ESPRESSO BEAN
Last October I went to a reptile convention with my partner and a friend. We half-joked about going home with a praying mantis or some other bug, but even I can't believe we came home with a hamster. He was in a tupperware bin at a large booth in the corner. They had lots of other animals, mostly rodents, but the dwarf hamsters had my heart the second I saw them. Espresso Bean crawled right into my partners hand, and it was over. We brought him home and I immediately began researching, something I admit I should have done beforehand. I scoured facebook marketplace for a larger cage, and found one that included a ton of hamster supplies for only $50 -- a steal! Within a week Beanie Baby was set up in his new 600sqin cage, with a properly sized wheel, a sand bath, proper bedding depth, the works. It wasn't perfect, but I was satisfied for the time being, though I watched him like a hawk for signs of stress. He warmed up to me quickly, and I spent hours in those first days just watching his cage, waiting to see if he would pop his head out.
By January I had upgraded him to a Bucatstate 3.0 which has over 1000sqin of floorspace. I've experimented with many different layouts over time, as he seems to enjoy the change every now and then. He's a very sweet little guy, and will often come to the door when he hears me walking about in the pet room. I love watching him forage and use his sand bath most of all. I have become very passionate about proper hamster care over the course of this experience, and would like to use this page to emphasize the importance of giving hamsters enriching and happy lives.