Forms from Breeders?

[agatecrystal]

Just wanted to double check on as a breeder what forms do you have for yourself and new owners?

[Tammy22]

Hiya,

i am new here, hope you dont mind me adding my bit, lol!

I have been breeding Roborovskis for the past 6 or 7 years.

All of my baby hamsters go to their new homes with a complete Pedigree which includes details of Parents, Grand Parents and Great Grand Parents. They also have a Birth Certificate, an information sheet (relevant to Roborovskis) and a 3 page list of all foods which are safe to eat and all foods which are not safe to eat!

They also go with a large supply of the food i used to wean them on, for the change over period.

Hope this helpful.

Kind Regards,

Tammy x

[Matty Day]

here is a copy of my litters pedigree with my contact details removed
Pedigree
Species Chinese
Colour
Normal
Dob 24/3/08
Litter mates

Great grandparents
Male line Henna f normal = shaulin m normal pinky f dominant spot = perky m normal
Female line , sweet m normal = sour f normal chop m dominant spot = stick f Dom spot


Grandparents
Male line Casanova m normal = Hanna f normal
Female line sweet and sour chicken m normal = chopstick f Dom spot

Parents
Louis m normal= Athena f normal

Your hamster


and heres my chinese care guide again wit bits edited
General care

Housing
Your hamster or hamsters should have a cage which has at least 1800cm2 of floor space for a single hamster( roughly 6o by 30cms with at least 15cms height) For each additional hamster in the cage add 5oo cm2 however the bigger the better. I personally give all my hamsters at least 2000cm2 of space. Your cage should include a wheel for each animal, water bottle, food dish, house or box and some tunnels and toys. With Chinese hamsters if your are using a wire cage make sure that the bars are no more further apart than 0.7mm as they can squeeze though and escape if narrower.

Wheels
For Chinese hamsters I would recommend a wheel designed for dwarf hamsters ,mice or gerbils . The wheel should be solid and made of plastic, not a wire wheel with rungs as feet can become trapped in these. I would recommend a regular silent spinner wheel.

Cage mates (dwarf hamsters only Syrians are solitary)
With Chinese hamsters there is a big debate as to whether they are social or solitary however if you do buy a pair or more there is a fifty percent chance that fighting may occur. Males are less likely to fight than females as the females are dominant. If fighting does occur we stress that the hamsters MUST be separated. Be vigilant if you see them fighting seriously and for long periods of time and they have bite marks cuts etc. Separate them into different cages as the fighting will only get worse. You should always have a large plastic bin or spare cage ready in case of emergencies.

Diet
when you purchase your hamster/hamsters you will have been provided with a pack of their current food and details of the brand. Keep them on this and gradually introduce the hamster mix of your choice. Make sure to give your hamster/hamsters some fresh food at least once a week however introduce fresh foods slowly and gradually into their diet. Remember fill up the food bowl once every two days. If you fill it up every day the hams will pick eat and will only eat the bits they like. It is also important to make sure your hamster has access to fresh water and water at all times so ensure your water bottle is in easy reach and frequently check it is working properly. Never feed your hamster these items
Kidney Beans (raw)
Onion
Potato (raw)
Potato tops
Rhubarb (raw)
Rhubarb leaves
Tomato leaves
Tobacco
Alcoholic drinks (never give your hamster any drink accept plain water or milk) Some hamsters do not tolerate milk and kitten or soya milk is a better choice.

Taming
All our hamsters have been tamed and have been handled regularly from 3 weeks old but here are a few simple taming tips to help you tame your hamster/hamsters which will help your hamster get used to you. Put a small container like a cup into the cage with some treats inside and let the hamster/hamsters climb in. Take them to a low safe area such as a bed and let him/her climb onto your hands and handle by running hand to hand through your fingers. Remember a hamster only bites because her or she scared or your hands smell of food so be calm and patient.

