|
Home | Hamsters | Goldfish| Animal Chronicles
|
|
|
Hamsters
What is a Syrian?
|
This is the fun part!
The hamsters that I actually purchased were found at various pet stores around town. I have discovered, however, that the locally owned one run by an old man who adores animals has provided me with the best hammies. I reccommend that you find a store that has knowledgeable people working it and that has hamsters in stock that seem to fit the following: Meredy's Hammy Criteria .
Most hamsters in petstores are timid. However, they should NOT bite you if at all possible. A little nip is ok, but nothing that inflicts pain or draws blood. A hamster like this is not only scared but MEAN. No amount of stroking and breaking in will cure this type of hamster of its habit.
Hamsters have two different coat types with two different possible variations. The first coat type is Longhair or Teddy Bear, and the second is regular old short hair (most common). In a standard hamster, the coat will be soft but not very shiny. A coat with a variation may be shiny, which is called satin, or it may be rex, which is slightly curly or wiry looking. Rex is not at all common in pet stores.
When choosing your hammy, of course find a coat coloration you like, but first make sure that there are no patches missing, no dandruff can be seen, and that the area around the eyes and ears is not crusty. This ensures that the hamster is not old or sick.
NOTE: Hamsters may appear to be "missing" hair on their hips. This is not a problem; it merely depicts the "grease spots". These are glands on your hamster that are oily and therefore mat down the fur.
The hamster you pick out should have bright eyes (which may be black or red--red eyes in babies tend to be very light while those of adults are darker as a result of aging, a pink nose, pink toes, a dry underbelly and tail area (wet-tail symptoms are just what you would think: a wet booty), and it should wake up quickly when your tap on the bedding near its bed. I have observed that older hamsters tend to be harder to wake up than younger ones.
The hamster should be relatively small. when picked up, a syrian hamster that is less than 4 months old should fit in your palm with nose at the top of one side and tail at the bottom of the other side. Essentially, only 3-4 inches long. If you want to adopt one bigger than that, be forewarned that it is probably older and will not be a pet for much more than a year.
NOTE: Never buy a syrian hamster that is two inches or less in length! It is still a baby and may yet die from either genetics or the delayed effects poor mothering.
Make sure the hamster could not possibly be pregnant, if you decide on a female (even young ones!). One way to check this is to look at its cagemates. Most petstore syrians are kept together until about 6 months of age, but it is important that they are kept as boys and girls, separately. I can not stress this enough.
Females are capable of becoming pregnant usually at two months old. Ask the pet store manager if he/she has kept boys and girls apart since they arrived. If he has, make sure that it has been at least 16 days (hamster gestation period) since that arrival.
If you are looking at a female that seems to be VERY rounded on each side, do not buy her unless you want up to 20 babies (average is about 8) in a few days suckling your new hamster.
|
