Do Hamsters Smell? How Do You Stop Your Precious Pet From Stinking?

Hamsters are kept as pets, but many people still have a question if hamsters smell or not.

So a basic answer for this is no, hamsters do not smell. Hamsters are omnivorous animals who eat insects and vegetables as food and have a lifespan of about one to two years.

There are various species and breeds of hamsters. The largest breed is the European hamster and the smallest breed is the Roborovski hamster. Hamsters are well diggers and can dig deep holes sometimes for their survival and to store food which they carry in their cheek pouches. The most popular breed, the golden hamster, is also often kept as a pet. They are small in size and their tails are even shorter than their body length with furry ears short eyes, legs, and wide feet. If you want your hamster to not smell, then make sure the hamster's cage gets clean once a week. Hamster owners are advised to ensure several things before having them as pets like do not expose them much to water or they will catch a cold easily, have a look on hamsters scent glands for any infection or kind of change if any. It may happen that you smell some strong musky smell from the hamsters' cage which is released from the hamster scent glands. Gerbils are considered one of the cleanest and the least smelly pets to have.

For similar content, you can also visit, are hamsters good pets and where are hamsters from.

How can I keep my hamster smelling great?

Hamsters are animals that keep themselves very clean and make sure of self-grooming. They keep themselves away from dirty places and ensure to live in neat and clean surroundings. They are fond of exploring new environments and therefore they are unlikely to stay at one place, their self-grooming habits are similar to a cat. They do not smell but even if they do a bit which is also released by their scent glands then it's quite normal and natural. Do not wash them because washing them will take away their natural oil which is on their fur and coat.

There are several ways you can keep your hamster smelling great, and the first step is to place the hamster in a safe place and this could be a small carrier. Take everything out of the hamster cage before giving them food, because if anything is present in the cage it may carry a smell. Therefore, it is advised to keep all the accessories, including toys, to make them free from any foul smell or bad smell. Make use of mild soap for cleaning the hamster cage. For cleaning their cages a solution of mild soap is used, hot water is used and dishwashing soap solution is also used as a substitute. Wash food and water utensils properly with the same solution, and for their cage to smell great, deodorize it, and for this, all in one cleaner can be helpful. Products like vinegar and baking soda can also be utilized. Sprinkle them and wipe with a wet sponge for better odor, and rinse the cage thoroughly. The process of rinsing can easily get rid of bad smells which are still left in the cage. Then wait for the cage to get dry and then place the hamsters back there. These cleaning and grooming activities of hamsters' cages will also keep them healthy.

Why is my hamster so smelly?

Some breeds of hamsters smell. Syrian hamsters smell each other even from a distance because of the scent glands present in them, there might be a chance of a fight between Syrian hamsters therefore they should be kept in different cages. The same could happen with male hamsters that they might bite each other's scent glands because they too may get irritated by the ugly smell from each other.

Sometimes, hamsters smell because of their urine, female hamsters make use of their scent glands for marking their territory and attracting the males to let them know they are in heat. Female hamsters may smell because of urine infection from the urethra which stinks very badly and makes the cage quite smelly. Therefore it is very important to clean their cage which means cleaning their poop, tossing the soiled hamster bedding.

Do hamsters stink up your room?

Generally, any breed of hamster, for example, the Syrian hamster, does not smell. But in case they smell then it may even stink up your room which if you notice then clean it immediately or if there is any medical issue with your hamster then consult your vet for your hamster's better health.

If you keep hamsters as pets in your room it is obvious they are going to live in a cage and then will pee, poop, eat and even run in that cage only and therefore they mark their territories through the scent they release which is quite smelly and becomes a major reason for your room stinking. Some more reasons that could make your house or room smelly is that hamsters smell because they pee in some selected corner, when they are sick they may stink your room with some bad odor and stress is one of the reasons of them becoming sick. When females are in heat they release an odor that may smell. If any food is kept for longer in the hamster's cage then it may release an awful odor and therefore train your hamster to keep a litter box with them. When females go under heat they show some behavioral changes which shows they are ready to breed and may release a bad odor at that particular time.

How to potty train your hamster?

Hamsters become great pets if kept with proper hygiene and potty training is one of them so there are five basic steps to potty train the hamsters. So the very first step includes purchasing a hamster potty that needs to fit in a corner of the hamster's cage which they can notice easily.

The tool should have a lid over it so they feel safe while peeing or pooping as a hamster is a wild animal and requires some personal space, next is to fill the potty with a substrate, something like sand, at the bottom so it does not move from its place. A sand bath is also used to remove some kind of foul smell from wild animal-like skunks, third step is to add litter pearls meaning they are highly absorbent and can hold weight as a hamster. This tool has its own odor which reminds the hamster to use that as a litter box placed inside the cage. The fourth step is very common which is to clean the cage, notice all the activities performed by your hamster, and then clean all the necessary places and grooming is a must in a hamster's daily routine. Commercial scent removal products are used to remove the scent from all over the cage and make the cage scent-free. The last step involves installing the potty again in the cage after sanitizing it completely.

How to keep your hamster cage odor-free?

If you are keeping a hamster as a pet then you must be aware of the smells and odors released by them for several reasons but there are ways to make your room and their cage odor-free. So, there are three simple steps that will help you to make their cage odor-free without putting many efforts.

Cleaning the hamster cage with the soap solution and making use of baking soda and vinegar is known to every hamster owner. Clean the cage with these products so that they do not smell bad, cleaning of soiled bedding is also a must in their case, do not allow your hamster to sit over the dirty place in the cage. Make them bathe in steady intervals of time so that they do not stink badly in their own cage. Removing soiled bedding at least once per week is just as it attracts germs that could later harm your hamster, they should be provided with better bedding materials. And the last step is they should have proper ventilation in their cage which helps them remove the smell from their cage or else the smell will get trapped inside their cage only. They should get fresh air from their surroundings to feel fresh as we humans do.

Don't Fret About Having A Stinky Hamster

A hamster is one of the best animals to be kept as a pet and one should not fret about having a stinky hamster because usually they do not smell.

They are small animals who are easily hunted by other large wild animals. A hamster is good at digging deep holes and hiding under those holes when feel threatened by these predators, they may wet their bed because of the runny stool. Runny stool is a stress-related disorder in hamsters often called hamster diarrhea, females also suffer from period problems, and therefore you should consider the fact of them stinking and help them make their cage odor-free by grooming and cleaning them and their surroundings regularly.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for do hamsters smell then why not take a look at are hamsters nocturnal, or hamster facts?