The Importance of RoutinesRoutines are an integral part of your hamster care, at all stages of your hamster's life! When you first get your hamster, one of the key facets of familiarizing them with you is becoming part of their routine. We usually advise adopters to regularly handle their hamster 2, 3, or more times every day during the transitional period so your hamster becomes more familiar with you, but another element of that is them become familiar with the initial routine of: Being handled = safe Being handled= I get a fun treat *in moderation of course And not only that, but the routine of how they are being handled, are you putting them into a mug (or what I like to call a hamster taxi) first, are you luring them onto a platform, are you letting them walk onto your hand, or are you doing something else? All of these things help your hamster transition and help them establish a routine. Outside of that, other parts of your hamster's life boil down to a routine, most things become less stressful when they are familiar-- for example: -Health checks: how do you contain your hamster, what do you do first (weigh your hamster, cut nails, etc.) -Feeding time: most people note that their hamster/s will come out of their enclosure and interact with them when they hear a food bag rustle or when they hear talking in the room that their enclosure is in This is all because they become familiar with their routines. Hamsters are crepuscular which means that they are most active in the dawn and dusk. Being intentional about the times of things-- such as when you're feeding your hamster or interacting with them, the more their internal clock grows to expect that and become more comfortable with that! |