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rebbel's avatar

A few questions on hamsters. [Check inside].

Asked by rebbel (35550points) January 26th, 2012
5 responses
“Great Question” (1points)

We bought a hamster today, a Russian dwarf hamster to be precisely.
A few questions:
– Will she ever listen to her name?
– In case she will bite, will it hurt/will I be wounded?
– Who was it that thought it a good idea to let hamsters walk senseless walks in a hamster wheel or is there a wildlife equivalent where they show the same behavior?
– We already named her Anuschka, but if you can give us a name that wows us, we willl consider a change!

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Answers

janbb's avatar

No
No
I assume they run a lot in the wild.
And – I love that name.

JilltheTooth's avatar

After I stop giggling at the thought of all of this I will attempt to answer your Q.

SpatzieLover's avatar

Yes. My dwarf hamsters did know their names…but I must admit that at the age I started caring for them I had ridiculous amounts of time to spend with them. They will not answer to them (as in come running to you if she should bust out of her cage).

Will it hurt when she bites? It depends on if she wants it to or not. Sometimes they bite to say “put me down”. It could be gentle. If she really is upset, and bites hard, it will feel like four pins (two from the top/two from the bottom) have just pressed into you at once.

My recommendation to get her to like being in your hand is to allow her to transition from her cage into your hand gently. For this, my method has always been to use a toilet paper tube. The hamster climbs into the tube then you let her climb out onto your hand.

I’ve had dozens upon dozens of dwarf hamsters, as I bred them for a time in my youth. I’ll gladly answer any questions you have @rebbel.

Coloma's avatar

It is doubtful your hamster will learn her name, maybe, if you say it a lot while feeding her something delectable like grapes or peanut butter. lol
Yes, they can bite, you won’t be terribly wounded, but, you might want to be up to date on your tetanus shot. Slight potential for Salmonella, but, unlikely.
They are mostly nocturnal sooo, you may only see her in a little round ball sleeping most of the time.

They enjoy exercise wheels, keep it greased. Refer to above nocturnal habits, the wheel will spin all night most likely. haha
They enjoy stimulating habitats, wheel aside, and she should have some nice, soft, fresh nesting material like straw, hay or shredded paper towels or rags that her claws won’t stick to. Not towels. Change the cage and nesting material at least every 4–5 days.

They like many fresh foods, fruits, veggies, nuts etc.
Hamsters are cute, but I think pet rats deliver a more intelligent bang for the buck. lol
I had a hamster named “Mushroom” years ago, he was very fat and cute.

Have fun with your new pet!

bkcunningham's avatar

– Will she ever listen to her name? Yes, but she will never act like she hears you. Hamsters are like that.

– In case she will bite, will it hurt/will I be wounded? Hurt? Yes. Wounded? Probably not.

– Who was it that thought it a good idea to let hamsters walk senseless walks in a hamster wheel or is there a wildlife equivalent where they show the same behavior? The Romans

– We already named her Anuschka, but if you can give us a name that wows us, we willl consider a change! I like that name, but I would suggest Hammie as a middle name.

Also, get her one of those clear plastic spheres where she can roll around on the floor. It is a hilarious, specially if you have a cat. The noise from the hamster wheel in the cage will drive you insane.

Hamsters can go into a hibernating state (torpor). So don’t bury a hiberating hamster.

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