18 replies to this topic

[rose1618]

Hello! So, I thought this would be a good topic for people considering getting a hamster about how much they should save up. 
For this, please do one with vet bills, and without vet bills. This is so if someone’s parents are paying for vet bills, they know how much it will be. 
thanks for reading!

[♥ brie ♥]

well this isn't to say how much you need specifically but with three hamsters my vet bills alone were $1,033 for this year so far and I easily spent probably 500-800 on cages, cage items, food, and bedding so needless to say they aren't inexpensive pets,,

Edited by cheesyhams, 04 December 2020 - 07:18 AM.

[MapleSyrup2026]

Ok, so as a younger person, who was on a "budget"/didnt want to spend to much, this is what my prices for hamster-y things are. (Im 14 almost 15)

*THIS IS AN AVERAGE AND FOR THE BEGGINNING OF A HAMSTER CARE/PREPERATION NOT OVER THE COURSE OF THEIR LIFE*

 

Without Vet Bills

 

Hamster 10-50

Cage 40

Toys/Chews 15

Bedding 20

Food 10

Accessories (Wheels, Bottle, Dish) 20

Hideouts 20

 

125-165

 

Vet Savings would be atleast 50 but I would aim for 200, but right now I have 163 in my hamsters saving account.

 

 

In conclusion I believe you should have AT LEAST 150 Saved for preparation of a hamster.

[MapleSyrup2026]

If your on a budget though, this is what my friends were like:

 

Cage (Bin) $12

Toys (Many are DIY)(She has 4 toys and 2 chews) $8

Hideouts (DIYS & Household items) $15

Bedding $20

Food $8 

Accessories (Wheel Bottle Dish Etc) (Free Dish, DIY Wood/Popsicle Wheel,) 6

Hamster $14

 

Total: $78

 

Her vet savings are provided half by her parents, and the other half she pays, in total they both contribute 30 dollars each so 60 is their vet savings.

 

(She is 16 if you wanted that info)

Edited by MapleSyrup2026, 04 December 2020 - 07:56 AM.

[lil BIG dwarf]

You'll be spending around 400 USD.

 

Cage- 20-150 USD

 

Wheel/bottle/bowl-35 USD

 

Food-15 USD for good quality food

 

Bedding-anywhere from 30-100 USD

 

Etc.

 

Honestly, I would work out what supplies you want, and have a vet fund of 250 USD minimum.

Edited by lil BIG dwarf, 04 December 2020 - 08:21 AM.

[MerryBB]

preface that I forgot: this is 100% from a US perspective

 

Vet Funds: minimum $200 per hamster, which can cover the avg. cost of consultation (up to $100) and a euthanasia ($20 - $70 depending on practice/location) if need be. Medical costs for a condition that is treatable can vary widely and ideally available vet funds per hamster would be as much as $400 - $500 or more- even if they never get spent.

 

Initial Costs: $10 to adopt a single hamster, avg. $70 - $150 for either the materials to build a DIY cage or buy a suitable commercial enclosure, $15 - $30 for a wheel depending on size/quality, about $40 - $50 for the first batch of bedding (varies a lot- I'm assuming mostly paper bedding rather than 100% aspen wood), about $15 or less for a mix of 1-2 foods.

 

So that's anywhere from $150 - $255 initially, not including other cage accessories that tend to be less expensive but will build up. There are plenty of opportunities to go DIY or very low cost for a number of hide houses; a sand dish + sand; food/water dishes (or a $10 - $15 water bottle); etc that don't require setting foot in a pet store. Lifelong costs for bedding/food can vary a lot by species/size, how much you buy initially, and even unexpected mishaps (contagious disease meaning you throw out clean bedding; pests getting in the food; etc). But they're not going to be close to the costs for a cat/dog or even a group of rats for example.

 

Personally I'd recommend having at least $150 saved up per year your hamster lives to cover the costs of furnishings for the cage that you can't / don't want to DIY, extra bedding/food you may need to buy as you run out of the initial bag(s), as well as any surprises that might leave you without some things you've already bought/made. Let's say the average lifespan for a hamster is about 2 years give or take, so that's at least $300.

