Welcome to my second, first non-technical, post on my blog. This time I will share with you interesting random experience, what life brought me. Like caption whispers it will be all about hamsters today, a lot of hamsters.
One day, while visiting my girlfriend, we have been siting in her room and playing games. Unexpectedly loud noises come from hamster house, which was in her hamster cage. She was little bit afraid, because she have had pair of hamsters with female hamster little bit dominant and she used to beat male hamster. So she asked me to open their house and take her out from there. I opened house, pick the hamster and only the scream had followed. Two pink little beans were hanging from body of that tiny rodent. Another one bean had fallen down on floor and more one on first floor of cage. I don`t know, who was scared more, female hamster or girlfriend. Scream comes from one side, scared eyes of hamster from other one. I need to act quickly and fortunately I was able keep my mind calm. I have quickly put mother hamster with two babies into the house, opened cage, pick baby from first floor and put it into house, at least there was tiny problem with junior on the floor. It was so tiny, that you could almost pick it between last finger segments. Situation was successfully closed with female hamster with all four babies in house and male hamster already separated on another place.
So long about our scary birth, this situation had motivated me to little bit study about hamsters and what to do if they have child. So let me please share my knowledge now. What if my hamster gives birth to babies? [First of all search for red button with title DON`T PANIC. /joke /
ref] First thing you need to do is separate male hamster from female hamster and babies. It is not required step, some of male hamsters help female feed and care about babies, but in most cases they would kill babies to copulate with female again. First rule, that you can read on every blog/fun-site is not to touch babies. But if something action-like happens to you as to me, do not hesitate and put babies into house.
In recent days after birth will be female especially nervous. I does not recommend you to touch her or open her house, she will be very angry and most likely will try to bite you. She will now more intensively than ever take care about her house or nest. I recommend you to give her a lot of stuff (pieces of toilet paper, non aromatic tissues, straw) to stuff her home. Also she need little bit change in diet. Because of the babies, she need a lot of proteins to her milk, best option is to give her
mealworm, which you could buy in pet-store. Believe me,
mealworms are
dedicates for hamsters. Also some cheese or insects as
gryllus or
grasshopper will be OK. In first week babies will be blind and pink, in the end of first week also there should be sigh of fur on their skin. Also you will hear rising beeping from house. They are still blind. After second week they will start to open their eyes and female will spend less time with them. After three to four weeks they will start to come out from their house. At first mother will try to bring them back, but after few days she gives it up.
After four weeks you could separate babies from their mother. It is good to keep separated male and female babies, because they start sexually live very early, from one month to six weeks. You should avoid inbreeding, it is when close relative have babies. After separation from mother you can give them to your responsible friends, or other option is to sell them to pet-store, but you could not be sure it they would not and as snake`s lunch.
So much about hamsters and their babies. I would update my experience as they grow older.
