Breeding Help

[shawntreaster]

I am looking to breed my two Russian dwarf hamsters and I need some advice on how to breed them, like when to breed them and how to approach it.

[Vectis Hamstery]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Where are your hamsters from? Did they come with pedigrees?

"Russian" is usually used to describe hybrids (a mix of Campbell and Winter White hamster species), and these are common in pet shops. If they came from a pet shop or did not come with pedigrees then I would not recommend breeding from them. Hybrid hamsters not a naturally occurring mix of species and are prone to neurological and behavioural problems and diabetes.

If you're in the UK, California, Sweden or Finland and you are interested in breeding Campbells/winter whites then I would recommend contacting your local hamster club, attending a hamster show and speaking to exhibitors to find pure Campbells or winter whites to start with

[Nancy's Hamsters]

Not to sound rude here, but if you have to ask How, then you shouldn't be doing. Breeding hamsters is not just buying a male and a female and letting them go at it. It cost just as much to breed a litter with no background history and end up sickly within months as it is to take your time and research all you can about the dwarf species you wish to breed. Dwarf hamsters can have tons of health issues hidden within their gene pool and unless you have a documented list of all parents it is just increasing the already over populated rescues. You can have the sweetest of temperament parents and get a Cujo like pup without a pedigree and knowing for generations there has been no health problems. I don't discourage people from wanting to breed hamsters I just encourage them to do LOTS of tutoring under a highly successful breeder of that dwarf species.

So tell us what has made you excited about breeding Hamsters? What Dwarf do you want to breed there are 3 kinds Roborovski, Russian Campbell, and Winter White to choose from. Each is special in it's own ways, and has it's own characteristics. If your pair are from a Pet store then you'd need to make sure they don't have Diabetes in the gene pool(and impossible thing without a known at least 5 generation pedigree)

I do hope this makes you decide against breeding the pair you currently have but not the thought of becoming a responsible hobby breeder

[Sm_banks]

Nancy has hit the nail on the head 100%. If you have to ask "how" then breeding should not cross your mind. At all. Ever.

[shawntreaster]

Its not that I don't know how, I have done it before. I have bred Chinese hamsters in the past and they act much different than the Russians. My main question was if the fighting was normal and when the optimal time to breed is.

[Sm_banks]

The same way you would breed Chinese, wait for the female to be in heat and let them do their business. They may fight so you just have to wait until the next time and hope for better results.

[shawntreaster]

Thanks Sm_Banks for the help

[Sm_banks]

Your welcome