Chinesesy Sisters - Page 5

Drago · 03-01-2017, 07:26 PM

This is excellent news CB! Keep giving us updates on Mylie and Kylie

cypher · 03-02-2017, 12:18 AM

Glad they are both still doing ok CB.
If one of a pair is noticeably smaller than the other it's often a sign that this is the more submissive of the pair & you do need to keep a close eye & size & weight to be sure she is getting enough of the food.

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-02-2017, 04:58 AM

Thanks Drago and Cypher
Kylie is the more submissive one no doubt. I put loads of food in there every night. Last time I cleaned the cage I thought I'd find a huge food but there wasn't any stash, they actually ate what I gave them. I put in so much food that there is no way that they can eat that all in one night but in the morning it's all gone.

I should check their nest or under the log for a stash. I don't know why she is smaller. Is this a reason to separate them? Or if this just a sign that she is the more submissive one? I see her eating too at night,Kylie, the smaller one?

cypher · 03-02-2017, 05:26 AM

It's not necessarily a reason to separate CB but definitely something to keep an eye on & if the difference between them continues to be more marked then it might be.
Because they tend to pouch & hoard a lot rather than just sitting & eating it isn't always easy to tell if they're getting fair shares or not, you can't watch them the whole time so you can't tell if one may be stealing the others hoard or preventing her from making one or even causing her to depouch.

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-04-2017, 03:46 PM

Question: Would it be a mistake to upgrade them to a 20 gal long?

They are fine in the 15 gal but I would like to give them more room. Probably shouldn't I'm guessing. It's almost a month now & they are both doing well in the 15 gal.

This morning they had left over food laying around so for Kylie sake I was happy to see that. I also had broken there lab blocks into tinier pieces. Soon Burgess will arrive for them.

velma · 03-04-2017, 05:06 PM

If they seem to be fine then leave them be, I'd say. It's such a delicate balancing act to keep them living together that I would be seriously disinclined to do anything that would affect that if you feel they are getting on OK together.

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-05-2017, 02:38 AM

They can't stay in my room anymore as they are getting bigger and knock the wheels out of place. So they make too much noise. They aren't full grown yet, I'd say 5 mo old. I haven't seen any aggressive behavior at all. I watched them carefully again around 3-4:00 in the morning.

Its shocking how well they get along. Would seem cruel to separate them without a reason. I know you'd say to separate them so I don't have to worry. So the aren't at the 5 week point, as I was saying but they are at the 5 mo age.

They seem to thrive on each others company. I'll still keep a close eye on them. You would think that I'd seem some behavior that is wrestling or chasing but there isn't any.

I'm getting closer to separating them as a precaution. But they could possibly have a nice life together. So I'm torn of what to do. Has anybody had success in keeping female Chinese hamsters together forever for life?

velma · 03-05-2017, 03:06 AM

I think you've had a lot of advice of keeping pairs together ( or not ) by a lot more experienced Chinese keepers than me. And whether hamsters "need" a companion. But my comment was in answer to the "should I upgrade them question" - like I said, if you want to keep them living together while they seem to be getting on, I'm not sure that right now is the time to change their environment.

AmityvilleHams · 03-05-2017, 03:16 AM

In terms of the benefits of separation,each hamster could have more space.You'd have more enrichment potential,less stress for them,it would be more natural(as you've been told many times at this point),and it is definitely a safer choice in terms of being easier to keep sterile if a hamster ever became ill.This means instead of double vet bills due to illness being spread between two hamsters,you can contain illness to one hamster and keep good quarantine practices.It prevents serious injury and death,which is definitely valuable.

The only real "drawback"(if it can even be called one due to not being permanent by any means)is that hamsters will take time to get used to being alone.This doesn't mean they crave company or anything like that though,it's just adjustment as with any change and even if you merely upgraded them to a larger cage/tank you'd still have some form of adjustment to deal with(which could make them fight and would be even worse than just separating now before it goes too badly).

It comes down to what is natural,safe,healthy,and best for the hamsters in question.That being said,nobody can control whether you decide or do not decide to separate them

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-05-2017, 06:19 AM

Velma didn't mean to not acknowledge your post I had a one track mind in the middle of the night. I think your right in not changing their environment. Everything is going well so I might as well let things be as they are. ie. not upgrade them to the 20 gal

Yesterday I was at Pet-Co and got a drill about not keeping pairs together. This wasn't the lady to sold them to me. Just another store. So that got me thinking again.

Amity, thanks for your advice too, I think I could provide a more enriching environment for them. But if I want to keep them together than I have to leave them alone. It just seems so crazy what I'm doing but it's working (so far)

I have an extra 20 gal long tank and an extra 15 gal Thanks it, they'll probably each get a 15 gal tank if I have to separate them. Just because that's what they are used to. But hopefully it won't come down to that. I watched them for a long time last night. ok thanks

Edit: I am aware that a fight could break out at any time. In the middle of the night or during the day when I'm not home. I'll probably end up separating but if I do I'll feel terrible knowing what if they could have had a happy life together? But I also think that if I were to separate as they will eventually get used to being alone. I won't worry anymore in case everybody is right and me and my sales job woman who sold them to me are both wrong.

Maybe I've been lucky that they haven't fought all this time. Who knows? All the breeders can't be wrong, I realize that. So I'll probably separate them soon.