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Old 05-15-2012, 04:08 AM   #1
HammyWammys
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Default Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

Ive seen a few posts on pet shop hamsters..
why is everyone saying not to get them?

ive had them since i was 7... i'm 21 now. & they have all lived there full lifes & never had to visit a vet!

ive never had any from pets at home? & im going to be getting some more soon.. so just would just would like to know why is everyone so against it? :s
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:10 AM   #2
StarlightSerenity
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

It's where they come from thats the problem. Read this article Why not use Pet Shops? The photographs aren't nice, just to warn you. Although the article concentrates on rats, it's exactly the same for hamsters.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:13 AM   #3
HammyWammys
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

omg thats awful i never knew anything like that!!

so where do i go? rescues?
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:17 AM   #4
StarlightSerenity
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

Rescues or breeders There are usually loads of hamsters on places like Preloved and Gumtree that need homes and usually a breeder relatively close too.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:19 AM   #5
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

Pet shop hamsters are bred in rodent mills. Thi9s is a wharehouse sized building with rows & rows of small tubs the hamsters are kept in.

They are never touched or handled as they have a feeding system & water system so they never come into contact with a human.

They are just put together to mate without knowing the history of them so do not know if there are any health problems from either hamster.

The females are bred back to back so as soon as one litter is taken away another male is put with them to mate again. This happens over & over again until the female dies.

This means for Syrians they can have poor health, & be scared of people touching them. There is also a increse risk of wet tail.

For Dwarf's this means they are hybrid dwarf hamsters. They also will be bred back to back until the female dies. Again they do not know if there are any health problems in either hamster which for dwarfs will be a high chance of them being diabetic. Also with the dwarfs they have a higher risk of being born with a lot of mental & physical health problems due to breeding two different species of hamster. They will also be scared of people

National Hamster Council breeders breed pedigree pure healthy hamsters who are not bred back to back, who have a list of there family history going back three matings so you kno there are no health problems. They are not scared of people because they are handled talked to & loved by the NHC breeders. They are also bred for temperment so you will get a friendly hammy

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Old 05-15-2012, 04:25 AM   #6
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

This thread was started yesterday and explains part of it too

As far as buying from breeders goes - Definetly go to an NHC breeder or someone you trust from here. I think at least one "breeder" who joined this forum and I believe is even in the breeders threads does a horrible job which proves that just because someone doesn't supply a pet store there're still a lot of bad breeders out there.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:42 AM   #7
Van Diemen
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

I know i'm going to get shot down in flames for this but i'd like to offer an alternative opinion.

I understand that these rodent mills are horrible and wrong, they aren't ethical and it is cruel. However - I also view it as a fact of life.

I don't think the way forward is to try and boycott pet stores.

That article linked here, talked about how the rats are put to sleep and frozen for reptile food.
This isn't any different to our mass production of chickens, sheep, cows etc etc for human consumption.
Reptiles need to eat and unfortunately they require things like rats and mice for food. It's just the cycle of life.

What I think is needed - is more education. I cannot truthfully say I am against these mills because they do serve a purpose.

The people who run them earn an income
The reptiles they supply get food
The pet shops they supply - supply people with pets

When you break it down like that - you can't really be against it because people need to earn a living, reptiles need to eat, and people love having pets.

I think rather than boycotting and spreading fear and hatred for these set ups, there should be campaigns for better conditions, backed up by organisations such as the RSPCA and the Government.

In the same way that the RSPCA and Government recognise chickens are bred for food but need decent living conditions. There have been countless campaigns and grants offered to breeders of animals such as pigs and chickens in order to create a healthy change.

We see this with puppy farms too - big organisations with the power to effect change have jumped on the education band wagon.

The fact that I can sit here and type all this information about puppy farms, chickens, pigs etc - yet know little about rodents farms - speaks a much louder truth about the organisations we entrust to speak up for our animals than it does for the simple everyday people who are running these establishments.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:51 AM   #8
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Van Diemen View Post
I know i'm going to get shot down in flames for this but i'd like to offer an alternative opinion.

I understand that these rodent mills are horrible and wrong, they aren't ethical and it is cruel. However - I also view it as a fact of life.

I don't think the way forward is to try and boycott pet stores.

That article linked here, talked about how the rats are put to sleep and frozen for reptile food.
This isn't any different to our mass production of chickens, sheep, cows etc etc for human consumption.
Reptiles need to eat and unfortunately they require things like rats and mice for food. It's just the cycle of life.
Of course reptiles need food - does this mean that the animals bred for food should be bred in such poor conditions? No.

Rodent farms are like chicken battery farms - do you buy battery farm eggs or chickens because it's a 'fact of life'? I highly doubt it.

Quote:
What I think is needed - is more education. I cannot truthfully say I am against these mills because they do serve a purpose.
I don't mean any offense by this, it is my personal opinion and I don't think any worse of you or anything like that but I find that view disgusting. They can be bred in an ethical way and still be used for food for other animals.

Quote:
The people who run them earn an income
And they can't do this by breeding them ethically?

Quote:
The reptiles they supply get food
They can't do this and breed ethically?

Quote:
The pet shops they supply - supply people with pets
Pets aren't necessary so isn't a valid argument and again, this can be done ethically.

Quote:
When you break it down like that - you can't really be against it because people need to earn a living, reptiles need to eat, and people love having pets.
Sorry, I just did.

Quote:
I think rather than boycotting and spreading fear and hatred for these set ups, there should be campaigns for better conditions, backed up by organisations such as the RSPCA and the Government.
Sorry but without spreading the fear and hatred, you can't get people to sit up and take notice and therefore can't get the support to make the changes. How you do think people like the Dogs Trust had such a succesful campaign (A Dog is for Life not just for Christmas)? They told people the truth - they told them what was going on, where they were getting their dogs from.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:53 AM   #9
HammyWammys
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

I agree with that when you look at it that way..
its not the animals fault. therefor Ima help the little fellas out by giving them a decent home. ive never had any problams in the past.
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Old 05-15-2012, 04:55 AM   #10
StarlightSerenity
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Default Re: Pet shop hamsters? Whats the problam?

Quote:
Originally Posted by HammyWammys View Post
I agree with that when you look at it that way..
its not the animals fault. therefor Ima help the little fellas out by giving them a decent home. ive never had any problams in the past.
But by doing that you support these places... You continue to add to the problem.

I just find it so upsetting that people who love hamsters, love animals and know what goes on in these places but still continue to support them by buying the animals. How can we improve things when the people who know about it seemingly don't care? It's that whole 'someone else will do it' mentality.

Think of the female hamster, the mother of your pet - the one who lived in a tiny cramped cage, constantly breeding, constantly feeding pups, had no contact with the outside world, no wheel, no toys, nothing. Only to become so used up that she died, just to provide someone with a pet. Think of her and the countless other female hamsters doing exactly the same thing. We're not talking just a few hamsters either - we're talking thousands, hundreds of thousands.
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