Hamster Central - View Single Post - Biting hamster

Shannonmcn · 06-25-2019, 01:22 AM

First thing to do is work out why he's biting you. He could be scared and genuinely biting from fear (full chomp, blood, messy usually), he could be territorial of his new space and warning you to keep out (a hard nip maybe) or he could just be doing it because he wants to be left alone and he knows now that if he nips you'll go away or it could be curious nibbles.

What's his body language like? Is he hissing or rearing up on his back legs, is he running at/ after your hand, is he sniffing then biting etc etc

There's no point blaming yourself for this, the whole "leave them alone completely for x many days" is relatively new advice and they will not be scarred for life if you handle them too early. I know a guy on another forum who gives them one day to settle then scoops them up and shoves them inside his shirt until they stop wriggling. Note I am absolutely not recommending anyone try this, I think he's a madman but his hams are quite tame and content. So although the current recommendation is to leave them to settle, you haven't broken anything by not doing so, other methods work, and you can undo a lot of "wrong" with patience and time.

06-25-2019, 01:22 AM
Shannonmcn PM Fluffy for custom title Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland Posts: 3,192	Re: Biting hamster - loosing hope First thing to do is work out why he's biting you. He could be scared and genuinely biting from fear (full chomp, blood, messy usually), he could be territorial of his new space and warning you to keep out (a hard nip maybe) or he could just be doing it because he wants to be left alone and he knows now that if he nips you'll go away or it could be curious nibbles. What's his body language like? Is he hissing or rearing up on his back legs, is he running at/ after your hand, is he sniffing then biting etc etc There's no point blaming yourself for this, the whole "leave them alone completely for x many days" is relatively new advice and they will not be scarred for life if you handle them too early. I know a guy on another forum who gives them one day to settle then scoops them up and shoves them inside his shirt until they stop wriggling. Note I am absolutely not recommending anyone try this, I think he's a madman but his hams are quite tame and content. So although the current recommendation is to leave them to settle, you haven't broken anything by not doing so, other methods work, and you can undo a lot of "wrong" with patience and time.