5 Best Hamster Cages – Keeping Your Hamsters Happy

Hamsters are now among the most popular options for those looking for pets. These animals are very active and bound to keep pet owners in shape. Moreover, they are inexpensive, easy to care for, and readily available.

Even so, hamsters can escape when the environment in which they are kept is not secured. This exposes them to a range of adverse elements that affect their lifespan.

A secure cage is thus a necessity for all pet owners intent on the safety of their hamster. Not all cages will, however, suffice for your animal’s comfort.

Some have a prison-like setup that leaves your hamster stressed. A cozy and healthy cage is essential for your hamster to remain comfortable and thrive,

Best Hamster Cages

The buying guide below will prove beneficial for pet owners who want to make the right choice of a hamster cage.

1. Midwest Critterville Arcade Cage

This cage is worth considering since it maximizes the available space for your hamster with an arcade design. Its bottom section is somewhat conventional.

It has a plastic base for your pet’s bedding and a wire net that guarantees adequate ventilation.

One thing that, however, stands out in the Midwest Critterville cage is its modular design.

Your hamster can climb through the tube in the cage to get to the living space that includes a comfortable house, two levels, and an exercise wheel. The cage also comes with a circular cubby, food bowl, and water bottle.

The cage’s dimensions are 18.1″L x 11.4″W x 21.5″H with a weight of 6.1 pounds. You need no special tools to piece the Midwest Crittervile arcade cage together.

Furthermore, the cage comes with a 12-month manufacturer’s warranty, meaning you are covered if it has any issues.

Pros

• The cage is cost-effective, convenient, and beautiful.
• You can see what your hamster is up to by peeking through the cage’s clear cover and front.
• The convenient top door access allows you to play with and feed your hamster easily.
• The wire net ensures that your pet gets enough air.
• The cage’s modular design means you can easily dismantle and put it back together for cleaning.

Cons

• The wheel in the cage often squeaks. This might prove a nuisance for some pet owners since the hamster is quite active at night.
• The exercise wheel might be too small for some hamsters.

2. Ferplast Hamster Cage

Most people are initially skeptical of the Ferplast hamster cage because of its low price. They assume this means that the cage is of inferior quality.

This cage is nonetheless made of quality materials, is easy to clean, and has thin bar spaces that keep your hamster inside.

The cage has an open top and a side door for accessibility. Its detachable base makes it cleaning easy.

Moreover, the manufacturer includes extra accessories with your purchase at no additional cost. These include a hamster hide-out, water bottle, food dish, play tubes, and an exercise wheel.

Ferplast hamster cage is colorful and spacious to motivate your pet into remaining active while giving it lots of space to do so.

The mesh in this cage is made of durable transparent plastic and wire that is pet-safe and sturdy. The cage’s dimension is 11.6″ W x 18.11’’L x 14.8″ H with a weight of 6.33 pounds.

Pros

• A deep transparent bottom tray that allows unrestricted visualization.
• Easy cleaning and maintenance.
• A built-in connection cap between the parts that you can use to expand the space in the cage to accommodate hamsters of different sizes.

Cons

• You can only use the accompanying water bottle with this cage since its opening does not accommodate other bottles.

3. Favola Hamster Cage

The Favola cage looks somewhat confusing initially with its transparent plastic base and a standard wire cage on the top.

The clear base nonetheless allows a pet owner to keep an eye on his/her hamster irrespective of its position in the cage. The cage comes with two floors that give your pet enough room for exercising so that it remains healthy.

The two sections of the Favola hamster cage allow the separation of your pet’s feeding and playing section from the burrowing section. This enhances the cleanliness of your cage. The wire cage is pet-safe and sturdy. There is also an expansion cap on the cage’s side to extend it.

The cage comes with a 12-month manufacturer warranty along with some accessories. These include an exercise wheel, feeding tray, water bottle, and animal hide-out. The Favola hamster cage measures 14.4″ W x23.6’’L x 11.8″ H and weighs 6.28 pounds.

Pros

• It comes with the necessary equipment to keep your hamster comfortable.
• The distance between bars is not large enough for your hamster to squeeze through.
• Easy to clean and maintain.
• The cage is high and allows the use of a lot of bedding for your hamster’s burrowing.

