Potential Pregnant Hamster - First Time - advice needed.

[smudge110]

Hi - I'm finding this website really really helpful and any extra comments or advice would be more than welcome. We recently bought two beautiful winter whites from a reputable large pet store in the UK. For 3 months our two ladies were beautifully content until around 10 days ago when they started to 'proper fight'. Annie would not leave Olof alone and actively sought her out in the large cage to beat her up! Annie drew blood on Olof a couple of days ago. Immediately we bought a separate cage to part them but I started to question why. I think it is fair to say that Olof is indeed a boy and Annie a girl, after great advice on here and trawling the internet I am 99.9% sure Olof is male. They were handled everyday once home and neither have ever bitten and are lovely and tame. Annie is now sleeping a fair amount, getting quite large, I saw two nipples yesterday through her fur and have noticed today three sections in her cage where she is making large mounds of sawdust with paper bedding to what looks like nests. I have warned the kids that not all hamsters take to having babies and we are aware of what could happen. Am I right so far in the following - we are only putting a hand in to re-assure her and not forcing her to be picked up, she is happy to sniff our hand but did today do a very gentle nip as if to say 'go away'. I haven't changed her cage just water and food. I also understand not to disturb her in any way or go anywhere near the babies until they venture out and only if she is happy. Should I be doing anything else either now or later on with regards to diet, place to keep her etc. At the moment the two cages are side by side - is this a bad thing, could she still smell him and kill the babies? Also although I have a couple of close friends who would love to have a hamster are there any contacts people have in the South West (UK) that re-home ie RSPCA or local breeder? Any help would be gratefully appreciated as I would like to do the best we can in this situation. Finally - once the babies are born should I still replace food - will that simple act make her kill the pups? Many thanks.

[kyrilliondaemon]

I'd consider giving her some extra protein if you can, things like chicken and mealworms are really good sources of protein for pregnant hamsters

When the pups are born you only want to put in new food and change the water as needed, anything else is best left until they're older. If you give any fresh food then I'd make sure its a small enough piece that she'll definetly eat it all within 24 hours as you don't want her storing old fresh food in her nest (where you can't take it from).

What sort of cage is she living in? If its a tank style cage then she probably won't be aware the male is nearby. If its a barred cage then you may want to take precautions to make sure the pups can't get out of the bars when they get a bit older.

[smudge110]

Thanks. Yes it is a tank type/ no bars cage. Was thinking of moving it to a quieter room as currently in front room with TV and noises. I will start giving her some protein tonight. many thanks again Ruth

[alyzimm]

Wow, looks like you've already done quite a bit of research! You're well prepared already

Adding to what you said, I'd add that you shouldn't touch the pups until they are venturing out on their own and their eyes are open. They'll likely go exploring before their eyes are open. They're very cute at that stage; they look like little bobble-heads. They might come out to eat, and if Mom finds them out of the nest she will drag them back by whatever body part her mouth first finds. (It might be startling at first, but she's not hurting them, not to worry ) Anyway, waiting until their eyes are open is an extra precaution.

She'd probably appreciate a dark, quiet room. Just to remind you, when you move her cage, make sure direct sunlight does not touch the cage. It could be dangerous for adult hamsters and even more so for little pups.

Do you know to separate them at 4 to 4.5 weeks into different genders and all that? If you're sure about the sexes, the males can stay with Olof and the females can stay with Annie.

Best wishes!

[Hekomi]

You've got some great advice, and I hope all goes well. Do keep us updated! I can't think of anything else to add.

[smudge110]

Thank you so much everyone. I think I will move to a quieter place out of the front room. She was really sweet last night and let me have a cuddle although she seemed a bit more nervous than she normally is. I am a little in the dark with sexing and found our male very difficult to work out! I have spoken to the pet store who said they are happy to take any babies to re-sell and will sex themselves (mmm didn't do a great job of that bit for us though)! I would be happier to re-home them myself. Alas if she has a fair few this might not be possible. It is exciting but not exactly what we expected. I think the worry is I really don't know how far along she is, I can only go by her behaviour and expanding tummy. Will keep everyone updated and thanks again.

[alyzimm]

If you can see her swelling around the lower abdomen/hips, she is likely very close to giving birth. Be cautious in the next couple of days when you approach her, as she could have given birth and may be a little more aggressive (depends on the hamster!).

In thinking about re-homing them, you could do a little of both. Re-home as many as you can, and whichever ones you can't do by yourself you can give to the pet store to sell.

And perhaps in sexing you can do a little of both, too. Try it yourself and get a second opinion from people at the pet store. You can also ask for advice from members of the forum, if you can snag a photograph between the wiggling! (if you do try photographs, it'll be easier if you're near a sunlit window. Cameras are faster and give better quality when they have some sunlight to work with.)