Winter White Pearl

[janis]

hi all http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif

I was wondering does winter white pearls have a black strip down their back like all other winter whites ?

thanx...

[Yinx]

Hello Janis,

Yes, winter white pearls do have a black stripe down their back (as with other winter whites).

However, if you house them under cool conditions, their stripe will turn much fainter.

For normal winter whites, they will turn from grey to a whitish colour (well, almost). This is the reason why they are known as winter whites - they turn white during winter.

[janis]

hi Yinx.... http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif

thanx for your reply ... err so if I have 2 3-4 week old male pearls and a 3-4 week old male sapphire, do u think I will be able to house them together ?

thanx...

[Yinx]

Hello Janis,

It is possible to house them together. Just wash the cage/tank clean, put in new shavings & place the hamsters inside. To distract them , place some food in the cage. Do watch them keenly for any fights. Once they start fighting, you'll have to separate them immediately & re-intro them all over again.

However, do note that at some point in time (as they mature), they will most likely start to fight. I used to house 4 male winter white pearls together (3 brothers + father), & they started fighting viciously after a few months. I *think* it's 'cos as they mature, their territorial instincts set in, hence the fights. In the end, I had to separate & house them individually.

To reduce chances of them fighting, try housing them in a big cage. And place 'obstacles' eg. toilet rolls, hamster houses etc in the cage to decrease their chances of bumping into each other.

[Sarah]

hie yinx,

is it possible to 'match make' a one n a half yr old dwarf campbell with a 4-5mth old winter white? (im not sure if the latter is a winter white or a campbell coz it looks like a campbell but it has a strip dwn his back but it looks very simililar to the older campbell)

i havent introduced them yet, coz of their various sizes. http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif

there was once when the older fella got biten on the nose by another winter white when we will letting them sniff each other whilst we were holding them by their scuffs. so im afraid the ones i have now will do the same. pls advise! thanks.

Btw all hammys have territorial instincts rite? i read that dwarf campbells n robos r really sociable hammys tho'


[This message has been edited by Sarah (edited 02-10-2001).]

[Yinx]

Hi Sarah,

Yes, unlike Syrians, dwarf hamsters *may* live together peacefully (but only with their own kind!). However, there are several considerations to ponder upon if u wish to house several hamsters together. The first is, if u house a breeding pair together (male & female), u'll end up with a hamster population explosion! The other consideration is, if u house hamsters of the same sex together, their territorial instincts will invariably set in, & fights are bound to occur (only a matter of time). Eventually, u'll have to separate & house them individually too.

The above info is based on my experience in rearing campbells & winter whites. I am not so sure abt roborovskis. Perhaps, someone would be in a better position to advice u where robos are concerned.

As a general rule, hamsters of different breeds should not be housed together. Campbells should only be housed together with Campbells, winter whites with other winter whites etc. Housing campbells with winter whites (of opposite sex) is definitely not a good idea, as they can interbreed. I refer u to the info below obtained from the Complete Hamster Site (www.hamsters.co.uk) :

'Most species of hamsters will not interbreed or are able to produce young. The only exception amongst the species kept as pets is the the Dwarf Winter White Russian and Dwarf Campbells Russian Hamsters which can be interbred. However, interbreeding of the two species is not recommended as it is not in the interests of either species to do so.

It is worth noting that although the two species have many similiarities they do not occupy the same ranges in the wild and so no interbreeding of the two species occurs in the wild. Therefore interbreeding the two in captivity is unnatural.

In some cases, breeding a Winter White female to a Campbells male has led to the female being unable to give birth and resulting in the loss of babies and female. This is due to the Campbells being larger than the Winter White and the female having problems giving birth to the unusually large babies. The breeding of Campbells female to Winter White male does not present the same problems but there are many reasons why the two species should not be interbred.

Often the hybrids produced from breeding Campbells and Winter Whites together are infertile although some have been fertile. However, these fertile hybrids when bred together usually go on to produce infertile offspring so it is not possible to sustain an indefinite line of hybrids. Therefore, if the breeding of hybrids were to become widespread this could threaten the survival of each species in their pure forms in captivity in the future. Once hybrids are produced it is not possible to use them to produce "pure Campbells" or "pure Winter Whites" by continued mating through generations to one of the species - hybrids can only ever produce more hybrids.

Although the Campbells and Winter Whites have the same number of chromosomes there are physical differences between the chromosomes in the two species. One such chromosome is the sex chromosome which may well be the reason for the infertility in hybrid offspring. Differences in the other chromosomes could possibly lead to genetic problems in hybrids also.'

Hope the above info helps.

[Sarah]

hi yinx,

if im not wrong both my hammys r agente mottled dwarf campbells. its a pair but i havent housed them together due to their vast size n age differnces..

"Mottled is a dominant gene. Only one mottled parent is need to produce more mottled. To avoid a possible lethal gene problem, it is best to avoid breeding a mottled to another mottled. Most mottleds are ruby eyed. Breeding 2 ruby eyed mottled hamsters together will produce 25% toothless white babies that will not survive. "

so im not too sure if breeding them will be a gd idea http://petshub.com/ubb/wink.gif

[Yinx]

Hi Sarah,

I do not breed my hamsters, so I can't give u much advice on this! If the quote is true, then maybe it'll be better if u separate & house them individually.

Just for ur info, male hamsters remain fertile throughout their lives, while females typically cease to be fertile when they are 12-14mths of age. However, some females can still produce young beyond 14mths of age.

If ur female hamster is rather old, she might or might not be able to breed. Assuming she cannot breed, then maybe u can house them together. However, under such circumstances, it's better to play safe & not house them together, unless u're absolutely sure.

[Sarah]

ok i will tk abt ur suggestion, yinx. thanks for replying! http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Sarah]

hello!

i had successfully tried to house my small n big hammy together..

but i noticed that the smaller female hammy will often roll over on her back n show her teeth to the older male at times when he goes near her or tries to sniff her. at times she's real naughty n goes in front of him n does that baring her teeth thingy.

the male doesnt seem too bothered abt her doing it tho' or isit mayb he cant c too well? hmmz.. i really duno y she does that.
the male sniffs her behind at times.. is he developing an interest in her?