Bit by a hamster

Dedenne · 03-08-2018, 10:52 AM

Okay, this probably happens due to me during something stupid but I wanted to check with you guys and see what you think.

I was visiting my local petshops and in one of them there was a really big beautiful completely black Syrian hamster. He was about 5months old, do not remember the exact birth date. He was way bigger then my cousins’ adult guinea pig so would guess that he was about 25cm. I have not really seen a Syrian hamster up close before but after seeing Syrian hamsters on YouTube I thought I had a good idea how big they are and this guy looked enormous compared to them! He woke up as I went into the room where he was kept and he just went straight for me as I started talking and looked really friendly. Maybe it was stupid but I put my hand with the knuckles agents the bars (so I did not poke a finger in there or anything like that) and he started sniffing me. I wanted to bring him home at that moment. We stood like that for some minutes and I snapped a picture of him and it seemed like he just wanted to be close to me but then, out of the blue, he bit me! I pulled my hand away pretty fast. We had been standing like that for at least 2 minutes and he had had the opportunity to bite me during all this time but did not. It started to bleed quite alot and I was a bit confused, I have never had an animal biting me so I start to bleed before. He did not react at all, still standing close to the bars and still being slow in his movements. I left the store and was really annoyed.

After some time I realized I have to have done something wrong, pets do not bite just like that. Maybe I smelled like some treat, but when I do that with missy she usually just nibbles and then I realize and go to wash my hands but maybe this one is different? Can it be since he was a Syrian and they live alone so they are not that careful? After thinking of it I could see him open his moth a bit like he was going to nibble, still pretty slow movements, but then he just bite down really hard. He did not seem afraid since he did not make any sudden movements and seemed just chill afterwards even if I stamped a bit when I pulled away. Same goes for aggression, he did not “attack” in that sense or making movements that looked like he was trying to get me to keep away. What can it have been? Since I’m new to hamsters I might have missed something so he might have been agressive anyway but I thought I was careful and observant of that kind of reaktions, well sort of careful since I put my hand so he was able to bite me in the first place.

Here is also the picture of him, it was a bit hard to get a good one since his cage was a bit high up and I did not want to scare him by reaching over him.
He had a too small wheel but had aspen bedding so still pretty good standard of the shop

hellobg · 03-08-2018, 01:23 PM

His temperament might be depending on how the Pet Store or his breeder treated him. They can often be aggressive or scared of human touch, they might act harmless for some time.

dumplingthedwarf · 03-08-2018, 11:59 PM

Hello!

I assume the hamster was a stranger to you? They can often nip when they aren't familiar with your scent as they might see you as a potential danger to them. Maybe he was feeling a bit curious at the beginning, so he was sort of sniffing you out? Maybe it's just his personality? I agree with hellobg, it can also depend on how the pet store or breeder treats him.

It can also be that your hand smelled a bit of food. Did you eat something before visiting the pet store? My Robo sometimes nibbles at my finger even AFTER I've washed my hands which is silly. It's just her personality, but she never draws blood from me; in fact, she's quite gentle. Of course, this wasn't always the case. It took some time for her to get used to my scent.

Is Missy your pet at home? This would explain why she nibbles lightly, similar to my Robo's reaction to me. She is familiar with your scent and doesn't see you as a threat. Though, it'd be funny to think that that little guy is just messing with you and doesn't realize just how strong his bite can actually be. Regardless, I hope you're okay and that it doesn't alter how you feel about him. He might just be acting that way since he's been living at the pet store for quite some time. He most likely has a different personality given the proper care and conditions!

Dedenne · 03-09-2018, 01:15 PM

Maybe it was just his temper or him being twitchy so I did not see the change from friendly to scared/ ”this is a bit too much”. My cat always bites me when she has had enough of me

I had not met that hamster before and I was expecting a nibbling but not a real bite. My Hamster Missy (or mischief which is her full name) just nibbles a little bit from time to time and she was really neglected at her previous home so I did not suspect it from a hamster that seemed to have it pretty good. But as you said, maybe it was an accident on his part not knowing how hard he could bite or his personality. I had not touched any food for at least 3h and been in loads of shops and outside so that was probably not it. So temper or accident seems to be the case. Thank you

I was not going to get him, with one hamster and a 210l aquarium at home I have enough pets for one person (and my boyfriend would not allow me to bring anymore pets home as I’m not allowing him to get a drum set to go with his piano and guitar) but it has made me determined to get any possible future animal from real breeders to get a pet with good temperament since I'm new to hamsters (even if he is just reacting to the environment there is no guarantee). He is still beautiful and would make a future owner very happy and if I had more experience, space and time I might have gotten him in the end just due to that "love at first sight" thing.

Pebbles82 · 03-09-2018, 02:02 PM

If they don't know you and you put a finger through the bars they may well bite, seeing you as an invader - just a protective thing. Our last Syrian, who never bit, bit me once. We had left him with someone for 10 days while we were on holiday and when we went to pick him up I put my hand in his house to stroke him and tell him we were back and he bit my finger really hard! It was either "that's for leaving me here for 10 days" or it was because he asleep and something came into his house and scared him

returnswipe · 03-09-2018, 09:02 PM

I could tell he was not checking if you were food or not if you started bleeding, because when hamsters do that they pull on your skin gently and chances are you won't bleed. I have a feeling that that hamster was probably just raised or breeded incorrectly and sadly might of been abused. Because of that, he might just become nervous around humans or their scent.

Dedenne · 03-10-2018, 05:31 AM

Serendipty: I did not put my fingers through the bars, he more stuck his mouth out. I would never put a finger threw the bars in an animals enclosure, not even missy, it just seems risky. But your right he might just thought I got to close for too long and he wanted to protect his home. or He just had enought and did not know how to tell me

Returnswipe: I agree with you about the food, it just felt unlikely since I did not smell of food either
Well as I said, my hamster was really mistreated in her previous home and she is so gentle so I would not put the blame on that, at least not completely. And he was not nervous at all, like I said he was really slow in his movements and did not bite me for the first moments. Even when he bit me he did it slowly like he was uncertain what he should do