Hi everyone

Ice_Fire · 10-10-2016, 09:49 AM

Hello!
I just lost my second hamster, Gibbs (who's in my profile picture). I got him in November 2013 and had to have him put down at the weekend. He was so old, bless him.

My first hamster was called Tim, but I don't have any photos of him. He was 2 and a half when he died, so he also had a good innings.

I've only ever had Syrians and I think I'll continue with them. Although I am curious about owning a dwarf. Do they have to be kept in pairs, or does it vary by type?

pinkneon · 10-10-2016, 10:45 AM

Hi and welcome! Sorry to hear you recently lost your hammy

Dwarf hamsters can be kept in pairs, but can and do fall out and would need to be separated. They can live on their own would be perfectly happy. If you wanted a pair, you'd need two of everything as well as cages in case you needed to split them up

Ice_Fire · 10-10-2016, 11:03 AM

Ah okay. I'm in rented accommodation, so I think I shall have to stick with having a single Syrian. I miss Gibbs so much, he was so full of life and well, I knew he was going to go eventually, but he lasted that long that it's still been an awful shock for it to have finally happened.

pinkneon · 10-10-2016, 12:19 PM

You could have a single dwarf if you really wanted a dwarf �� Depending on which cagets you already have though you might need a different one for a dwarf

Thin Lizzy · 10-10-2016, 07:42 PM

Hello and Welcome to HC. Sorry to hear about Gibbs, he definitely had a long and happy life.
They leave such a large gap in our lifes, for something so small they give so much love.

cypher · 10-10-2016, 10:47 PM

Hi & welcome to HC

Very sorry to hear about Gibbs, he really did have a good long life & I'm sure you must miss him very much.

For beginners with dwarf hams a single ham is by far the best option so if you do like the idea of having a dwarf then getting just one would be fine.

Ice_Fire · 10-12-2016, 10:47 AM

Ah, thanks everyone for the well-wishes for my little Gibbs. He has left a hole in my life, as I live on my own so not having him here has hit me rather hard. And I can't adjust to not saving bits of veggies I'm cutting up at mealtimes for him.

Good to know that a single dwarf would be fine, although I'm not sure my cage would be suitable because the bars are 1cm apart? A dwarf would squeeze through I'm guessing.

cypher · 10-12-2016, 11:10 AM

That would depend on which dwarf species you're thinking you might get, if you mean a Russian then a 1cm would be fine as long as it's no more than that, Chinese hams are slimmer so it might not be suitable for a young one although I do have them in cages with that size spacing, a young robo may well get through anything over about 7mm although an adult robo should be ok with 1cm.