Happy Habitats

Safe Hamster Bedding & Habitat: Protect Your Pet's Health & Happiness

Learn about hamster habitats, bedding and nesting which will help your hamster to live a long and happy life.

Updated on October 23rd, 2025

Beginner Hamster Care: Essential Tips for a Happy, Healthy Pet

Learn everything you need to know about caring for your hamster, including habitat setup, diet, and tips for keeping them happy and healthy.

Updated on October 23rd, 2025

Clean Pet Toys, Beds & Habitats: Stop Germs, Keep Pets Healthy

Learn how to keep your pet's toys, bed, and habitat clean with these easy-to-follow tips, ensuring a healthier and happier environment for your pet.

Updated on October 23rd, 2025

Bringing Home a Gerbil? Essential Care, Personality & Habitat Guide

Learn more about your pet gerbil as it is a loving, friendly and innately curious animal.

Updated on October 23rd, 2025

Guinea Pig Exercise: Fun Ways for Active, Happy & Healthy Piggies

Learn why exercise is essential for guinea pigs and discover fun ways to keep them active, healthy, and happy in their habitat.

Updated on October 23rd, 2025

What are the best sleeping spaces for a new hedgehog's cage?

Congrats on your new hedgehog, and thanks for using Boop by Petco! As hedgehogs love burrowing, if you aren't providing a deep layer of bedding for her to burrow in, a small enclosure would be the next most ideal. There are many commercially available huts, sleep shacks, and bags that ST.Hedgie would love, and it will really depend on your needs and her likes. Some hedgehogs prefer the plastic, dome-type huts, and some prefer soft sacks. Cleaning will be easiest with plastic, but she may prefer a fabric house, so be prepared to appropriately clean the house of her choosing on a regular basis. Here are some options: Soft, hanging hut: https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/small-animal/small-animal-sleepers-hideaways/multipet-pineapple-house-small-animal-hideaway-in-yellow Plastic castle hut: https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/small-animal/small-animal-sleepers-hideaways/you-and-me-small-animal-hideaway Grassy hut: https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/prod

Got pet care questions? Bird bonding, cage size, heating, and litter?

Thanks for reaching out. Sound like you have a full house. 1. Birds will often bond together but continue to work with them in a quiet environ, offering treats to win and re-enforce trust. Toys, the radio or tv, can all assist with boredom. Setting up foraging toys so birds need to spend time looking for food. 2. There is no such thing as too big a cage. 3. Heating rocks are rarely approved for use, as they will eventually become faulty and get too hot, potentially damaging the animal. A heat lamp is recommended. 4. The bunny's litter box should be spot cleaned daily and full clean weekly. If you can smell it you waited too long. Good luck.

What's the right shelter or cage size for my dog, horse, rabbit, bird?

Dog: I personally recommend that they live indoors, it's safer for them inside and they always will be sheltered from the weather. If the dog is kept outdoors, the kennel needs to be big enough that they can stand in it, turn around, lay down, and stretch out as well as move around. There should be a roof on it, and the sides should be made of a metal mesh to allow air flow. Horse: Typically horses are kept in stalls. A 12x12 foot stall is suitable for a 1000+ pound horse. Rabbit: They are kept in hutches or cages, and the minimum recommended living space is is 12 square feet (1.1 square meters) with the addition of a larger area of 32 square feet for exercise. Bird: They are kept in cages, and it should be big enough to allow the bird to fly freely through the cage and have plenty of room for toys and enrichment.

First-time dwarf hamster owner? What advice do you recommend?

Hi! Hamsters can make great pets if they are socialized and handled gently. A standard hamster cage with a wheel, tunnels, a hide box, some soft bedding in which to burrow (like carefresh), fresh food and water are the basic needs of any pet hamster. If you want, you can add a network of tunnels to provide more exercise and enrichment opportunities. Hamsters can get sick and should only be fed hamster specific food items to decrease the chances of tooth and gastrointestinal problems. It’s also a good idea to take your new pet to the vet shortly after you get them so you have a baseline of health and have an established relationship with a vet in the event your hamster does become ill. Good luck!

Is it safe for my small pet to travel between two homes often?

This could be stressful to some pets, depending on their personality. I would suspect a prey-species such as a hamster would be more affected by the constant movement/change of scenery just because they may be more alert/aware of their surroundings. Whatever pet you decide to get, you will need an appropriate travel carrier to be sure the pet doesn't get loose in your car. Or even better, if your car is large enough to move the cage between the two households this may be easier on your pets so that the actual cage itself isn't changing regularly. Covering the cage with a dark sheet can be calming for some pets during travel, so they aren't alarmed by the light/noise on the trip.