Originally Posted by
Altenweg
Our hamsters were great escape artists. One of them got out, went into the floor vent (which we didn't know at the time) and was gone for over a week. We kept his cage out and he wouldn't return. We thought for sure that we'd lost him.
Well one day while doing laundry (the laundry room is downstairs, the hamster escaped upstairs) I head scratching in the vents. I called my husband down. He had to take apart the vent but voila, there was Sweetpea, still alive, a bit dirty, but none the worse for wear. She had gone through the vent, started to walk and then must have fallen on the first incline and ended up in the vent downstairs where there's a long flat piece but inclines on either side. It's metal so she couldn't get back up. Poor little thing. If she hadn't scratched when I was in there we never would have found her.
Our other hamster Chicklet would escape and then hide under the stove. Every single time. I'd just leave her cage on the floor with the door open and she'd come back on her own.
Don't leave treats out, just leave food in her cage, maybe a special treat but only in the cage, your hammy should come back.
I like the humane mouse trap idea but there is a problem with it. Hamsters are chubbier then mice and even mice sometimes get stuck in those traps. I have used humane mouse traps for years, we have mice in our garage, and too many of them ended up getting injured because of the trap. Just fyi. :)
I hope you find your hammy.