Care Guide Reference

Syrian Hamsters
Mesocricetus auratus
Syria [Original Stock Lines]

Introduction

Syrian hamsters are solitary hamster, they live alone. If you put adult Syrians together they will fight to the death. In the wild they live in individual burrows, they sleep all day and wake up at dusk. They will travel up to 8 miles foraging for food. In captivity hamsters need a large cage with a wheel they also need lots of exercise out side of the cage. A play ball is a safe way to allow your pet to exercise and explore the environment out side of their cage.

Syrian hamsters are sometimes called the ‘Golden hamster’ after their natural wild colouring, now days there are many different colour and coat markings. There is also a Long-haired or ‘Teddy bear hamster’ another variation is the Hairless or ‘Alien hamster’ The Black Syrian is also know as the ‘Black bear’ or the ‘European black bear’

Syrians are approximately 6-7inches in length, with a very short tail. The feet are hairless with 4 toes on the front and 5 toes on the back feet. They have expandable cheek pouches, which they use to carry food and bedding. Syrians are nocturnal meaning they wake in the evening, although they may wake for short periods during the day. The average life span is 2-3 years although they can live up to 4-5 years.

Feeding

Hamsters should be fed a good quality hamster mix. I use either Supreme Pet Foods Harry Hamster or Burges Supa Feeds hamster mix; both are eaten readily by my hamsters. You can feed additional foods which will be discussed in my Safe Foods for rodents section the hamster should be feed a small amount of food each day and fresh water should always be available, a water bottle is preferable and less messy than a bowl.

Cleaning & Health Issues

The cage must be cleaned weekly all food and bedding MUST be removed. The cage must be disinfected thoroughly I use Supreme Home Help Spray, Hutch Clean or Milton Sterilizing Fluid. Once the cage is dry I use wood shavings and hay, I always add a little fresh hamster mix where the food store was. Cleaning the cage is also a good time to check your hamster for signs of ill health, pay attention to the droppings they should be like little pellets. Soft dropping could be diarrhoea, no dropping could be constipation. Hamster eyes should be bright and free from discharge, the nose should be clean and dry, and ears should be held erect. Signs of illness could include: Blood in the urine, soft droppings, scratching, fur loss, lumps, scabs, shivering, sneezing, weight loss and wheezing, if your hamster has any of these symptoms then you should take him or her to a Vet as soon as possible.

Handling

A hamster is normally 4-8 weeks old when you buy it, they should have been handled so that they are not too scared of humans. When you get home you should allow your new hamster time to adjust to its new home, speaking to it softly will help it to get used to you. After a few hours and once the hamster is awake approach the cage slowly speaking softly so the hamster knows you are there (hamsters do not have very good eye sight and may think you are a predator) place your hand inside the cage and let your hamster sniff you then gently lift up your new pet by either placing your hand over the hamster or you may cup both hands together and lift your hamster.

Young hamsters are very fast and can jump very quickly; it is advisable to lift the hamster just a few inches at first. Gently stroke your hamster whilst speaking softly, it should soon get used to be handled and will want to come out often. Make sure your hands are clean and freshly washed before handling your hamster. As I said before hamsters do not see very well but have an excellent sense of smell, the hamster will smell any sweets etc and may try to bite your fingers hoping for a taste.

Breeding Syrian Hamsters

You need think long and hard before deciding to breed your hamsters. You must make sure you can house your babies, Syrians can not live together, once the babies are 3 weeks old I take out all of the males, I leave mum and her daughters together of another week only. Syrians can have up to 15-20 babies although 8-12 is normal, so if you can not find homes you may need to buy another 10 cages or more.

Having thought hard and worked out what will happen to unwanted babies, then it is great watching babies grow and develop. It always amazes me that one week they are fully dependant on their mum, by week 2 they are eating and running around, by week 3 they are miniature adults. The female should be between 3-4 months before being bred from any earlier could lead to complications, also the first litter should be before the female is 8 months old to also avoid complications.

Syrians females come in season every 4 days, so you have to place the male and female together every day until they mate. You must place the hamsters on neutral ground and never put a male into the female’s cage I use a critter box. The mating must be supervised and once mating is over remove the male once the female begins to fight him, mating can last from 20 minutes to an hour or more I always wait until I see signs of aggression in the female. When the female is ready to mate she will stand still with her tail in the air, the male with mate with her more than once.

Once mating is successful make a note of the date, the gestation period is only 16 days (this is one of the shortest period known in mammals) I always avoid grabbing the female just to be on the safe side I cup her in my hands to lift her up. The cage will be cleaned thoroughly 2 days before she gives birth I make sure to give extra bedding so she can make a nice deep nest. The babies should be born on the evening of the 16^th day if the hamster has not given birth by day 18 then she should be taken to the Vet. I offer the female extra food whilst she is pregnant often cooked chicken in milk for extra protein and to help her produce plenty of milk for the babies, I often give a few mealworms too.

I usually handle my babies from birth, but I only do this because I known my female will not mind, I handle all my babies from birth and have not had a problem, but a female may cull her litter if disturbed. Once the babies begin to walk around I place some food into the nest with them and provide chicken in milk with cucumber and other fruits and vegetables no more than 3 types of fruit/vegetables in any day.

It is usually safe to handle the babies at 14 days old; mum will often appreciate being let out of her cage for a while at this stage. Once mum is out of the cage I give it a clean out a mum with 7-10 babies really smell after 2 weeks so I place the babies into a plastic critter box with a little old bedding and clean the cage thoroughly. Once the babies are back in the clean cage I put mum back in. I have never had any problems doing this, but every hamster is different.

At 21 days the babies can be separated I always take the male away at this stage and leave the females for another week. Spend lots of time playing with the babies so they are nice, tame and ready for their new homes.