A Clean Routine

Your pet is much more likely to stay healthy if its living quarters are kept in good condition. Scraps of uneaten food should be removed daily and you should clean up any droppings. Some animals may make this easier for you by deciding that a certain part of the cage is the toilet area. You should also check the hamster’s sleeping area and remove any bits of food that it has taken to its nest.

In addition, you should clean out the entire cage or hutch once a week. You can wash down the inside with a very mild mixture of washing-up liquid and water but be sure to rinse this off with clean water. Put down clean newspaper and sawdust or wood shavings. Then, make sure that the cage is completely dry before putting your pet back inside.

Gerbils are generally cleaner than the other types of animal, and you will probably only need to clean their cage out once every two or three weeks.