Roborovski Hamsters

Water bottle - A dish full of water is not advisable as it gets dirty much more quickly, plus the water evaporates quicker too in a dish.

Food bowl - Although not essential, a food bowl makes it easier for you too see how much food your Roborovski is taking in and to prevent spillage. Ceramic bowls are the most sturdy, hard to tip over and gnaw-proof.

Sand bath - Again, not essential, but as Roborovski's fur is more oily than other hamsters, provide the pet with a sand bath. Just buy a large hamster food bowl and fill it with about 1/3 of Chinchilla dust or sand. See this video for footage of Roborovski's rolling round in a sand bath - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tZ8gmZSqQQ

Although you can't give your Roborovski(s) acres of land as in the wild, a hamster wheel is essential. It provides excellent and Robo's usually run on it up to 9 hours a night and for 25 miles. Hamster wheels come in many different shapes and sizes, not all being safe for hamsters.

Metal wheels are the most dangerous commercially available wheels. The gaps between the bars pose a huge risk for a Robo's tiny legs, extremely when you notice the enthusiasm at which Robo's run. Plastic wheels can also be purchased with the same size gaps between the bars as metal wheels - so avoid them too.

Plastic wheels are generally the safest kind of hamster wheel, two  inparticular are the SilentSpinner Regular by Superpet and the Flying Saucer by 'Small'n' Furry'' (below).

Tic and Tac's current wheel is a Flying Saucer medium (http://www.google.co.uk/products?q=Flying+Saucer+hamster+wheel+medium&hl=en&show=dd)

Again, not essential but a touch your Roborovski will appreciate. It provides it shelter - a place to sleep and retreat to when scared or sick. There are many shapes, sizes and colours in pet stores that can really liven up the cage or aquarium, as demonstrated by this rather wierd, orange hamster house...

Playing with tunnels and tubes is also very enjoyable for your hamster. Paper toilet rolls will do perfectly. They like to chew on them and build a nest from the bits of paper still attached to it. There are plastic tubes you can buy too. These are great if you want to build whole tube labyrinths. Ferplast, Crittertrail, Habitrail and S.A.M. all have an extensive range of tubes to choose from. The Crittertrail, Habitrail and S.A.M. fit interchangably. Ferplast tubes have a slightly larger diameter and do not fit the other brands.

There are literally hundreds of other hamster toys on the market - hamster ladders, hamster slides, hamster hammocks, hamster swings, hamster balls and the list goes on and on; but of course, a homemade touch is always nice - an upside down plant pot, a coconut split in half with a bit of flesh left inside, a hollow tennis ball etc.