Hamster Care: The Essential Guide to Ownership, Care, & Training For Your Pet

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Ensure they are always held close to a surface, such as a table, your lap or their cage, as hamsters are fragile and they may get injured if they have a way to fall Always seek advice from your vet because if either of these have caused an infection, your hamster may need antibiotics. Diarrhoea (wet tail)

Syrian hamsters are seasonal breeders and will produce several litters a year with several pups in each litter. The breeding season is from April to October in the Northern Hemisphere, with two to five litters of one to 13 young being born after a gestation period of 16 to 23 days. [20] Dwarf hamsters breed all through the year. Gestation lasts 16 to 18 days for Syrian hamsters, 18 to 21 days for Russian hamsters, 21 to 23 days for Chinese hamsters and 23 to 30 for Roborovski hamsters. The average litter size for Syrian hamsters is about seven pups, but can be as great as 24, which is the maximum number of pups that can be contained in the uterus. Campbell's dwarf hamsters tend to have four to eight pups in a litter, but can have up to 13. Winter white hamsters tend to have slightly smaller litters, as do Chinese and Roborovski hamsters.Are All Conservation Measures for Endangered Species Legitimate? Lines of Thinking With the European Hamster”. Ecology and Evolution (2020). https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2020.536937/full A behavioral characteristic of hamsters is food hoarding. They carry food in their spacious cheek pouches to their underground storage chambers. When full, the cheeks can make their heads double, or even triple in size. [2] Hamsters lose weight during the autumn months in anticipation of winter. This occurs even when hamsters are kept as pets and is related to an increase in exercise. [21] Social behavior Hamsters fighting The common predators of hamsters include snakes, birds, and other predatory mammals. That doesn’t mean that a hamster won’t put up a good fight. Instead, they use their naturally long incisors to bite. If the hamster is a new mother, she will keep her young safe within her mouth’s pouches. Sudden dietary changes may result in intestinal upsets and diarrhea, which can be severe and even result in death of the hamster. Therefore, make sure to slowly introduce one new item at a time. Hamster Medical Needs

Rodents model for toxicity testing and biomarkers”. Biomarkers in Toxicology (2014). https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/immunology-and-microbiology/european-hamsterBartlett, Patricia Pope; Earle-Bridges, Michele (2003). The Hamster Handbook. Barron's Educational Series. p. 21. ISBN 9780764122941.

It’s really important to give your hamster a deep (approx. 25cm/10 inches) layer of bedding so they can burrow like they would in the wild. They use the burrow for sleeping, hiding and storing food so it’s important to use a bedding that will hold its structure when tunnelled into. Examples of safe bedding include: Hamsters are known to defend themselves against these predators by using their incisors which are large in size. The mother hamsters also carry their children to safety by putting them in the pouches in their mouths. Golden hamsters are considered vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources' Red List. This breed is found in Syria, where agriculture and human development are taking over the hamster's natural habitat.A commercial hamster mix is a good basis for your hamster’s diet. Adding small pieces of fresh food will have nutritional benefits and keep your hamster's diet interesting. Neumann, K; Michaux, J; Lebedev, V; Yigit, N; Colak, E; Ivanova, N; Poltoraus, A; Surov, A; Markov, G (2006). "Molecular phylogeny of the Cricetinae subfamily based on the mitochondrial cytochrome b and 12S rRNA genes and the nuclear vWF gene" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution. 39 (1): 135–48. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2006.01.010. hdl: 2268/77207. PMID 16483801. Species C. barabensis, including " C. pseudogriseus" and " C. obscurus"—Chinese striped hamster, also called Chinese hamster; striped dwarf hamster In the wild, hamsters make burrows, climb and walk for miles each day, so their living space needs to be large enough to allow them to behave as naturally as possible. Most hamster cages sold in shops aren’t big enough to even meet a hamster’s most basic needs, so instead, we recommend providing them with a much larger space, such as an extra-large cage, glass tank, or home-made enclosure. Wherever you choose to house your hamster make sure it has the following: