Reeses and Hazel are Pregnant. (╯°□°）╯

[HamIt2Me]

Hello everyone, my name is Amanda! I have four beautiful hamsters, three cats and two rats. I believe my new females hamsters may be pregnant because they were in a mixed tank. The pet store assistant was not helpful at all and said under shop rules that cannot even verify what gender you get. Isn't that silly? I asked if they even taught sexing during employment and she said no. However, I fell in love with my girls. If they both are pregnant is going to be interesting because my lovely dumbo rat Dora is going to have a litter this week. I am just glad I have a ton of cages and tanks saved. Anyway, any hamster pregnancy advice and tips? I'm nervous because I've never raised hamsters before, and it would be silly for me to believe its the same as rats because they are completely different animals. Help? C:

Reeses is a tan and white spotted hammy with short hair.
Hazel is a mixed hammy with light golden long hair.

Btw, I did talk to a different pet shop and they said if my hamsters do have a litter they will adopt a few but should I trust them? It is just a small family pet center.

[Vicki S]

I think someone on here said plenty of protein I'm sure if souffle sees this she would be able to give you lots of great advice

Or even any breeders to would be able to


I am sorry I can't help as I have never had a pregnant hamster


Vicki

[Swagdemort]

Welcome to HC.

They might not be pregnant, but surely treat them like they are. I'm guessing you got Syrian hamsters, they are pregnant for around 16 days. Take out both of their wheels, so the possible babies don't get hurt. Putting them in 1-level cages is a very good idea, so the babies wont fall off a level. If they are pregnant, you'll see signs at 13-14 days into the pregnancy. They'll be running around like mad, trying to get ready for the babies, and their abdomen area will start to get really big. Also, don't touch the babies until they are 14 days old, as there is a possibility that the mums will eat the babies.

There's more information here:
Breeding Syrian Hamsters - Advice & Guidance - National Hamster Council

Also, show pictures when the babies eyes are open, everyone loves baby hamsters.

[fluffymunchkins]

The main risk with an accidental pregnancy is if the two colourations bred are unsafe or the parents carry inherited illness. For example two patterned (banded/spotted/roan) hamsters are bred they can produce eyeless white offspring. You can only hope this is isn't the case but its something worth being aware of.
The females need to be kept in a calm environment with plenty of extra fat and protein in their diet.
Personally if possible i would look for private homes, this gives each pup the best chance of a loving home.
Best of luck x

[samzyzg]

Since you have said some shops would adopt a few, assuming this is a different shop from where you got them since that shop seems very irrisponsible. If you ask the shop some questions and see if you think they would be suitable. Also best of luck with the litter, and I hope all goes well. Its best to leave mum too it as she'll do whats best but there are plenty on here who will be able to give you advice and if you look through the forum there have been others with accidentle litters who have posted threads about helpand there might be a few things there which are useful.

[vanilla-yazoo]

start feeding high protein food like chicken, tofu, egg, keep them well fed, if they do have litters make sure you do not touch the cage other then for food and removing anything bad, untill the pups eyes are open.
make sure you remove the wheels, if you can, clean the cage out a few days before the birth so the wee corners dont get too bad.
give lots of nice clean fresh bedding material.
as fluffymunchkins said, theres a lot of bad genes, that pet shop syrians can carry like the white belly gene, that causes disformed pups with no teeth or eyes, these normally pass just after birth.
hope everything goes well x

[HamIt2Me]

Thank you everyone for the advice, I hope they are not pregnant. All the dis formations sound scary! I would probably freak out if some were deformed. Reeses is actually a banded teddy bear hamster and Hazel is a mix between Syrian and teddy bear I think (she has semi long hair like a lion).

[Kissa]

They're both Syrians "Teddy Bear" is just a name that pet shops give to interesting looking hams.

[souffle]

There is lots of great information on care of the mother and litters here
Breeding Syrian Hamsters - Advice & Guidance - National Hamster Council

Remember you could potentially end up with a huge number of baby hamsters here if they both produce large litters so be prepared for quite a lot of expense and time to tame and care for them. Baby hamsters eat LOADS of food and you need to give them the best to ensure they grow up healthy.
I hope for your sake and theirs that they are not pregnant especially if it may mean they are inbred.
I think Long haired hamsters are named Teddy bears in the USA but the are simply long haired syrians. Have you checked the sexes yourself. Females normally have the shorted fluffy mid length fur all over where as males will have a long skirt at the back and longer all over coat. If Reeses seems much longer she may be a male!
Follow the instructions in the link and you should be fine. Just be sure not to interfere with nest and babies at all.
Good luck.