Glass hamster cage pros
- Glass cages are often bigger than wire cages so will provide your hamster with a bigger living space
- Glass cages allow a deeper layer of substrate in the bottom — great if your hamster really loves to burrow
- No bars can mean less noise as there are no metal bits to bite — your hamster will most likely be more active at night and a lack of bars to bite will not interrupt your sleep
- Glass cages provide easier access for you to get out / put back your hamster
- Glass cages provide easier viewing of your hamster
- Glass cages prevent bedding etc from being pushed through the bars and creating a mess around the cage
Glass hamster cage cons
- Reduced ventilation can make it more difficult to regulate the temperature inside a glass cage
- Reduced ventilation can prevent chemicals from your hamsters toilet activities from escaping
- No bars from which to hang a water bottle — water in a bowl usually ends up full of substrate etc
- No bars to attach an exercise wheel — the wheel will need to be freestanding and can sometimes get knocked over
- Accessories such as tubes and tunnels are generally made for wire mesh cages and are not always suitable for glass cages
- Glass cages can prevent your hamster from sniffing the air around his environment — hamsters rely on sniffing for exploration and working out what’s going on around them
Glass hamster cage FAQ
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Will a hamster's teeth grow too long in a glass hamster cage?
The type of cage in which a hamster lives does not make a difference to the length of its teeth. The purpose of the bars of a metal cage are to keep your hamster safe and secure — not to help him keep his teeth under control.
Whether your hamster's in a glass hamster cage, or any other type of cage, you must make sure you provide plenty of wooden chew toys, gnawing blocks, an unshelled peanut, tubes from paper towel rolls / toilet rolls etc.
Gnawing, as well as helping to keep the length down, will also help to clean the teeth too.
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Is it ok to put a blanket over my hamsters cage?
Blankets should not be placed over the top of a glass hamster cage.
One of the drawbacks of using a glass cage is that air doesn't circulate quite as readily as for instance a cage with metal bars / wire mesh.
This doesn't mean that hamsters shouldn't be housed in glass tanks but rather that you just have to pay extra careful attention to making sure the top of the cage is always open to the air.
Covering the top of a glass cage with a blanket will reduce air flow and potentially cause the tempearture within the glass cage to rise to a temperature in excess of that which is comfortable for your hamster.
See below.
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Where can I get a glass hamster cage?
Glass hamster cages are not stocked anywhere near as widely as other types of cage but there are a few places online that sell them.
Good brands of glass cage are Falco, Ferplast and Kerry which can be found at places like Zooplus and Amazon. Prices for glass hamster cages vary but are generally much dearer than other types of cage.
Glass hamster cage safety
It's vital that you make sure the environment you provide for your hamster is safe for him to live in. Pay attention to the following to avoid anything disastrous from happening to your hamster:
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Air ventilation:
ensure a lid with a large wire mesh is used so that chemicals from cleaning etc can escape easily and quickly -
Temperature regulation:
ensure a lid with a large wire mesh is used -
Water:
ensure there is always an adequate supply of fresh, clean water -
Secure lid:
make sure the lid can’t be pushed off from underneath and prevents other household pets from exploring your hamsters cage
As mentioned the choices available when considering a glass hamster cage are much fewer than for other cage types and those choices are also usually more expensive. But as long as you're sensible and follow the advice given you can't go wrong — your hamster will have a very happy and contented life in whichever home you provide for him.