There are an increasing variety of hamster cages available that consist of separate plastic or semi-plastic compartments connected by plastic tunnels. These cages are often quite expensive, can be difficult to take apart to clean, and badly ventilated compartments can cause a build up of condensation. However they do offer protection from draughts, and the solid compartments or semi-solid compartments do prevent the hamster from kicking shavings out of its cage.

Larger Syrian Hamsters may find the tunnels a bit of a squeeze and in some cases may even become stuck and so these cages are not suitable for pregnant or very large Syrian Hamsters.

Most Dwarf Hamsters once full grown are able to climb up vertically through the tunnels but they undoubtedly find a horizontal arrangement of the tunnels connecting the different compartments easier.

As a minimum any such cage must have at least one large compartment which allows the hamster plenty of room in which to explore and exercise and a compartment for nesting. However, even the largest compartments on some of these types of cages could ideally be larger and so it is recommended that more compartments are added. The advantage of this type of cage is that more compartments can be added over time.