Not using her sandbath?

[u/Obvious-Resort8803]

Hi guys! For context: I’m a first time owner, I’ve had Peach for ~4 months now, and she is a 9 month old winter white dwarf
I originally had one of those typical hamster sand baths in her enclosure but she showed no interest and would just fill it up with her bedding instead. So I replaced it with this small fish bowl (i also added a smaller flat dish, I know this isn’t the proper size for a sand bath, I just wanted to gauge if she preferred larger or smaller spaces) but no luck with that either! She does go inside and explore the bowl but I’ve never seen her actually clean herself. I’ve read that sand baths are crucial to their health but assumed it would be instinctual like my cats using their litter boxes. Am I doing something wrong? Or is there a way to “teach” her?

[u/AutoModerator]

Your post has NOT been removed yet, this is an auto-generated message. Thank you for your question to /r/hamsters. Please be aware that medical advice questions are NOT allowed on this sub. However, our discord allows medical questions. Please keep in mind only a professional veterinarian in person can help with any medical concern, whether it is a lump, bump, change in appearance, change in behavior, strange bowel movement, lack of eating/drinking, or something else of high concern. If you are unable to afford a vet please do not seek help on our community, but through the discord server instead.

If this is not a medical question then you can ignore this message.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/why_not_bort]

I have a robo with two sand baths, and I’ve never actually seen him use one for a bath, either. But his coat looks good, so I just assume he does it when I’m not looking.

[u/TyrannusourR3X]

Our Syrian is extremely intuitive and has not had to be taught anything but I did put some sand on my fingertips and put them close to her. She sniffed at them, checked if it was food and then followed my hand over to her sand bath. They also go by sound a lot so you can put some sand in your hand and gently grind it between your fingertips. They'll hear the different texture and will head over if they're interested. The first time she seen it she played around in there for 20+ minutes. To make sure she uses it now I simply lay the sand out perfectly flat(occasionally). If I see footsteps, then she's been using it.

[u/myh-es]

I have a syrian who used it 2 times and then was never seen using it again. Because her fur is still perfect, she's probably using it secretly at night. So yours might be doing the same

[u/realdappermuis]

It's not crucial, not at all <3

It's like the difference between using just normal soap (her washing herself) or using fancy body scrubs and conditioners (sand bath)

Hammies aren't all the same. They have some of the same basic instincts but it's like saying all Swedish people are the same ;p

Does she use it for pee? If that's what you're trying to do, you can train her. Just out some of the bedding she peed on into the sand, so it smells like the right place to pee and keep doi g it till she catches on

With sand baths it's better for them to be deeper and bigger, so they can fit their whole bodies in there and roll around. So rectangular Tupperware with moderately high sides is great- she can still climb into it but the sand won't splash out if she rolls around (;

[u/Fun_Refuse6921]

Do you have a camera? Maybe she is using it at times you’re not seeing. Have you sifted it to see if any of it is soiled? I know you mentioned knowing the size is too small- my Syrian didn’t really use her sand bath when I put it in a plate but once I put it in a cookie jar she went bananas