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Ria P · 12-12-2021, 01:21 PM

Turns out that Gertie the retired from breeding winterwhite dwarf was only semi retired.

Ok, she did look like an egg but i read somewhere that pure bred winterwhites have an egg shaped body.

She surfaced from a hole when she heard me come in to try for a couple of mealworms and then sat in her food bowl. Next thing this tiny furry face appears looking out of the hole. My head kept swivelling from Gertie to furry face and back and then it dawned on me.......

This explains everything about Gertie's recent behaviour. Why she bit me when i held her around her middle, the screeching when i moved or touched anything in her habitat, the hoarding like there was no tomorrow and the guzzling of water that had started to worry me.

She's in our bedroom and away from the other hamsters. I just went in to give her some boiled egg when i saw a baby briefly on the surface. It was about 2 in long and fully covered with fur but i didn't see the eyes because it dived underground. I don't know how old it is and why it was already out of the nest. Gertie spent quite a bit of time trying to interact with me so i left the room because i was concerned that she wasn't with the babies.

In fact, Gertie had been out of her cage today and was on the futon with me but that was before i knew about the babies. Not ideal but can't do anything about it now.

I'll wait and see what happens until i know how many there are and how many are going to survive.

I got a rough idea from reading threads on here about what to do and when but need to make 100% sure that no one ends up pregnant when the time comes.

Am i right in thinking that i need to sex them and take the boys out at 4 weeks old?

My guess is that they aren't more than a week old but please correct me if i'm wrong.

One thing i'm not sure about is how to respond to Gertie.
Should i just stick to feeding her so she attends to her babies instead of running around her cage when she sees me and walk away?

Or should i interact with her, pet her and let her out of her cage?

That's her third litter so Gertie knows what she's doing but she wasn't meant to have more babies. Gertie is meant to be a spoiled pet. In a way i feel sorry for her.

12-12-2021, 01:21 PM
Ria P House of Hamsters Join Date: Mar 2019 Location: Wiltshire, UK Posts: 7,103	Gertie had babies!! Turns out that Gertie the retired from breeding winterwhite dwarf was only semi retired. Ok, she did look like an egg but i read somewhere that pure bred winterwhites have an egg shaped body. She surfaced from a hole when she heard me come in to try for a couple of mealworms and then sat in her food bowl. Next thing this tiny furry face appears looking out of the hole. My head kept swivelling from Gertie to furry face and back and then it dawned on me....... This explains everything about Gertie's recent behaviour. Why she bit me when i held her around her middle, the screeching when i moved or touched anything in her habitat, the hoarding like there was no tomorrow and the guzzling of water that had started to worry me. She's in our bedroom and away from the other hamsters. I just went in to give her some boiled egg when i saw a baby briefly on the surface. It was about 2 in long and fully covered with fur but i didn't see the eyes because it dived underground. I don't know how old it is and why it was already out of the nest. Gertie spent quite a bit of time trying to interact with me so i left the room because i was concerned that she wasn't with the babies. In fact, Gertie had been out of her cage today and was on the futon with me but that was before i knew about the babies. Not ideal but can't do anything about it now. I'll wait and see what happens until i know how many there are and how many are going to survive. I got a rough idea from reading threads on here about what to do and when but need to make 100% sure that no one ends up pregnant when the time comes. Am i right in thinking that i need to sex them and take the boys out at 4 weeks old? My guess is that they aren't more than a week old but please correct me if i'm wrong. One thing i'm not sure about is how to respond to Gertie. Should i just stick to feeding her so she attends to her babies instead of running around her cage when she sees me and walk away? Or should i interact with her, pet her and let her out of her cage? That's her third litter so Gertie knows what she's doing but she wasn't meant to have more babies. Gertie is meant to be a spoiled pet. In a way i feel sorry for her.