Cons

• There is only one small opening at the top, and you will thus have to remove the lid completely to feed or reach for your hamster.
• You can only use the supplied water bottle with the cage.

4. Savic Hamster Heaven Metro Cage

Those looking for a colorful and bright finish for their hamster cages should consider the Savic hamster heaven cage. This is a sturdy cage that will comfortably accommodate dwarf and Syrian hamsters. It is fitted with several tunnels, hideaways, and balconies that your hamster will love.

Adventurous hamsters will love poking their heads through the cage’s bars with their 9.5mm spacing that still keep them securely in the cage. The Savic hamster cage has no accessible roof but rather two large doors on its side.

The base is removable, thus easing the cleaning of the cage. This base is also large enough to give your pet plenty of space for tunneling and frolicking.

The Savic hamster cage comes with several accessories, including a penthouse, water bottle, tunnels, and an exercise wheel, among others. It also has two large handles that make its movement easy. This cage measures 31.5’’L x20″ H x 20″ W and weighs 12.17 pounds.

Pros

• A lot of ventilation.
• Easy cleaning.
• Huge space to accommodate several hamsters or one large one.

Cons

• Flimsy wheel.
• The cage is too large for a Robo hamster.

5. McCage 3-Level Cage

This is a spacious cage measuring 24″ Lx 24″ H x16″ W. It is a three-level cage made of chew-free metal. Other than dwarf hamsters, the 3-level cage from McCage can house ferrets, rats, chinchillas, guinea pigs, sugar gliders, gerbils, and other small animals.

The wire shelves, ladders, and exterior bars of the cage have 3/8″ crossbar spaces. This means there is little risk of your pet escaping or its paw getting entangled in the spaces.

There are two front doors for the McCage 3-level cage and a raised grate floor with a tight ½” removable wire. The cage comes with easy-carry handles that ease its movement.

You can also slide out the cage’s bottom pan for cleaning. This pan has an epoxy-coated finish that is safe for animals to protect its metal from different adverse elements.

This cage is the best choice for frequent travelers since it can be easily folded for travel. There are no particular tools needed for its assembly.

Pros

• Easy to clean.
• Tight bar spaces so that hamsters cannot escape.

Cons

• Only suits dwarf hamsters.
• The bars are a bit flimsy.

How to Choose a Cage for Your Hamster?

When buying one or more pet hamsters, you need to consider a good size cage for them. Here are few things to consider when choosing a cage for your hamster:

– Number of hamsters

Among the key elements when considering your hamster’s cage is the number of pets you want to keep in it. If you’re going to keep several hamsters, it is best to get a cage that can be compartmentalized for each animal.

This is because hamsters are territorial and often love staying alone. With each animal in a separate compartment or cage, the hamsters will be stress-free, and you will negate the typical fights between animals in the same cage.

– Size and space

It is claustrophobic to live in a restricted space. This is even more pronounced in hamsters that are used to bountiful space in their natural habitat for their exercising.

When getting a hamster cage, get one that will guarantee your pet enough space to move about, play, and live. The ideal size for your hamster cage primarily depends on the pet’s species and the available room.

For example, a Syrian hamster needs at least 150 square inches in floor space and vertical space of approximately 17.5 inches. Dwarf hamsters, on the other hand, can be comfortable in cages with at least 120 square inches floor space and vertical heights of 7 inches.

The minimum hamster cage size advocated by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is 30″ x 15″  x 15″.

– Price

Your budget is, of course, an essential determinant in the hamster cage you will get. Even so, do not be averse to spending an extra buck to get your pet the best possible housing for him/her.

Thankfully, there are now several manufacturers for hamster cages. With the competition among them, you are sure to get a good quality and spacious cage that fits your budget.

– Maintenance

The right habitat for your hamster should be spotlessly clean for the animal to remain comfortable and disease-free. The cage you get should be easy to maintain and clean; otherwise, your space will reek of pet droppings, urine, and other body excrements.

An intricate cage setup might seem eye-catching, but it is often challenging to clean. This is because, for a thorough clean, you should dismantle the accessories and cage parts and clean them individually before re-assembling them.

Opt for cages that are easy to disassemble and re-assemble to make cleaning and maintenance easy. Furthermore, the material you choose for your cage will affect its ease of maintenance. Glass cages are quite easy to wipe down as well as cages with wire tops and plastic bottoms trays.

