Should I get my female hamster a mate?

Question

Ok, so yesterday I got a hamster...I dont know the breed...It was five dollars and she was healthy...She is grey and has a AWESOME personality! She got used to me yesterday...she only nibbled me because i smelled like her food...and she active in the DAY!(BTW can someone tell me the breed?)So anyways...back to the question.I know that the male will probally try to eat the babies.So once my Shadow gives her litter I will try to give my male ham. to my life-long friend who wants a hamster cause he had one but...R.I.P Max :) But I{m worried if something bad will happen if Shadow will have her litter...will she show aggresion?Will she feed them?Will she die? So please help me!

Answer 1

There are lots of problems with breeding hamsters, so please read them through and give it proper consideration before actually doing it.

The breed of your hamster:

There is a difference between "breeds" and "species".

Different species of hamster can not successfully breed - and no way should you attempt it. So a Russian dwarf can only breed with a Russian dwarf, a Syrian only with another Syrian etc. So you would need to be sure what sepecise of hamster you have, and ensure you find a suitable mate of the same species.

Breeds are just varieties (usually colour or coat length) of animals that are the same species. So, labradors and poodles are different breeds of dog -  but they are both the same species. A "golden" hamster and a "teddy" hamster are both Syrian hamsters. You can mate hamsters of two different breeds - but only if they are the same species.

Firstly - it is unlikely you really know if your hamster is healthy, especially if you have only had her for a day! When selecting animals for breeding it is vital to know their ancestory - for all you know your hammies mother may have died very young from a hereditary problem. Without knowing her history you do not know what diseases she may carry andpass on to her offspring, so you could breed some unhealthy pups that die a painful and early death. Just looking at a hamster also does not give you much indication of her health. You would be better off getting her checked out by a vet to confirm this, checking her teeth for malocclusion etc.

ONLY if your hamster has good ancestry and is in superb health should you even consider breeding.

Your next problem is getting her mated. If your hamster is a Syrian this can be difficult as they are a solitary and aggressive species. There is a high chance that if you put her with a male they would fight - possibly to the death. If you are extremely lucky you may pair them up when she is fertile and they will mate instead of fight.

The next problem is the gestation, birth and rearing of the litter.

Again, without knowing anything about her ancestry this is difficult. She may come from a line of poor breeders, bad mothers etc.

Lots of things can go wrong. She may miscarry the litter. She may give birth then abandon them - leaving them to die of starvation. It is not unusual for rodents (particularly first time mums) to eat some or all of the litter. And of course there is the risk that Shadow herself will die as a result of complications.

Finally, if you successfully breed a litter - what then? Do you have good homes lined up for all the babies you may produce? Selling them through a third party is not recommended as they could end up being abused.And what if you can't find homes - do you have the space, time and money to care for every hamster born?

Sadly, not many people are aware that even small furries like hamsters turn up in rescue fairly often, and it can be very difficult to find homes for them. These poor unwanted hammies are a drain on the resources of rescues or end up euthanised.

If you want to keep more hamsters yourself, or your friend wants a new one, you could look into adopting one that already neesd a home rather than breeding yet more.

I hope this gives you some "food for thought". Being a good breeder takes a lot of knowledge, effort etc. It can involve high costs (eg vet bills) or space problems, and there may be the heartache of watching your hamster or her litter suffer and die.

Ultimately you need to look at your situation and decide if you have the time, money, space, expertise, etc to do it properly.

Answer 2

Hamsters have a LOT of babies, mine had six! The males will eat the litters so you cannot keep them together.  Most females don't like you touching their little ones for a while or they will also eat them.  Its because of stress of being moved and that the babies will smell different, like you instead of her.

Answer 3

No, you shouldn't get your female hamster a mate. You clearly do not know what you are doing. Breeding pet store animals is never acceptable. If you want to be a responsible breeder, that's fine but you need to do a lot more research. Read this: http://www.petinfopackets.com/aboutbreed...