When caring for a pet hamster, you want to make sure that you have an appropriate cage for the hamster. You want to make sure that the hamster cage is the right size so that the hamster has plenty of room to move around and play.

There are different options to how you can house a hamster. You want to find the best option for you and your hamster. Check out the options:

• A glass aquarium, which is great to allow the hamster to burrow, as hamsters are natural burrowers and diggers, but because the walls of the cage are solid, it will block in urine fumes, which can be potent to your hamster. The other good reason to opt for an aquarium style hamster cage, is that the hamster cannot kick out the bedding.
• A plastic hamster cage, which generally has a plastic base with wire sides. Typically, you will be able to add tunnels and play things for the hamster. These cages are great in terms of reducing fumes, but they can be hard to clean since you will have clean the tunnels and accessories. These cages are also the better choice in terms of allowing more room for your hamster to play and "pretend" to burrow, but because the cage has the wire bars, the hamster will probably kick out his bedding while playing around.
• A wire hamster cage, these cages typically have a metal base that is about 2 inches tall with a full wire top. The wire top typically has at least one or two levels, if not more. These are great in terms of easy cleaning, and ventilation, but hamsters will kick the bedding out of the cage, so be prepared for a mess right around the outside of the cage.
• You can sort of blend the two cages by purchasing, or using an old, 10 gallon aquarium and purchasing a cage topper to allow a second story for the hamster. Although it still will be a pain to clean the aquarium bottom, and the cage still holds in the urine fumes, it will give the hamster more room to play.

Of the different types of cages that you can use for hamsters, I personally prefer using the commercial hamster cages, as they can be personalized with all the cage accessories and tunnels.

If you, too, prefer these types of cages, you will want to check out the following brands and the options you can choose from.

The more common commercial hamster cage are those manufactured by Super Pet. You will commonly seen them marketed as CritterTrail hamster cages.

You will find different types of Super Pet CritterTrail hamster cages from the more basic hamster cage designs to the slightly more elaborate designs. The following is a basic list of CritterTrail hamster cages and how many hamsters you can house in the cages.

Note: Remember that Teddy Bear (Syrian) hamsters should be housed individually, so even if you purchase a cage that claims to house up to three hamsters, you only want to put one Teddy Bear hamster in the cage.

• CritterTrail One- Houses 1 hamster
• CritterTrail Two- Houses 2 hamsters
• CritterTrail Three- Houses 3 hamsters
• CritterTrail X- Houses 1 hamster
• CritterTrail Y- Houses 1 hamster
• CritterTrail Z- Houses 1 hamster
• CritterTrail Dazzle- Houses 1 hamster

All of the Super Pet cages that I have ever seen have the plastic base and lid with wire walls and plastic accessories and tubes. I prefer using the CritterTrail cages over the other brands, but that is only because of the wire walls.

Penn Plax markets their hamster cages as Penn Plax and S.A.M. hamster cages. Typically, the Penn Plax hamster cages have the plastic lid and base with wire walls, similar to the Super Pet hamster cages, and the S.A.M. hamster cages are generally plastic all the way around.

But, that does not mean that you won't find solid plastic Penn Plax hamster cages or S.A.M. cages with wire walls.

Most of the solid plastic hamster cages are manufactured to provide a bottom basement type area where the hamster can simulate digging and burrowing to nest and sleep.

You want to carefully check the box, as many of the Penn Plax/ S.A.M. cages are marketed for dwarf hamsters and not Syrian hamsters. You will find that the Down Under hamster cages and the Small World Mini Deluxe cages are both manufactured for dwarf hamsters, so don't expect your adult Syrian hamster to live comfortably in the cages meant for dwarf hamsters.

There are many different Penn Plax and S.A.M. hamster cages that you can choose from. Some of the more popular include:

• Cyber Space Module
• SAM Here & There
• Blue Knight Castle
• Pink Princess Castle
• SAM Wallaby Home
• SAM Down Under Dingo

When decorating your hamster's cage you want to make sure that you don't overcrowd the cage. You also want to avoid spending too much time decorating, as hamsters are prone to redecorating their surroundings.

As for simple decor, you want to include a house and a wheel.

You can choose wooden houses or plastic houses. Penn Plax offers a number of wooden houses, which are actually great to choose because it will help give your hamster something to chew on without causing a potential risk. Plastic can cause a potential risk when swallowed, which is why wooden houses are preferred, but it's really up to you as to what you decide to you.

As for the wheel, the Silent Spinner Wheel is the BEST that you can opt to purchase, as it has a solid base that will not harm your hamster when he runs. The wire wheels have the potential of catching your hamster's feet in the spokes and breaking his leg. And, yes the Silent Spinner really is silent, which means no squeaky nights.