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Old 07-19-2019, 07:13 PM   #1
Little Nugget
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Default Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

Hi! I already own one Syrian hamster, but I am looking to get another or possibly two. I most likely want to get a dwarf or pair of dwarfs and I would get a female(s). They would be Russian cambell dwarfs. Is it ok to house them together, or would they prefer to be housed alone? I know that this is a debated topic, but I wanted some insight from other hamster owners. If you’ve housed dwarfs in pairs before or currently do, that would be very helpful. Please share your opinions and experiences. I am aware they will need a large cage (I’m probably getting a 40 gallon reguradless of whether I get one or two) and also two of everything so that the risk of fighting is reduced. Just was wondering if you guys would recommend it, or if they would be more happy living alone. Thanks!
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Old 07-20-2019, 02:53 AM   #2
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

Just the one is good. Living in a pair is unnatural and forces them to live in a stressful environment. They are not social animals so having them live together is a huge danger with no real benefit as they do thrive alone. Not to mention a 40 gallon would be on the small side for a pair imo, it is about the smallest you would want to go for a single dwarf. Setting up the cage with 2 of everything realistically doesn’t do an awful lot to ‘guarantee’ that they stay together. A pair of dwarfs is always cute to look at but just not in their best interests I’m afraid.
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Old 07-21-2019, 11:46 AM   #3
Lisha
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Wink Re: Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

Hi, I have 2 Russian dwarf hamsters, from the time they were a few days old. I didn't know much about housing them, and initially had them together in a large cage. They seemed to be quite content with each other and used to snuggle together to sleep. One day they became so vicious with each other, one ending up with a nasty bite. I read that they become territorial and should not be kept together. Now i have them in separate cages but if they spot each other they immediately start biting on their cages! Hope this info helps.
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Old 07-25-2019, 12:37 PM   #4
AmityvilleHams
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Default Re: Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

I'd always say just get one hamster regardless of species. They can have so much more enrichment, more space, and are so much happier in general on their own! And as mangoandmimi has said, it is unnatural for them to live together anyways(they'd be mixed sex pairs in the wild, for breeding purposes, certainly not social purposes).
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Old 07-29-2019, 08:10 AM   #5
Sara H
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Default Re: Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

I would only house one, its not worth the risk and worry you might go through about them falling out and fighting.
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Old 07-29-2019, 08:24 AM   #6
alpacassei
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Default Re: Housing a pair of dwarf hamsters

I always recommend just getting one hamster. Russians can live in same-sex pairs or colonies if their personalities are compatible and they have an appropriately sized habitat with plenty of enrichment. However this should only be done by a very experienced owner as their behaviour is difficult to read and all it takes is to mistake one agressive behaviour for a normal dominance behaviour and suddenly you have injured or even dead hamsters.

I recently rescued a pair of male russians which I had to seperate immediately as one wasn’t letting the other eat (poor Peach was very underweight when I brought him home) and had bitten eachothers tails raw. It could’ve ended a lot worse had I not separated them though.
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