INFORMATION ON SYRIAN HAMSTER AND ETC

Breeding and raising Syrian hamsters does not take much skill, but there are few important steps in order to ensure the safety of the adult hamsters and the babies to come.


Firstly, you will have to get a male and a female hamster to breed them. Be sure to pick out a male and female from different litters to prevent inbreeding. It is best to get them when they are young, they should also be friendly and must be healthy.

Syrian hamsters are solitary animals and will require two separate cages. In the wild, they live in separate burrows and do not live with other hamsters. If you house a male and a female hamster together, and allow her to give birth to her babies while the male is still in the cage, there is a good chance that one or both of them will destroy the babies. Also, the hamsters will fight horribly and possibly injure or kill one another if kept in the same cage.

Hamsters can mate when they are as young as 38 days, but it is not suggested to start the breeding process this young. They can be safely bred when they are about 2-3 months old. The female comes into heat every 4 or 5 days. If you are breeding Syrian hamsters you will introduce the female to the male each day until mating occurs. Be sure to put the female in the male’s cage. Do not put the male in the female’s cage because she is very territorial and will only try to fight him off. It is best to introduce them in the evening, since this is when they are most active. If the female is in heat, they will smell each other and begin mating right away. If not, they will ignore each other, or possibly start to fight. If she is not in heat and they do not mate, try again the next night and every night until the mating takes place. This should happen within 5 or 6 days. If the female is not ready, she will act scared, flip over on her back, and maybe squeal. If this happens, wait a week or two and then try again.

Once mating has taken place, you must get the female ready to give birth. The babies will be born in exactly 16 days. Occasionally it may be 17 or 18 days, but hamsters have always given birth at exactly 16 days. The female should not be held much during this time, especially as she gets to where she just has a few days left of her pregnancy. Her cage should be cleaned 3 or 4 days before the litter is due, and she should have plenty of bedding and tissue to make a large nest. You may want to feed her greens, fruits, and vegetables now, but in strict moderation, too much can lead to diarrhea. Chopped up apples and carrots can also be added. These foods will give her plenty of moisture to keep her milk supply good, and also keep her healthy. Never feed iceberg lettuce as it is bad for any small animals digestive system.

Pictures of new born hamsters are shown below. :)