Advice on child-friendly hamster(s) :)

[ECS]

Advice please on a good, child friendly hamster. I have 2 children aged 5 1/2 and 9.
(i) I had thought to get a Syrian as I had read they are generally good-natured. Someone has suggested "Fancy" (cross-bred?) are sweetest in disposition?

(ii) I haven't really looked at dwarf hamsters, as had heard they are more nippy, and harder for smaller children to handle. Though obviously if we had 2, that would be nice for the kids, and I like the idea of watching the interaction etc

We have room for a 75-80 cm cage (I am thinking of Criceti Deluxe at 76 x 45 x 33.5), so I guess one Syrian or a couple of dwarf hamsters would be appropriate?

Any advice would be great thanks.

[Lougarry]

I have two children - 6 and 3 - and would recommend a Syrian from a breeder. Breeder hams are used to being handled and should be tame on arrival.

[StarlightSerenity]

A Syrian is your best best for children. All hamsters can bite, dwarf hammies aren't more 'nippy' but Syrians tend to be more laid back and as they are larger tend to be easier for children to handle. Don't get a pair of dwarf hamsters, they are a lot of work and you really need to be experienced with hams to have a pair.

Whoever said to you about fancy Syrians doesn't know much about Syrians - from what I know, there isn't such a thing.

A breeder ham would be best - where do you live? Someone here is likely to know of a breeder close to you. A breeder ham will have been handled from a very young age and because of careful breeding will be healthy and have a good temperament. I

The Criceti is a good cage Although from what I gather it's hard to get hold of at the moment.

[ECS]

ok thats good to know. I had thought to use a pet shop, but am a novice at all this. If anyone can recommend a London breeder who is central-ish, please let me know.
Many thanks!

[Erin Loves Dwarf Hamsters]

For children a Syrian is the best option, but if you wanted a dwarf the best dwarf species for a child I would say is a pure Winter white bought from a reputable breeder.

A "Fancy Syrian" doesn't exist it's just what some shops name certain colours to sell them for more money despite the fact they are no different and no more rare than any other Syrians. They also aren't cross bred as the only species that can cross-breed are Campbells and Winter whites, these create hybrids called "Russians" but the breeding of them is highly discouraged due to the health dangers it poses. Hybrids can still make lovely pets but you are just taking a risk with buying them as well as furthering customer demand. Hybrids are better to adopt or rescue if you wanted one

[Kissa]

I think "fancy" can be used as kind of an umbrella term for hamster showing and breeding (at least, that's how I've seen it used). But yeah, it is not a type of Syrian. Syrians can not be cross-bred, the only hybrid hamsters are Winter White/Campbells hybrids, and make up the vast majority of pet shop Russian dwarfs, no matter whether they are labelled Campbells or Winter White or just Russian.

Dwarfs are not necessarily more nippy -- my Robo has never bitten me except for when he thought I was a tasty thing to nibble, for example, he's a little sweetheart actually -- but dwarfs, especially Robos, are not suitable for young children. The small size is a bad point, and Robos are the fastest species of dwarf hamster so are doubly not suitable.

That said, Winter Whites have been described as like mini Syrians by other people, although I have never had a Winter White so can't give personal experience. (If you get a WW, you'd need to get one from a National Hamster Council registered breeder to make sure they are not hybrids.) If you have your heart set on a pair of dwarfs, I believe Campbells are easier to keep together than WWs, and Chinese shouldn't really be kept together despite what pet shops say, especially females. But any pair can fall out, and they need more work, and I'd recommend sticking to a Syrian for your first ham.

[Charley101]

I would say syrian too. My first ham was a syrian girl called Tiger (thought she was a boy hehe) and she was lovely. I got her when i was 10/11 (a little older then your children) and she was brilliant after i had tamed her (myself)

[ECS]

Thanks everyone, that's really helpful. Great advice on this site, especially for a novice. I will stick to a Syrian, and look for a good London-based breeder. Watch this space!

[cathface]

Originally Posted by Kissa

That said, Winter Whites have been described as like mini Syrians by other people, although I have never had a Winter White so can't give personal experience.

just wanted to say that my sister's WW is probably the most docile (read: lazy) creature I have ever met. never nipped me, only nipped my sister once because she had food on her fingers so her fault. he is hilarious to watch, uses his wheel more as a rocking chair haha! he's not even particularly quick or difficult to handle. I think my Syrian is a little harder to handle, if only because I have little hands... that's another thing actually, WWs are small enough for little hands, but from my experience with my sister's one, they are also as sweet as Syrians. you just have to make sure you get a pure WW from a reputable NHC breeder.

[ECS]

Thanks Cathface - would you need to keep WW in pairs though? Am now slightly nervous that for a novice that may be biting off more than I can chew (he he)....my kids squabbling is probably enough at the moment