Play pens
Playpens are OK and are a great idea for giving your hamsters something to do when you are cleaning out (as long as they are supervised by another person ) or are just a nice way of watching and spending time with your pet/pets I personally use VHS 'on their side' tapes to make play pens as you can make whatever size of pen you like and can change it to any shape or size. Don’t use DVDs they can be pushed over too easily With commercial play pens if wire ones make sure the bars are no more than 0.7 mm square apart or you risk your hamster getting stuck between them and seriously hurt. A large plastic bin also makes a good playpen.

Exercise balls
All our hamsters are exercise ball trained from four weeks old however some hamsters do not like exercise balls if so we will add a note on to the pedigree if this is the case. If it says that your hamster/hamsters don’t like exercise balls it is in your best interest not to force your hamster to use an exercise ball. However if your hamster likes exercise balls the we recommend a small ball designed for dwarf hamsters which is clear hamsters have poor vision. Coloured balls make it more likely that your hamster will bump into things.

[I_am_plankton]

Matty your pedigree layout is really hard to understand :?:

I would lay it out in a table format or something so it is easy to read

[souffle]

Custard babies have an individual pedigree, a family tree type pedigree, an information leaflet and a signed letter saying the hamster will be returned to us should the owner become unable to keep it. No Custard Hamster should ever end up in rescue :lol:

[Bourne Valley Hams]

My hamsters all have full pedigree with my contact details on them. I also get all buyers to complete a sales record sheet with their name and address which I keep. I give buyers a copy of the National Hamster Council care leaflet and list of useful websites, and also, because I have easy access to them, an old journal and a club membership application form.

[Bunsey]

my robos didn't have pedigrees, but i gave out leaflets with info about the hams, how they interact (e.g. what is ok squabbling and when it's bad enough to split), what cages, toys and wheels i recommend.

for my pedigrees i'll probably get one of those programmes recommended on the towy vale site with a layout like the bourne valley one.

[Bourne Valley Hams]

I use Breeders Assistant which I would now hate to be without. Having said that it does have a few annoying little quirks and it is these days extremely expensive.
Pete (Towy Vale) uses I Breed, which is a lot cheaper, and is very happy with it.
All I have to do to print out a pedigree is click on the parents names, enter the hammys name or number, date of birth and colour, and away it goes - its as easy as that. And it does a whole lot more besides pedigrees!

[Spuds Mum]

I've been looking at Zoo Easy as a programme - but on the sample copy I have, it does look rather complex!

At the moment I am doing it the good old fashoined way by hand then typing the pedigrees up into a word/adobe document. But I am desperately looking for an easier way! :shock:

[Matty Day]

i relay which i could buy one of theese programs but money is just to tight :(

[RhubynRampage]

Just a thought but if you can't get one of the programs, try Microsoft Excel for a simple but more organised look, or Publisher.

[Holly]

I quite enjoyed writing mine out on to sheets that I pre-printed last time. I guess that must get pretty tedious if you had lots to do though!

[nooboo]

i use breeders assistant, but have been looking at zoo easy too, though dave is thinking of creating a database system himself for hamsters...who knows when and if he will though :s

[Matty Day]

ill try exel then




n= normal

[Mollz]

I've drafted out a copy in excel which looks pretty good in my opinion. It really wasn't that hard to do, adn I actually quite enjoyed it (but I like messing about with things on computers :oops: ). I will now have to change it since plans have changed though.

If/when I start having more than a few litters a year though, I may have to think about a proper program for it.

[Tammy22]

My Pedigree is one which i created on my own in Excel -i love messing around on the computer too, lol!

I do have an evaluation copy of "Breeders Assistant 4" which i have been trying to get to grips with, but it does so much, i dont know if i would ever be able to use it to its full potential.

Tammy x

[Matty Day]

ive just got some very nice ones toghter ive treid putting up but the forum condenses it :(

[Bunsey]

if it's in excel then you can highlight it, copy into paint, save as JPEG file and then upload onto photobucket