Breeding Dwarf Hamsters
Successfully Rear Hamster Babies
Campbell’s and Winter White Russian Dwarf hamsters, Chinese and Roborovski hamsters all have their differences, but all these species allow males and females to live together. Litters range from one or two babies up to eight.
If you wish to breed your hamsters, please bear in mind that it is hard work and homes will be needed for all the babies. Never breed brother to sister as you may inbreed genetic problems.
Pair the Hamsters for Breeding
The most common way to breed from dwarf hamsters is in pairs. Introducing a young female to an older male is the best way to get the hamsters to accept each other. Older females may attack younger males. Introduce them on neutral ground and listen for fighting during the night.
Chinese hamsters are the exception. The female gets very bad-tempered when she is pregnant. If the male is getting serious wounds, then it is best to split them, but it is also a good sign.
Make sure the cage is big enough to contain the family and that if it has bars, that babies will not be able to escape through them. You need sawdust for the base and torn-up kitchen roll for the bedding. Fluffy bedding may cause digestion problems.
How Long is the Pregnancy?
The females are generally around twelve weeks old when they produce a first litter. Roborovski hamsters take a little longer and it can be six months before the first litter appears.
Some breeders offer savoury baby food (with no onion or tomato) as extra feeding for condition, others offer porridge oats in a little cold milk. These are also good for feeding weaned babies as they escape the nest.
Pregnant mothers will have an oval shape around their abdomen when viewed from above.
What to Do When the Baby Hamsters Arrive
Calculate roughly when you think the babies are due and clean out the cage just before. Disturbing the cage once the babies have arrived may cause the mother to kill them. You will know the babies are there because you will hear them squeaking and you may see blood on the nesting material. Do not disturb the nest.
You may see the babies as Mum gets off. They will grow and develop quickly. Meanwhile the female hamster is pregnant again, most likely mated on the night of the birth. Russian Dwarf hamsters have a gestation of about 21 days, Chinese and Roborovski’s are closer to four weeks.
Weaning the Babies
To avoid Mum having too many litters of babies in short succession, take Dad out with the male babies when they are three weeks old. Female babies can either be left with Mum (if there is only one) or separated out into a cage of their own.
Once the new litter has grown up, you can split out male babies at about three weeks. If you do wish to breed some more litters, then take all the babies out and re-introduce Dad, again on neutral ground. It may take a few times of meeting for them to get on, but hopefully they will get reacquainted.
If you no longer wish to breed hamsters then leave a female baby with Mum for company and a boy baby with Dad, finding homes for the rest.
The babies are ready for new homes by five weeks old. They develop from tiny helpless pink babies to miniature adults in three weeks. You can safely clean the cage when they are freely escaping from the nest to find their own food. If another litter is due it is advisable to clean the cage before they arrive.
Breeding baby hamsters is a wonderful experience, but each is an animal that needs to be looked after. Always do the best for your hamsters and do not breed if you cannot find good homes for them all.
Father Winter White and Two Week Old Babies
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