[racinghamster]

It`s the same old story really. Some people still live in the dark ages when it comes to small animal care and welfare and that won`t change. Stubborn owners with swollen heads won`t listen to reason no matter how well you place the argument. They know they are wrong but won`t admit their failings until one hamster is either dead or badly injured. Syrian babies/youngsters who stay together and `get on` are probably kept in a small cage/tank with little to do which is possibly why they don`t fight over anything. Look in many pet shops and you will see this. Syrians in a pile with a drinking bottle, a food dish and a bendy bridge. Some may still be under eight weeks of age, some older. But they are usually split up once they reach an age where they can`t be sold as `baby hamsters` anymore.

Dwarf hamsters are no different. Many are sold in pairs, trios or groups and 99% of the time, they fight and end up separated. Keeping hamsters together (unless in a proper breeding programme) in captivity is unnatural. Female hamsters in the wild will mate and then chase a male out, or the chosen male will help with the offspring. They dig deep burrows and are territorial. if you think about it, keeping them in pairs/groups in a cage with nowhere to run is inevitably going to cause upset and trouble if they do decide to fall out. Anyone keeping hamsters together needs to be fully aware of this. x