How to Make a Hamster Trap

No matter how responsible of a pet owner you are, if the opportunity arises, your daredevil hamster will take full advantage of an escape route to tour its surroundings. Hamsters tend to be clever, gnawing through cage materials, maneuvering through small openings and manipulating doors that are not latched securely. Such behaviors result in a lost hamster that can go missing for weeks. Hamsters travel in similar patterns as mice, fearing wide-open spaces and staying along walls and underneath appliances and furniture. You can trap your hamster at night when it is most active.

Things You'll Need

  • Hamster food
  • Foil
  • 10-inch-deep bucket
  • Bath towel
  • Paper towel
  • Wooden ramp
  • Hamster cage
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Instructions

    • 1

      Put your hamster's favorite food, such as apple bits or hamster seed, in the middle of foil sheets. Place the foil along the baseboards in the corners of each room in your house at night.

    • 2

      Turn off your lights and listen for the sound of crinkling foil. Your hamster will have to step on the foil to eat the food you left out. Follow the sound and seal off the room by closing all doors or open passages.

    • 3

      Create a hamster trap. Line a 10-inch-deep bucket with a bath towel to create a soft landing surface. Place a paper towel on top of the bath towel. Stand the bucket upright in the corner of the room.

    • 4

      Place your hamster's favorite food inside the bucket on top of the towels. Lean a wooden ramp from the floor to the top of the bucket so the hamster can walk the plank and fall into the bucket.

    • 5

      Place food along the ramp leading into the bucket so the hamster follows the trail. Wait for your hamster to follow the food trail and fall into the bucket. Remove the hamster from the bucket and secure him in the cage.