Reunite two male Dwarves

[jtspidercool]

Hi,
I have two male fission dwarf hamsters, we got them at the same time, they grew up together and I think they might have been part of the same litter. They were 8 weeks old when we brought them home. They were in the same large habitat and were so sweet together, very cuddly and affectionate. rarely slept alone, always together.

At 10 weeks, my daughter accidentally left the cage open and one escaped, i found him and got him back after 8 days, he eventually settled down after being quite stressed for a few days. We tried to reunite them, we were very careful as we knew it might be risky, but they immediately fight, its so heartbreaking as they were so close. We have now got separate cages for them and they both seem fine, escaped one is a bit more reclusive but we would love to get them back together, I think its v unlikely but my daughter wants to try.

Has anyone got any advice or experience in this, the lady at the pet shop this it is unlikely.
Thankyou

[AmityvilleHams]

Absolutely do not try to put them back together. It is way too dangerous and after being separated it's extremely likely for them to fight, even more than the high odds of fighting that you normally have with paired hamsters.

[Dessi]

Agreed. They should not have been kept together in the first place. Now that they’ve been separated, their smell is different and they will not tolerate each other and fight. Tell your daughter it’s not worth risking their death and what they want, and need, is to live alone.