Thinking into the future: Pet Only or Showable

[Fluffagrams]

I currently have four Chinese hamsters, three of which are/will be part of my show team and the other is a pet only. I've been thinking recently about what could be in my future when it comes to hamster owning.

At the moment I'm wondering if it be more beneficial for me to have four showable Chinese or would it nice to have one just as a pet and if so would a different species such as a Robo present a new and interesting challenge?

What would your thoughts be in my situation?

[Cinnamon Bear]

A robo is always a good option. If your looking for cuteness, some are skittish, but they each have such cute personalities. That is if you can get a robo that lets you get to know them. I have 2 robos that adjusted in just 2 weeks and they are both adorable and let me feed them treats. My rescue robo has been 1 1/2 mo and I haven't been able to feed her a treat yet, she is just starting to come out and about.

You can handle Russians better if your looking for a hands on pet. Robos are fun, just can't generally handle them except for maybe a few seconds of eating treats on your hand. I'd suggest a robo, then you don't have the diabetes, problem.

[GhostsInSnow]

You know I breed and show Chinese too and my 2 WW boys are show hams as well. I have a Russian hybrid who is pet only (obviously) and it is nice. Obviously they're all treated the same but you know what it's like with show hams and making sure they're in the best condition possible for shows, stressing about moult lines and nails so it's nice to have a hammie that I can be a bit more relaxed about if that makes sense?
I think you'd love having a robo. They're amazing and so full of character, not always handleable but they are very entertaining even just to watch.
I don't like to think about future deaths and such but I know for a fact when I'm down to just chinese I'll consider having a non-Chinesey as a pet still

[chesca_27]

What about a pet Syrian? Or maybe a winter white like Larry-Jasper?

I think robos are very cute, but I prefer pets that I can hold .

[Pebbles82]

I think Fluffagrams has a Syrian don't you? Get a Robo!

[velma]

Obviously I can't comment on the showing side of things and what must be a lot of work as I only have an assortment of pet only hams and I've not even entered any of those to a pet class so I don't know the difference it would make if you had a ham you couldn't show. But I can say a little pet robo is a fantastic addition and much as I love the gang I have, I do miss the ease of a little robo and not just because Hector had a fantastic personality. I find the 3 I currently have much more work now one of them isn't a robo. It was lovely to have Hector beetling about his cage when I was in the hamster room and popping up to see what was going on but without finding the extra time for extra handling. Hector was friendly and he's run over my hands or sit on them for a treat but I wasn't worried about getting him out or if the others took a bit more time then he didn't miss out as he was quite happy just going out about his business. I found the same with my previous robo too, although he was a very different personality and didn't want to come out , but as with Hector, great fun to watch without the 'guilt' I should I have him out more. I'd say go for a pet robo (and p@h often have adoptions), you'll love it and I don't think it will impact on your show team at all.

[Fluffagrams]

I wouldn't say that a hands on pet is my first priority although it would be nice to be able to have them handleable to a degree so if any intervention was necessary then they wouldn't be too freaked out about it and if I were to get a robo, I'd probably go for one from a breeder as that would brobably be the easiest option as I go to shows anyway. Breeders can have hamsters from their litters that aren't suited to breeding and showing so that would suit me fine if that was an option I wanted to go down.

My show hamsters are a bit different as their condition is so important and judges will pick up on things like long nails and moult lines. In the run up to the shows I am assessing their condition, whether their nails need trimming or whether they can wait a bit longer, whether they need a bit of extra grooming as well as preparing their show pens. Don't get me wrong, I love showing and adore my show hamsters but things like that are less crucial with Jessie.

I'm less keen on showing a robo as they can't be shown in the normal dwarf pens and I don't have a Syrian pen and they also have a relatively short showing life compared to Chinese.

I'm not keen on the idea of a Syrian despite the fact that thy can be very adorable and loving simply because I'm not all that well set up for them. All the toys I have are dwarf sized and finding interesting equivalents in a larger size doesn't seem to be all that easy unless you are prepared to go online and pay a delivery charge. When Henry lived here (he belongs to my sister and her boyfriend now), I just didn't know what to give him as the toys that my hamsters have always liked have simply been too small.

On the other hand, I know where I am with Chinese. I know more about their funny little ways and tend to have a pretty good idea of how to read their body language.

I know I don't have to think about it now and the right decision will come to me when the time is right but if a robo is likely to come and live with us at some point then I'd like to be prepared with a suitable cage and an understanding of what care needs they have that might be different from what I'm used to.

[flowerfairy]

I enjoy having roborovskis. They are so entertaining and so sweet. Mine are not ones for being handled (despite being from a breeder) but I LOVE them.

A challenge sounds good to me.

[Cinnamon Bear]

Another plus is that I don't have to clean their cages very often

A Russian or WW that isn't litter trained have to clean more, especially if they are diabetic