Thread: Age
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Old 06-22-2016, 01:41 PM  
Pebbles82
Hamster Antics
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
Default Re: Age

Do you know what species of dwarf hamster they are? Some are longer lived than others, generally. If they seem quite sprightly they're probably not that old If someone gave them away to you, they could well have belonged to a child who lost interest quickly.

Turbo sounds pretty fit! Sleepy sounds laid back (our hamster was always a sleepy, even as a baby - he used to lie in bed and drink from his water bottle without moving lol). (He built his first nest next to his water bottle).

As with humans, they can live longer or shorter lives, depending on whether they are lucky and healthy or get something wrong with them.

Most petshop hamsters are Russian hybrids (a cross between a campbells and a winter white) - although some may look like winter whites, and some may look like Campbells).

The General life expectancy of most species of hamster is between 1.5 and 3 years with an average of 2 years I would say. Some people have had hamsters live to 3 or 4 years but it's not very common.

Yes they are short lives, but I found it's nice to see them go through the stages. Our Syrian is an old man right now at just over 2 - he has a bit of arthritis in his back legs and few problems with his teeth. But he's still a feisty old man with a mind of his own
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