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Old 03-27-2017, 12:51 PM   #1
Hamsterbelgium003
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Question 2 hamsters?

Hey !
I have a question..
It's not for now but in the future I would like to have 2 hamsters in my Detolf cage , living together and with this I have 2 questions:

1) I know.. I know ... 2 females and 2 males is not a great match but do any of you guys have any expierence with it? please let me know

2) If I decide to make a couple (a male and a female) I will have a lot of litters and ofcourse I will sell them to friends but this won't stop early so I nee dto ask can I sell the poor hamsters to a pet shop? Or do they only buy big litters from big breeders?

THANK YOUUU!

Last edited by Hamsterbelgium003; 03-27-2017 at 01:41 PM.
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Old 03-27-2017, 01:06 PM   #2
Vectis Hamstery
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

You don't mention what species of hamster you are thinking of keeping in a pair. Syrian hamsters must always live alone. Chinese hamsters are often troublesome in pairs and can suddenly turn to fighting. Campbells and winter whites live better in pairs, but I personally find that such a large amount of space as is in a deltof makes a pair more likely to form separate territories and fall out. Hybrids (such as you usually find in pet shops) and robos can be variable in terms of how they live together. There's never a guarantee with even Campbells or winter whites that they will live happily for their entire lives and you need to be prepared to house both separately if you choose to take on a pair and they fall out.

I've kept pairs or groups of all dwarf hamster species over the years. Chinese are my favourite species but definitely a challenge (I pair for planned breeding purposes) and can be risky. I currently have 2 female Campbells, 4 male Campbells and 5 male Campbell/hybrids in two groups, and recently had a male/female pair of Campbells which I split (they were introduced for breeding and both have full pedigrees and are diabetes-free on urine testing). I do have the ability to split them up if needed.

I would not recommend keeping a male/female pair as they will breed. Females can become pregnant as soon as they give birth (before you are aware there are pups) and you can quickly become overrun with pups which become more inbred if they are not separated into single sex groups fast enough. Back to back breeding of multiple litters takes a big toll on a female.

Breeding involves a lot of time and expense as well as lots of cages. If you breed intentionally like this you would need to be prepared for vet bills and to keep any pups which are unable to be rehomed because they are unwell, don't tame well or that no-one wants. Pet shops near me have their usual commercial breeders and don't tend to take occasional litters from individuals.
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Old 03-27-2017, 01:41 PM   #3
Hamsterbelgium003
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Thanks for answering
okay..
I had the idea of taking campbells or winter white's maybe robo's.
So can i have like 4/3 hamsters in the detolf because you said

Quote:
but I personally find that such a large amount of space as is in a deltof makes a pair more likely to form separate territories and fall out.
and what do you recommend on the genders?

THANK YOU !
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Old 03-27-2017, 01:48 PM   #4
Vectis Hamstery
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hamsterbelgium003 View Post
Thanks for answering

So can i have like 4/3 hamsters in the detolf because you said
I did not recommend having 3-4 hamsters in a deltof. Perhaps I wasn't clear. I would suggest only having a same sex group/pair if you are experienced with the species you are keeping AND if you have enough space, funds and cages to house them in individual cages should they fall out. If you wish to keep hamsters in a deltof then my opinion is that you are better off having just one hamster.
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Old 03-27-2017, 02:00 PM   #5
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Hi

I really would not recommend breeding unless you are highly experienced and have researched it for several years. It also helps to have a mentor to help you with your first litter. Hamster breeding is a big risk which should not be taken lightly and is never as simple as just putting two hamsters together.

Please don't keep a male and female hamster together as they will easily get pregnant and the female can become pregnant again within hours of giving birth. Back to back pregnancies will weaken her body significantly. Once you get into the cycle of back to back litters, you often end up overrun with seriously inbred hamsters.

As for what to do with your pups, well you need to accept the fact that if you can not rehome them, you must be prepared to house all of the pups appropriately. Do not sell to a pet store, if you truly care about you hamsters, as they do not screen owners and the hamsters often end up in cramped cages where they are mistreated.

