URGENT! Tame dwarf hamster became aggressive

Ashley Ash · 01-27-2019, 02:19 AM

URGENT! I have two winter white dwarfs housed in one cage,it’s not too big but it’s the right sized for them. There are two food bowls,two wheels,two water bottles. Both of them have been housed tgt ever since young so they are basically siblings. Sometimes they even shared the same sleeping spot. But recently I realised that my tame hamster (teddy) has become aggressive towards the other one (winter) and constantly attacking Winter. Long while ago the similar situation happened before but then it became peaceful for a long period of time. All of a sudden teddy kept on attacking him whenever winter gets close to him. Yesterday I cleaned the cage and the situation became slightly better as he did not attacked winter. This morning,it became worse again. I’m really worried,I don’t wish to separate them as the situation is very unexpected everyday. They can be fighting this morning then playing tgt at night. Winter is usually the playful one,he likes to climb on top of teddy to sniff him.Although he’s playful but he never has the intention to hurt him. Btw I think that teddy is much more independent meanwhile winter likes his company. Except separating them,I hope anyone could help to resolve this problem with other methods! I’m really worried abt them! They are abt 5 months old now.

cypher · 01-27-2019, 02:40 AM

I don't think you really have any alternative except to separate them now.
They are mature now & will be wanting their own space, keeping a pair together like this is very unnatural for them & as they mature & reach the age they are now they really do need their own territory.
As you said their behaviour is unpredictable, you can't watch them all the time & the fighting could escalate very quickly if this happens when you're not around then one or both could be seriously injured.
Living together will be very stressful for them both now & just the stress can damage their health.
They don't need the company of another hamster to be happy & will actually be much happier living alone.
Once separated they tend to interact more with their owners too so it's a better situation all round.

alpacassei · 01-27-2019, 02:46 AM

They need separating asap. If you don’t separate them, you risk the possibility of serious injury or even death. Keeping them together is irresponsible, dangerous, and just unfair on the hamsters.

Find a spare cage or storage bin and separate them asap. It doesnt matter if the cage/bin is below the recommended minimum as long as both hamsters are safe from eachother, you can buy a bigger cage later. They might seem confused and stressed by the change (especially the one that’s moved out) but they’ll settle quickly and be much happier in the long run.

Ashley Ash · 01-28-2019, 11:49 AM

it’s so heartbreaking and a tough decision for me to make.. They get along so well the last few months but all of a sudden teddy treats winter as a rival,it breaks my heart to the core seeing them fighting,remembering all the time when they were so close to each other.. But I have finally separated both of them for their own good. I know it’s impossible but are there any chances or hope that they will get along with each other once they have been separated?

alpacassei · 01-28-2019, 05:55 PM

I’m glad you’ve seperated them! Unfortunately once two hamsters have been seperated, you should never attempt to regroup them. It sucks that they had to be seperated, though trust me that this is a lot harder for you than it is for them.

Ashley Ash · 01-28-2019, 07:05 PM

I have moved winter into the previous cage that he used to live in but it’s smaller and I’m not sure if there is going be a new cage soon but pls tell me I did made the right choice moving winter as he usually don’t run on wheels as much as teddy,also he doesn’t wake up as early as him. The other reason I moved winter is bc I’m afraid teddy will get more stress than he already was since his behaviour has such a huge change recently. Teddy is only aggressive towards winter but not to humans and for winter,he doesn’t like to be handled but he often go to teddy to play with him and I guess that’s what pissed teddy off.. So did I made the right choice?

alpacassei · 01-28-2019, 08:34 PM

You did the right thing, don’t worry

and like i said in a previous post, it’s not important how small the cage is for now as long as they’re seperated and safe. Do you know the name or size of Winter’s cage? While small cages aren’t ideal, it’s a lot easier to create an enriching setup for a dwarf hamster in a small cage than it is a Syrian.

Ashley Ash · 01-28-2019, 08:57 PM

DAYANG® Hamster Cage M0201A .This was the cage when they were little but i think it’s too small for winter now. I feel so bad and sorry for winter since he’s the one that got attacked but has to move to another cage.

. Btw thanks for replying. Sharing my problems with this community definitely makes me feel better.

alpacassei · 01-28-2019, 09:20 PM

That is a pretty small cage, do you have a larger plastic storage box you can use to make a bin cage? For now try scatter feeding and burying some food in the substrate to encourage foraging, and ErinsAnimals has a good video on DIY toilet roll tube toys (including puzzle toys) as well.

Ashley Ash · 01-28-2019, 09:45 PM

I do have a large bin but the wheel and water bottle isn’t suitable for it since it’s designed for attaching to the cage. But I don’t think I have any places to place the bin and as I’m living with my family, they wouldn’t agree with it. But yeah I do have toilet rolls for him and a place to hide. They used to live tgt in the cage. Most possibly there will be a new cage but I don’t know when. Sorry to bother you with so many questions but may I ask what are the accurate signs when a hamster is happy? I’m trying to do my best to keep them happy.