In 1930, zoology professor Aharoni found a nest of hamsters in the Syrian desert and took the animals home with him. This is how it all began, and the descendants of those animals became very dear to animal lovers.
Hamsters are rodents that are part of the subfamily Cricetinae. The subfamily contains about 25 species , classified into six or seven genera.
It is the ideal pet if you want it to take up little space and not have to bother with too many new friends. It is a solitary animal that prefers to spend time alone without feeling the need for company.
In fact, the female hamster will attack the male if he is not in the mating season. The hamster lives about three years, which could be a hindrance for those who want a pet with a longer life.
There are several species of hamster : golden or Syrian hamster, Russian hamster, Chinese hamster.
Hamster Food
Be careful with the diet you administer because it may tend to gain weight. Teach him with small portions of fresh fruits and vegetables (which you grated or finely chopped) because they are very healthy and full of vitamins.
Among the vegetables you can manage include carrot, zucchini, lettuce, broccoli, parsley, beans and corn. Prefer bananas, apples, nuts and apricots. You can also offer him chicken or turkey meat, which you boiled and shredded. in his menu you can also introduce boiled eggs, cheese, dry bread and boiled rice.
Avoid giving him citrus fruits, such as lemons, rich in vitamin C, and other vegetables with strong flavors, such as garlic and onions, because they are not healthy for his digestive system.
He does not make food fads, so you can offer him special food for hamsters, which you find in petshops, but it is preferable to offer him a varied menu.
If in a 24-hour period he did not eat the full amount of fruits and vegetables, it is good to throw these scraps, to free the cage of microbes; solid food from petshops can be left in bowls for several days because it does not spoil.
Don't forget the water! Because it is a rapidly dehydrating animal, it must always have fresh water in the cage. In the summer it is preferable to change the water twice a day. It is very good if you install a dropper, which you can hang on a wall of the cage, from which the hamster can drink water whenever he wants.
To determine the amount of food your hamster needs for a day, fill the bowl and watch how much he eats that day; the next day you will put in the bowl an amount of food equivalent to that consumed the previous day.
Hamster Behavior
Hamsters are real geniuses in" storage": any food found is gathered in the jaws and carried to the shelter. This natural behavior ensures the survival of hamsters in the desert. Since hamsters take care of their own hygiene, the role of man in this regard is very small. The fur of hamsters does not need special care, but they like to be brushed with a fine brush.
Warning: Hamsters are desert animals and should never be washed! Their teeth are constantly growing, which is why they must always have something hard to chew on. In extreme cases, the vet may shorten his teeth. The hamster's Cage will be cleaned only in the evening, when he will be let loose.
Water and food containers should be washed only with hot water. The bottom of the cage should be cleaned once a week, when the bedding is changed. Once a month, the entire cage (including accessories) should be cleaned with hot water. No caustic cleaning agents are used.
If the temperature of the room in which they are kept falls below a certain limit (approx. 20 degrees), hamsters slow down vital functions, become almost inactive and breathe very rarely, in other words, "hibernate". This behavior as normal as possible generally scares the owners, who are convinced that the hamster is sick. The problem is solved very simply by increasing the temperature of the environment.
Symptoms that indicate the possibility of a disease state: ruffled or dirty fur, sneezing, wheezing and/or heavy breathing, loss of appetite, tendency to hide in the darkest and most sheltered places of the cage, lack of activity, apathy, hair loss (skin diseases, parasites), wet tail, diarrhea.
Appearance Hamster
Hamsters are nocturnal animals and begin to be active in the early evening, so they are not the most suitable animal for children. They need to be taught from a small age with the touch of the master, who needs to gently caress them as often as possible, otherwise they get scared and bite. For such small animals they have strong teeth, and the bite is very painful.
Most Syrian hamsters have reddish brown fur with white to gray underneath. Among other hair colors we can mention: cinnamon shades, cream, whitish shades.
Specific to the varieties that are grown in the house is the hair longer than the other types.
The body weight can reach up to 95-150 grams in the case of females and 85-130 in the case of males.
Although females can be ready to mate from 2-3 months, it is good for them to reach the age of 4-5 months to become mothers. Earlier they themselves are puppies, which still need to develop. It has also been observed that females mated before this age increase the incidence of cannibalism towards newborns.
Hamster Breeding
The duration of gestation is 16 days. Puppies weigh 2-3 grams at birth, have no hair and have closed eyelids and ears. It is preferable that in the first week after birth, the cub and the female-mother are not disturbed.
Females are desirable to be given again to mount only after 4 months after weaning. During this period the body has the necessary time to recover. At the age of 14 weeks they become sterile. Thus respecting the optimal age for the first mating, the interval between pregnancies and the date when they become sterile, you should have only 2-3 births, which is good for the female and reasonable for you with the management of the offspring.
Males are sexually active from 4-6 weeks of age, but it is best to wait until after they are 3 months old. Leave together dwarf hamsters breed from 2 months of age.
The female enters heat every 4 days, at which time ovulation occurs and is fit to mate and procreate. Generally this happens in the evening, and lasts between 4 and 18 hours. If you hit this window, chances are high that the Mount will be a successful one.
At the end of the heat period, if fertilization has not occurred, it will secrete a viscous, whitish liquid, at which time, if you initially did not calculate the exact day when ovulation occurs, you can add another 3 days and you will have the date of the next heat period. You can check if the female is able to mate and if when you pat her on the back, towards the tail, she drops down and raises the tail.
The female is pregnant if in 4 days she does not go into heat. After 10 days of gestation already the abdomen will enlarge and the nipples will become prominent. Depending on the breed, in 16-30 days it will give birth to offspring.
During this period the female is preferable to live alone, to have peace and consistent food. When the time of birth approaches, the female will begin to set up her nest. You can help her by providing her with fan, pieces of paper, cotton wool to have plenty of raw material.
In the run-up, the mother will be agitated and fully focused on setting up the nest. Puppies will be born naked, with closed eyes, being small and pink. It is not recommended to touch the chicks, even if they are outside the nest, for the next 3 weeks.
Otherwise you may risk not being welcomed by your mother or even devoured by her. Cannibalism occurs, as we say in mothers under 4 months of age, or in older ones, to reduce the number of chicks in the nest.
If the father lives with the newborns he will be extremely careful with them, carry them into the nest or even clean them immediately after birth. It can also contribute to the arrangement of the nest and their care.
