[racinghamster]

Hi deb. Pet shops always give this story about Chinese hamsters being fine in pairs and although they might be fine for a while, the chances are they could fall out, or at least, one will become dominant over the other. Females are the most notorious for being vicious toward one another. There are exceptions, but I personally wouldn`t keep two female Chinese hamsters in the same cage. I may be scare mongering here and I hope I`m not, but reading many people`s experiences, Chinese are viewed much like Syrians now and best kept singly.

Now many factors need to be looked at here and I will try and point these out:

1. The cage must be one level only - no shelving
2. An `open` nest with a large pile of nesting material and deep substrate, as Chinese hamsters love to dig deep down and make round nests
3. Scatter feed as well as having a food dish or have two feeding stations
4. Have two water bottles
3. Have two wheels

These are just a couple of pointers for you off the top of my head. This actually might be the best time to get yourself another cage/tank and separate them now rather than worry about future troubles. That way your kids can have a hamster each without worrying about things? Did you get them from Pets At Home? Were they in the adoption area of a tank where there are more than one?

But lets not get too ahead of things. What I have said is what most people know already, but if and it`s a big IF....your girls might co-habit fine, who knows. It`s all about being aware of what might happen and that your kids know, just in case things go pearshaped. But if you get another cage, it doesn`t mean one will lose out and you can keep them on their own if they do start to bicker. Just be mindful that Chinese hamsters in pairs need more monitoring and less stress.