Hamsters Stay Clean.  Hamsters enjoy a great deal of popularity because they are such clean animals.  Unlike some rodents, they pick a specific spot for their rest room area – usually one of the corners.  They don’t just let fly when the urge hits like some animals.  One of the worst critters in this respect has to be the mouse.  Male mice leave a little trail of urine wherever they run.  After a while, you can actually see these “mouse runs.”  Mice are cute but they make one of the worst pets.

      Sleepy hairless hamsters.  This guy did not want to wake up.  Ugly but expensive.


Are you looking at me?                            Forgettabout it!

Hamsters Groom Themselves.  You may have to brush a cat or dog, but hamsters very carefully comb their own hair on a daily basis (except the fairly rare hairless guys).  Hamsters would probably enjoy having their hair combed if you have a gentle touch.  But they keep themselves quite neat on their own.  In fact, if you see a frumpy hamster, it’s because:

1. He just woke up

2. He is sick, or

3. He’s getting old.

Healthy young hamsters never look “rumpled.”  They look quite sleek.

Dwarf hamsters act exactly the same on a two-thirds scale.

Hamsters Like to Run.  Many times a hamster dozes off so soundly, he looks deceased.  “Hey, you gotta dead hamster,” someone shouts when they see one passed out, lying on its back, feet in the air.  Relax.  Your hamster’s just recharging his battery so he can stay up all night and run laps.  If you wake him up, do it gently.  Some get a little nippy when you disturb their beauty sleep.  But once he’s awake, he’s ready to play.

Empty toilet paper rolls distract hamster combatants.  They also provide hiding spots.

Mix Hamsters Carefully.  You can mix hamsters from different litters or cages IF you do it with care.  Rodents can be territorial little beasts.  Gerbils, for instance, really hate strange gerbils.  Many will annihilate any newcomers.  Most hamsters are more flexible than that.  They are most aggressive in this order:

1. Females protecting babies.

2. Pregnant females.

3. Hamsters kept alone.

4. Older breeders.

5. Older hamsters.

6. Hamsters that lost a fight.

7. Non-handled hamsters.

Males Argue Less.  Males are far less aggressive than females.  And younger ones rarely argue.  Try to get the hand-raised ones when they’re available.  These are ones raised in a house with a lot of kids.  They have been handled a lot.  Classroom hamsters quickly get used to a lot of handling also.  The more you handle your hamster, the better pet he makes.

Young vs. Old?  Realize that a hamster is ancient at two years of age.  You don’t want one of these burnt-out breeders.  But neither do you want one that’s too young.  Hamsters left with their mother until their sixth week stay much healthier than those taken away too early.  They get colostrum from their mother’s milk that protects them against intestinal infections.  Six-week-old hamsters are also large enough to stand up for their rights.  Four-week-old hamsters get the snot kicked out of them when mixed with other hamsters.

How to Trap a Hamster.  Hamsters spend all day devising escape plans.  They’re not very smart but they are determined to escape.  Once in a while one makes a successful break for freedom.  Don’t panic unless you have a cat or dog.  And even then, the situation is not hopeless.  Hamsters have fairly poor eyesight.  Most are recovered because they waddle right out in front of you.  You can easily scoop one up with a fish net.  But maybe you don’t enjoy running the little varmint down.

Make Your Own Trap.  We use a live trap that works very well.  One less-expensive “home remedy” involves an empty oatmeal box with an empty orange juice can inside it.  Lie your sophisticated hamster trap on its side along the wall.  Bait it with oatmeal and leave it out overnight.  If your escapee stumbles across the free lunch that night, he usually stuffs himself on it and takes a snooze in the safety of the orange juice “burrow.”  No one ever said hamsters were brilliant.  We just said they were cute, easy to keep, and fun to play with.  Enjoy your hamster.  Take good care of him.  Hamsters make the perfect small pet.  LA.  

More Info?  Go to Hamsters IV

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