The pet shop or breeder will normally provide a container to take the hamster home in. This is usually a cardboard box with air holes but hamsters have a habit of chewing their way out of these and so they are not ideal, particularly if the journey home is a long one.

Therefore it is best to go prepared and take a more suitable container when collecting the hamster(s). This can either be a small plastic carrying box designed for the transportation of small animals sold in pet shops or any suitable sized plastic tub (such as an ice cream tub) punched with holes.

A handful of wood shavings or some torn up tissue paper should be placed inside the container so that the hamster will be comfortable together with a handful of food and a piece of apple or cucumber for moisture.

Depending on the size of cage it may be possible to take this to transport the hamster home. However, any water bottle should first be removed as the motion of the car, walking, etc will cause the bottle to drip and soak the cage.

Once you arrive home, place the hamster immediately in the prepared cage and leave it to settle. It will take the hamster a few days to get used to all the new smells and sounds of its new home and will find this time a little stressful. Therefore although you may be tempted to get your hamster out and play with it, try to resist for the first few days so that it can first of all get used to its new surroundings and feel comfortable. This will help to keep its stress to a minimum. Stress, particularly in young hamsters, can lead to Wet Tail

It may take your hamster a few days before it feels comfortable with its new cage and surroundings. It is not unusual for a new hamster to run around frantically, move its nesting area several times and then spend a lot of time sleeping after all the exertion. After a few days though the hamster will settle into more of a routine and will generally seem more settled. This is the time when you can start to introduce your hamster to handling.