– Play and toys

You need toys and a few accessories to keep your hamster busy in the cage. A must-have accessory for a hamster is an exercise wheel. The animal can spend lots of time on this wheel to keep fit, and hamsters are always fascinated by the wheels.

When buying a wheel for your cage, its diameter should be somewhat bigger than the animal’s body length. The wheel should also have a solid surface so that the hamster’s feet do not get caught while spinning.

Accessories like balconies, mini-homes, and stairs are also quite popular among hamsters. Furthermore, you will need water bottles and feeding trays for your pet.

Some manufacturers include a few accessories in your purchase, and this might save some cash for you. Even so, ensure the accessories fit your cage and match the size of your hamster.

Hamster Cage Types

You can house your hamsters in different continers and cages. Here are the three cage types you can use for hamsters:

– Glass Tanks

A glass hamster tank is quite sizeable, making it ideal for those looking for a deep cage. Some people recycle old aquariums for their hamster cages, but the top has to be open for ventilation.

The ideal size for glass tanks for most hamsters is a 30-gallon one to fit the animal and all its accessories.

Pros

• Easy to clean since they are simply tipped and wiped.
• Smooth sides make it hard for hamsters to climb out of the cage.
• The glass insulates against the constant chewing sounds of hamsters.
• Perfect for burrowing because they are high enough to accommodate deep substrates.

Cons

• Heavy to lift and challenging for kids to clean.
• You need a lot of space to store the tank because of its depth.
• It is more costly compared to plastic and wire cages.
• You need a lot of obstacles and toys because there are no bars on the tank for the hamster to climb.

– Wire Cage

This is the conventional option sold in most pet stores as a part of the starter kit for keeping hamsters. Wire cages come with plastic trays that you can unclip for cleaning while the rest of the structure is made of wires.

When choosing your cage, settle for the one with bars made of galvanized steel. These will hold up to adverse elements that cause rusting and will not fall apart if your hamster gnaws on them.

Pros

• Plenty of ventilation for your pet.
• The wire gaps are platforms for climbing, thus keeping the hamster busy.
• Relatively durable and low cost.
• Easy to clean.

Cons

• Wires can injure small paws that get caught in them.
• Small breeds can escape through the wires. This makes wire cages unsuitable for the Roborovski, Winter White, Campbell Russian, and Chinese hamsters.
• Can be drafty for your pet in cold months.
• Not so deep, and hamsters that love burrowing can create a mess in them.

– Plastic Tub

This is a modular cage that often features several adjoining rooms next to or on top of each other. The rooms are connected using a network of fascinating tunnels.

Plastic tubs typically have the option of expanding them as your hamster grows to increase the available size. You can also customize them to meet your pet’s needs or match the room in which they are placed.

Pros

• Come in several colors.
• The compartments in the cages can be used for different things, thus encouraging your hamster to move around and keep fit.
• Designed for entertainment with built-in ladders and wheels.
• Budget-friendly since you need not expand the cages as your hamster grows.

Cons

• It can be challenging to take apart and re-assemble the interconnecting tunnels for cleaning.
• Hamsters near their old age might not be willing to move from one compartment to another.
• Is impractical for small rooms.

Can Hamsters Live In A Guinea Pig’s Cage?

No hamsters cannot live in guinea pig cages.

Most people assume that guinea pigs and hamsters can live together because they are both rodents. Even so, these two animals have different personalities.

For example, hamsters are territorial and prefer living alone, while guinea pigs thrive in groups. Putting these two animals in the same cage will leave both of them uncomfortable and stressed.

Other pet owners re-use the cages for their guinea pigs for their hamsters. This might, however, not be the right choice because a guinea pig’s cage might not suffice for a hamster.

Despite its bigger size, a guinea pig does not need as much living and playing space as a hamster. The guinea pig cage will thus become a cramped living space for your hamster.

Can Baby Hamsters Live In Wire Cages?

No, wire cages do not work for baby hamsters. This is because the hamsters can squeeze through the wire bars and escape.

Wrapping Up

Having the right cage for your hamster ensures that the animal is happy and comfortable. A happy pet, in turn, grows quickly and can live past its projected lifespan.

Hopefully, the above guidelines have answered all your questions on a hamster’s cage and maximized your chances of getting the right one for your critter.