Hamsters are cute little animals that quickly warm your heart and make a place for themselves in your home. While they are small and cute, they can put off a terrible odor.
The smell that can put into the air is much larger than you would expect. Most of the time, the odor is coming from the hamster’s urine. Many people cannot bear to get rid of their hamster, so they have to address the smell instead.
Continue reading to find out all the ways you can keep your hamster’s cage from stinking up your house.
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Deodorize and Clean
You may have a nasty smelling cage in your house, but the good news is that it is a problem that you can fix. The first thing you want to do is completely clean and deodorize your hamster’s cage.
You want a cage that allows proper airflow and ventilation for the hamster. The more hamsters you have in one cage means, the more often you have to clean it.
You always want to make sure that your hamster is in a safe place while you are cleaning its cage. A hamster ball is a great option to make sure your hamster does not get lost or hurt, and it can get some exercise at the same time.
You want to wear disposable gloves while cleaning the cage so that you do not spread any germs. You want to remove everything, including accessories and toys, from the cage because it can all carry odors. If there is any bedding in the cage, shake it out in the garbage.
You want to use mild soap, such as dishwashing soap, and water to clean your hamster’s cage. You should not use bleach and water. You could also use a cleaner that is made specifically for hamsters.
You want to use this combination for the cage and everything in it. You should not clean the cage in the kitchen, as you can spread bacteria and germs. You want to make sure the cleaner has a deodorizer in it.
Those with enzymes are a good option because they will help the cage to smell cleaner. Baking soda and vinegar are also great options for cleaning.
After you are finished cleaning the cage and toys, be sure to rinse it completely. You want to make sure there is no leftover residue that may harm your hamster.
Like the smell of the hamster bothers you, the smell of the cleaner may bother your hamster. You want to make sure the cage dries completely before putting your hamster back in it.
Keeping It Clean
Once you have completely cleaned your hamster’s cage, you want to clean it at least once a week. If you clean the cage once a week, you can help keep the odor under control.
You also want to make sure that you spot clean the cage every day. When you spot clean your hamster’s cage, you want to clean all the spots on the bedding where your hamster goes to the bathroom.
A hamster usually only goes to the bathroom in one or two spots in the cage, so those are the only spots on which you should concentrate. You can also trash the old bedding and replace it with new bedding.
After you clean the cage, you can add a layer of baking soda to the bottom of the cage to help absorb all odors. You should add the baking soda before you put the new bedding in the cage.
This is an affordable way to keep the cage and bedding smelling fresh and clean. You can consider getting a supplement for your pet. Pet stores often sell these to help reduce the odors that your pet produces.
They usually contain amino acids or yucca schidigera. Do not forget to get the maximum amount of airflow moving through the cage. Proper ventilation is ideal in helping keep the smell out of your hamster’s cage.
You can also keep the windows open and run the air conditioner to help ventilate the area. You can run an air purifier in the room as another alternative.
Filler For the Cage
You need to put some type of bedding in the cage for your hamster. You want to be careful when selecting this filler because, along with providing comfort for your hamster, it can also hold odors.
If you want to use wood chips as a filler, make sure you use Aspen because other wood types can harm your hamster. Shredded paper and wood shavings are a great alternative to wood chips. You can also use recycled paper. If you are opting for recycled or shredded paper, make sure the paper does not have ink on it.
Paper does not absorb odors as well as other materials. Your local pet store may offer bedding that is plant-based, which tend to be more absorbent. When the bedding is absorbent, it can also hide odors, so all of a sudden, they sneak up on you.
Before you put the bedding in your hamster’s cage, you should put it in a plastic bag that zips closed and then put it in a freezer. If you leave it in the freezer for up to two days, it can freeze and kill any bugs that might be living in the filler.
It is important that you change the bedding every time you clean the cage. Bedding can hold on to odors from urine, so you should throw it away and replace it with new bedding.
Litter Box Training
While it may sound crazy, you can actually train your hamster to use a littler box. When you train your hamster to use a litter box, you are able to keep everything clean because you can clean out the parts that smell badly.
This does not guarantee that you will be able to train your hamster to use the litter box, but it may be worth it to you to try. If you know the spot where your hamster goes to the bathroom in its cage, then you can place a litter box in that spot.
You can buy a litter box or make one yourself. Since hamsters are small, you can use just about anything to make a litter box. You can use a box, plastic, ceramic, or a glass dish.
A box will absorb the urine, and you can throw it away, but it is something on which your hamster may chew. A tissue box may be a perfect type of box for a litter box for your hamster.
You want to make sure you fill the litter box with something like sand or a specific animal littler. You can even use play sand for filler. You must make sure that you use sand and not dust.
The dust could cause breathing problems and be harmful to your hamster. You may need to sanitize any type of filler that you put in the litter box. Animal litter can be on the expensive side.
If you need to sanitize the play sand, you can bake it at a low temperature for up to two hours. Once you sanitize it, you must keep it in a bucket that has a lid that can be sealed.
After you place the litter box where you think your hamster will use it, it might help to put some of its soiled bedding in the litter box so that it smells like the hamster.
If it smells like the hamster, then it will be more likely to use the litter box. If you have managed to get your hamster to use the litter box, you may want to clean every day. You do not want to do that because it may disrupt your hamster’s habits.
They like their habits, and cleaning up the litter can disrupt it. In addition to cleaning it out, you want to make sure to fill the litter when it is getting low.
While it may seem silly for you to attempt to use a litter box for your hamster, it can be an easy way to teach your hamster to be a little neater and go to the bathroom only in one spot.
If you can control where the hamster goes to the bathroom, you can control the odors in your house, and it may not stink like hamster anymore. Litter box training your hamster is worth the effort if you can get it to work.