[Ria P]

Not related to housing, just an input from someone who buys unwanted hamsters and rehomes them to people who really want one.

Nearly all the hamsters i buy were bought for young children who quickly lost interest once it became clear that the hamster is awake when they are asleep.

There are exeptions of course like my own hamster Rodney who wakes between 18.00-19.00 and asks to come out to play. Ironically, i bought him from a family after he bit a young child who, presumably, had grabbed him. It took two months for him to trust me, he is very tame and he has never bitten me.

Your children are very young so it is very important that you want a hamster as well.

No matter where a hamster comes from, a lot depends on the individual hamster's personality. Ours range from one who wants my attention soon as he sees me to one who has no interest in humans whatsoever or anything outside his Hamster Heaven world. He wants to be left alone to do his own thing.

My advice would be to contact a rescue or someone who rehomes. That way you can find out more about the hamster's characteristics, routines, likes and dislikes, what time they are likely to get up, how they respond to humans etc. That way you should be able to find one who fits in with your family.

Someone who takes rehoming seriously, like myself for example, will do their best to match the hamster to their future humans' expectations and circumstances. It has to work for both parties involved, the hamster and the humans before i agree to an adoption.