A sand bath for hamsters might seem like an unusual method to keep tidy, however think it or not, routinely wallowing sand not just eliminates grease and dirt from your pocket animal’s skin, it likewise does an excellent task of preventing parasites from establishing camp in their fur.
While hamsters are spick-and-span animals who do an excellent task of grooming themselves, most hammy’s love rolling about and playing in dry sand. On top of being an enjoyable method to entertain themselves and offer their psychological wellness an increase, sand is a fantastic method to provide an assisting hand in keeping their fur tidy.
An important part of the finest hamster cage setup, offering your fur buddy routine access to a sand bath in their enclosure will guarantee they remain pleased and healthy. And unlike the sort of bath we offer our canine buddies, sand baths need no water or hair shampoo and are very simple to establish.
Take a look at our guide to the finest hamster toys or continue reading to find whatever you require to understand about sand baths for hamsters, consisting of whether they’re a need and how to set one up.
What is a sand bath for hamsters?
A sand bath isn’t the normal sort of bath that you’re most likely utilized to offering yourself and other family pets. It does not include any water or lathering representatives and is generally simply a container that’s been filled with hamster-safe sand.
With a regular bath, hair shampoo is combined with water to clean the hair of dirt, excess oils and particles. With a hamster bath, the sand does all the work, getting rid of grease and gunk from your pocket family pets fur as they roll about in it.
Does my hamster require a sand bath?
Hamsters do not like water baths, and for great factor – water removes the natural oils in your hammy’s coat that secure the skin and getting rid of these can lead to all sorts of issues, varying from inflammation to infection.
Technically, hamsters do not requirement sand baths as they’re incredibly sanitary little animals who do an excellent task of keeping their coats tidy. However from time to time, even the most fastidious groomers can look a bit grubby which’s where supplying your hammy with access to a sand bath can can be found in convenient.
Besides, even if your fur buddy isn’t unclean, letting them frolick about in a sand bath every couple of days can work marvels for their wellness. Hamsters get a lot of pleasure from wallowing sand, so letting them delight in this enjoyable leisure activity can be a great method of offering their psychological health an increase.
How to make a sand bath for hamsters
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You’ll be pleased to discover that making a sand bath for your pocket animal could not be simpler – or more inexpensive. All you require to gather the best sand bath is the ideal sort of container (shallow, tidy and huge enough for your hammy to move around in) and some pet-friendly sand.
Unlike chinchilla dust baths, it’s actually crucial that you stay with sand-based items that are safe for hamsters to roll about in as anything dust-based has the prospective to trigger your fur buddy breathing issues.
Here are a few of our preferred choices for containers and sand that you can utilize for making your bath:
When it pertains to just how much sand to take into the container that you’re utilizing, you desire enough that your hammy can roll about without their body entering contact with the bottom or sides of the sand bath container. Do not fill it to the brim, however ensure there’s a good quantity in there for them to be comfy.
Cleaning your hamsters sand bath
It is essential that you clean your hamster’s sand bath routinely as dwarf hamsters in specific will typically invest ages wallowing the sand, which implies it’s going to get unclean relatively rapidly. Not to point out the truth that they’ll likewise likely utilize it as a toilet!
Depending upon how typically you let your fur buddy take a bath, we advise utilizing a mesh sifter every couple of days to a week to get rid of particles and urine-clumped sand. The sand itself can either be cleaned and dried on a monthly basis and recycled or you can change it with fresh sand.