For the moment, until you learn more about the species you want to breed and how to ethically breed them, I think just enjoying a hamster in a Detolf is the best idea.
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Old 03-27-2017, 11:31 PM   #6
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Keeping pairs or groups is difficult & very stressful, I would recommend just keeping to single hams, that doesn't mean you can't have more than one but just not in the same cage, if you do decide to keep a pair then I would do lots of research into their requirements first.
I think you need to research into breeding too before you even consider it, you need to learn about genetics & how to care for mother & pups.
If you're going to pet stores for your hams then you won't get a campbell or WW, all pet shop Russians are hybrids & breeding hybrids can result in a lot of problems, mothers may die giving birth & pups can have many health problems.
Even if you went with robos you may end up interbreeding siblings which isn't good either, the only way to get into breeding once you've done the research is to get healthy pure bred hams from a breeder.
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Old 03-28-2017, 01:20 PM   #7
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

If you are set on getting a pair, please get a same-sex pair. Having a Detolf is a good idea since if the pair does fall out you can easily separate them by installing a shelf in the middle, which would be sort of unfair/cruel.
Breeding isn't a good idea, for all of the reasons already mentioned. Hamsters aren't like humans (but don't tell Titania I said that!). Even an hour of close contact between a male and a female hamster would result in a pregnancy. By placing them together you are essentially guaranteeing a litter.
Putting 4 hamsters together wouldn't give each hammie enough space. Putting three hamsters together could result in two of the hamsters ganging up on one.
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Old 03-29-2017, 06:16 AM   #8
Hamsterbelgium003
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Hello !!
THANK YOU ALL FOR ANSWERING!
I already did a lot of research before I posted that...
I think i'm going to play it safe and I will not breed, I also really don't want to sell the pups they will be to cute.
I want to do the same-sex pair but why would it be cruel if they fall out and I install a shelf?


Quote:
Originally Posted by JLPrairie View Post
If you are set on getting a pair, please get a same-sex pair. Having a Detolf is a good idea since if the pair does fall out you can easily separate them by installing a shelf in the middle, which would be sort of unfair/cruel.
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Old 03-29-2017, 07:12 AM   #9
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hamsterbelgium003 View Post
Hello !!
THANK YOU ALL FOR ANSWERING!
I already did a lot of research before I posted that...
I think i'm going to play it safe and I will not breed, I also really don't want to sell the pups they will be to cute.
I want to do the same-sex pair but why would it be cruel if they fall out and I install a shelf?
I'm a bit blurry in the head today so it could be me (bare with me lol), but I'm not sure exactly what you mean by it being "cruel if they fall out and I want to install a shelf" I assume you are asking why it would be cruel if they fell out as well as it being cruel to add a shelf. The reason it isn't the best choice to house hamsters together is due to the fact that they're very solitary little creatures naturally and in the wild would only form same sex pairs for the purposes of breeding. Therefore, most pairs become territorial and aggressive over one thing or another and will eventually fall out. Some are lucky enough to catch this as of right before it happens, but a majority of owners (most who don't understand hamster care or behavior) do not catch it until it's too late and they come home to find one dead and another severely wounded hamster. Thus, it's not the best choice to risk your hamster's safety and mental well-being to keep two together. The reason the shelf isn't good is because pairs can become territorial over the different sections (the same as with modular cages) and territorial issues inevitably lead to fights and leads me back to the point I made before. All in all it's your choice, but make sure you research, research, and research before diving into this! You must also make sure to have back up cages or a divider so they can be separated if it comes to that. I wish you the best
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Old 03-29-2017, 07:18 AM   #10
cypher
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Default Re: 2 hamsters?

That was a bit confusing, I'm not sure if JLPrairie meant it would be a bit unfair as each hamster wouldn't have so much space if you divided the detolf down the centre to make two cages?
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