questions.

[WiCkEd]

can u guys help me out?

1) i'm not sure what breeds two of my hamsters are, one is completely black with a black stripe running down its back, its ears are slightly longer than my campbell's russian dwarf..the other hamster is kinda beige/pudding in colour and has a brown stripe running down the middle of the back..

2) my hamsters don't make nests, i've thrown pieces of tissue paper in and they don't do anything with it..they normally just burrow into the saw dust to sleep..

3) other than the 2 hamsters mentioned above, i house them together with a campbell's russian dwarf and a winter white...is that ok?

4) is it ok for them to crossbreed? the campbells russian dwarf is a male, the rest are females..

5) is it really necessary to cover the cage with a black cloth when a hamster has given birth to her young? or would peace and quiet be sufficient?


Thanks in advance everyone! (",

[animalmagic]

I'm not really very knowledgable about dwarves. A lot of people are though, so they will be able to help out probably.

1) Could you post a picture? That'll be a lot of help.

2) If that's the way they like to sleep, then I think it's fine. As long as they're comfy and happy then I wouldn't worry.

3) Are all the hamsters definitely dwarves? I don't really know.

4) PLEASE DON'T BREED YOUR HAMSTERS. Considering you've been keeping them all together, it's pretty much certain that one or more of your females is pregnant. This was a very very bad move.

Why do you want to breed them? Take out the male. Put him in a separate cage and maybe get him a friend. You may well have 3 pregnant females- and that is going to be extremely difficult and time consuming to take care of.

Do a lot of research on caring for pregnant hamsters.

I'm warning you now, you're more than likely going to be harrassed when more people come online about this breeding issue.

You were foolish to put a male in with 3 females. All you can do now is prepare yourself for multiple litters. But I would remove the male now, as the females can be impregnated again straight away.

Grr. Why did you put male and female hamsters together? :(

[WiCkEd]

i put them together cuz i want to breed them..at the pet shop they said it was fine to crossbreed.

btw, why'd you say not to breed them? is it bad to crossbreed? or is it fine?

done research on caring for pregnant hamsters, from what people say (friends), cage needs to be covered with a black cloth..research on the net however does not mention anything about covering the cage..

[animalmagic]

I say not to breed them because there are already too many hamsters in the world. What are you planning to do with the babies?

Lets just say each of the females are pregnant. Say each one has 8 babies. You have 3 females.

3 x 8 = 24.

TWENTY FOUR BABIES. What are you going to do with twenty four baby hamsters?

When they are old enough, you will then have to separate them into groups of males and females.

Do you have that many cages? Do you have homes lined up?

Is the reason you want to breed because you think baby hamsters are cute? I don't think you've thought this through.

[WiCkEd]

so that means crossbreeding is fine right? homes aren't a problem.

ok, on to nesting, my hamsters don't make "nests" as such..why?

[animalmagic]

You honestly want me to believe you have homes lined up for a potential 24 hamsters?

I feel very sorry for your poor females.

And in answer to your crossbreeding question, no, it is not a good idea. However it is too late- as this has almost certainly already occured.

Different types of dwarves can interbreed but there may be birth complications and the offspring may be infertile. It is not recommended to interbreed the two for various reasons. Your hamsters' offspring will more than likely have a number of health complications. Do you think it's going to be easy to find homes for hamsters with problems that were brought on by you?

I am not going to answer your question about nests when there are more serious issues such as the fact that your females may die due to complications at birth because of crossbreeding.

[Caitandcritters]

First lesson with almost any small animal... Petstores don't know anything about them. They just told you that crossbreeding is ok to SELL that hamster to you.

Some hamsters make nests, others don't. I have a pair who don't see the need for one, and another that build extravagant nests.

If you've read any literature on the subject of breeding, you'd

a) Know crossbreeding is not wise at all, muddling two species together into one. There is no reason for it, and it's already difficult enough for real breeders to maintan PURE lines because of things like this.

b) You'd know the colors of your hamsters.

c) Know the consequences and potential risks of breeding hamsters with unknown back grounds. The fact you are doing this, and giving away the babies to people as pets when they could have hidden, yet serious, genetic flaws that could cause early death or health problems is irresponsible. People would much rather have a hamster from a reputable breeder. I'm not saying you CAN'T become one, you just need to start with the right info and some quality stock.

Think about it. I'd advise you to remove your male and not go through with this until you get quality stock and read up on genetics. I know some really good sites for genetic info and some fourms more geared towards breeding if you'd like their addresses.

I'd just like to add, I've been in a similar situation, and have taken the above advice. I can say that I am much happier with myself, as I'm not being detrimental to the hamster population as a whole.

Good luck, and let me know about the sites. :)

[PetLuver21257]

Take out the male NOW! Don't ask questions, just take him OUT! Here is why crossbreeding is bad because the babies will have many complications and I do hope that you have winter white male, because a campbell male that mates with a ww female, well, the babies might be too big for her to get out of her system.... Meaning death for the babies and the mom...

It is also bad because hybrid hamsters cannot have anymore hamsters when they are older. Like the mule, it can't have babies with another of its kind. Or at all!

Just take the male out immediatly!! :(

[Caitandcritters]

Actually, hybrids can breed. They are not like mules in that sense, which makes cross breeding even more muddling. Think about it, one hybrid can turn a whole line "unpure" and unsuitable to breed from again.

[PetLuver21257]

Well, sometimes they can't breed, I read it somewhere.... I really did! And yes, unpure is bad! :(

[LMDH]

Sometimes reading peoples posts makes me so angry

WHY DIDNT YOU RESEARCH THIS BEFORE YOU BOUGHT THE HAMSTERS?

You dont even know about nest making, so how can you even consider breeding?

You must remove the male immediately. I am not against breeding, I breed dwarves myself. But I am against hybrids. The health implications for mum and babies are huge, mum will likely die in childbirth and the babies may have alsorts of health problems. Its not fair on the hamsters.

Hybrids can breed, and will breed easily, passing on any health problems down their own family lines.

We are battling in the UK to get rid of the hybrid hamsters as pure lines of WWs and Campbells are disappearing at an alarming rate. You may not think that this affects you, but it does. Hamsters are imported, and the UK (and other places) are finding it hard to import new gentic lines that are not hybrids.

Also you have bought pet shop hamsters. Do you know their background? Do you have a three generation pedigree for ALL the hamsters? I think not, as if you did you would know what species and colour they were. Therefore do you know what colours they carry? Any lethal genes present? Any genetic health problems? You should not breed from pet shop hamsters as you do not know their history. Oh, have you tested you Campells for diatebetes? Heck, did you even know they suffered from diatetes?

If you are serious about breeding then take Caits advise and go to the websites she has offered to send to you - but bare in mind NOBODY will tolerate hybrids.