to smelling how it should.
Dirty Cages
Dirty cages and habitats are the primary reason why hamsters might start to smell bad.
This is especially the case for first-time hamster owners who might not know how often to clean out their hamster’s enclosure effectively.
However, even seasoned hamster owners can fall victim to improper cage care.
Even if you let your hamster roam around your home, it will most likely spend the majority of its time in its cage.
That means hamsters will be bathing themselves, rolling around in, and, yes, soiling their habitats every day.
Even though hamsters are clean animals and will likely pick one area of their cage to use as their toilet area, that will still cause an odor to build up, which will transfer to your pet hamster.
While that is the prime source of a smelly habitat, there are other causes of odor build-up on your hamster, including:
- Your pet’s natural fur oils
- Food and water that may have spilled
- Dust or grime your hamster might pick up on its paws before it has a chance to clean itself
These will all contribute to an overall bad-smelling cage.
However, since your hamster will be in its cage most of the time, it’ll start to develop that scent as well.
This process is similar to how if you leave a cut onion in your refrigerator, everything in your fridge might start to develop that same onion smell.
Luckily, there’s an easy solution to this problem.
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