 

So that all adds up to around $650 - 755 for a single hamster that lives about two years and never needs more than $200 in vet costs. That can go down if you get lucky and never need veterinary care or only need end of life care (which was my situation actually- my extra costs ending up at around this number for my past dwarf were because of a major cage upgrade & some money arguably wasted on things I ended up not using / needing like an entire cabinet's worth of ceramic and plastic hides.. and festively colored paper bedding.. *cough*)

Edited by RosemaryBB, 04 December 2020 - 09:44 AM.

[rose1618]

Thanks for the reply’s everyone!

[hammies12345]

I recommend having at least $500 minimum before adopting a hamster, they aren't cheap at all. Remember, I live in Canada, so this could be cheaper or more expensive depending on where you live.

 

Vet bills: At least $150

 

Cage: 15- 200

Toys: 10- 70

Bedding: 20- 50

Wheel/ Bowls: 20- 50

[Robin~]

I actually made an article about this a while back! Here’s the link:

http://hamsterhideout.com/forum/topic/155308-budget-hamster-owning/

In it I came to ~$150 if you’re extremely frugal with your money and at the end I added a $300 vet fund.

[MushuTheHamster]

I think it really depends on what you're getting, as everyone buys different things. I'm going to put the cost before I made my new DIY and the after. This is the upfront cost. (All of this is US dollars)

 

Before:

- $20-30 bin cage (including bin supplies)

- $15 Higgins Mazuri mix

- Any where from $5 to $20 on chews ($15 dollars is typically what I would spend)

- $10 dollars for hides (I bought a green plastic hide and a willow hide. Any other hides I use are cardboard boxes)

- $20-$40 dollars on hamster wheel

- $20-$40 on bedding

- For me, I got my hamster with all his supplies for $40 (I didn't end up using any of the supplies they gave me, though), but normally the hamster alone will cost $10-$60 dollars, depending where you get them.

- $1-$30 for sand bath container

- $5-$30 for actual sand

- Other fun activities will cost anywhere between $3 to $60, depending what you get. This may include sprays, climbing toys, tunnels, etc.

 

All the prices say the same, expect with my new enclosure, the cage and bedding price changed drastically. 

- DIY 1,512in enclosure was about $150

- Bedding cost $70, which was a crazy amount.

 

Using boxes for hides is a great way to save money for your hamster, just so you know

 

Now to the vet bill:

Currently, I have $50 on hand for emergencies. That said, my upfront vet costs $40 just for a check up. If the vet were to cost more than $50 after a visit, I have a bank account that I can pull money from anytime, so if that were needed, I'd be glad to do so.

I haven't had to visit my vet yet, so I have no idea how much the ending price might be.

[rose1618]

Thanks for your responses everyone! (Again)

Edited by rose1618, 04 December 2020 - 10:39 PM.

[Bearthehammy~]

You'll be spending around 400 USD.

Cage- 20-150 USD

Wheel/bottle/bowl-35 USD

Food-15 USD for good quality food

Bedding-anywhere from 30-100 USD

Etc.

Honestly, I would work out what supplies you want, and have a vet fund of 250 USD minimum.

Who the <basement> spends 35 dollers on a water bottle?

[Remy]

Who the <basement> spends 35 dollers on a water bottle?

She said wheel/bottle/bowl. Not just a bottle.

[Bearthehammy~]

She said wheel/bottle/bowl. Not just a bottle.

l

Yes remy, thank you remy

[k3ndra]

This is on AVERAGE of what I payed for my hamsters. Dwarf hamsters are cheaper than Syrians (in my opinion). This list does NOT include vet bills. I suggest you put AT LEAST another $200 on the side in case of verternarian visits!! DWARF HAMSTERS: cage- $50 hut- $6 chew toys- $10 wheel- $16 water bottle- $5 food- $8 bedding- $12 a bag, but needs to be restocked every 2-3 months hamster- $16 TOTAL: $123 SYRIAN HAMSTERS: cage- $50 hut- $8 chew toys- $14 wheel- $22 water bottle- $5 food- $8 bedding- $12 a bag, but needs to be restocked every 2-3 months hamster- $20 TOTAL: $139 In conlusion, you could save slightly more money with purchasing a dwarf rather than a syrian... BUT, you could find ways to save money. For example, you could ADOPT instead of buying a hamster. This could save you much money. Another thing you could do to save money is making a bin cage instead of purchashing a named brand cage or aquarium tank!! I think both species are INCREDIBLE pets and deserve equal care and treatment.