Can I Let My Hamster Run Around on the Carpet?

Hamsters belong to the rodent family. Their teeth do not stop growing and hence, to prevent overgrowth, they tend to gnaw on hard items. If they do not find such items around, they may start biting things around the house, such as carpets and sofas. Hence, it is not advisable to let your hamster run around the carpet without supervision. This will allow you to stop your pet from nibbling on your carpet. Alternatively, you can get some equipment that allows your hamster to roam in the house and get the required exercise.

  1. Letting Your Hamster Out

    • Hamsters are quite adept at escaping. They have the tendency to hide behind shelves, cabinets and bookcases, under couches and sofas or in pipes or other openings. So, letting your hamster out and allowing it to run around on the carpet may not be such a good idea. If you are unable to keep an eye on your pet, it may make a beeline for a hiding place, which could be in any part of the house. You may end up spending a lot of time worrying and looking for your hamster. However, you can let your hamster loose in a hamster playpen placed in the center of the room.

    Exercise Balls

    • Exercise balls that can be used both outside and inside the cage are available. You can put the hamster in the ball while you wash the cage and not worry about your pet getting lost or being attacked by other housepets. Do not leave your pet inside the ball for more than 20 minutes as it may lead to dehydration or exhaustion due to exertion. The balls have holes for air circulation. Monitor whether the droppings or urine penetrates the holes. Do not allow the hamsters to roll the ball near holes, stairways or other dangerous areas of the house.

    Harness

    • Use a harness and walk your pet around the house for short time periods. However, it may be difficult to put on the harness on an untamed active pet, as it may try to bite you. Furthermore, once the harness is on, refrain from pulling hard. It may injure the pet.

    Gnawing Toys

    • Gnawing toys prevent your pet from gnawing other objects, such as carpets, rugs and cage furnishings. Wooden chews, like critter cubes or kabobs, vegetable sticks, hamster bites and Swiss chews as well as hamster treats, such as alfalfa squares, nibble bars, gnaw sticks and biscuits, are sufficient to keep the teeth trimmed and healthy. This may prevent your hamster from attacking your carpet when let loose.

    Precautions

    • Keep the play area free of hazardous materials, such as toxic plants and electrical cords. Also, make sure that small hideouts are not present in the play area where your pet can squeeze in and get trapped. Cover the playpen with a mesh so that your hamster does not escape. Do not let other pets in when you are playing with your pet hamster, as it can stress him out.