Queenie's unexpected litter *attempts to bury head in the sand*

kutorei · 08-02-2012, 02:45 PM

Two weeks ago, while at the local Petsmart, a salesperson approached me while I was browsing at the hamsters that they had a few for adoption. This particular petsmart only sells males, and the distributor had sent them a syrian female who of course, got pregnant. Being a bit of a soft heart, I ended up adopting Mom-now named Queenie.

Unfortunately, it seems they either didn't separate the pups soon enough/sexed a male wrong so that Queenie ended up giving birth this morning. I've been attempting to bury my head in the sand on the matter, but faced with a number of small pink hamster pups, I think it's a bit impossible now.

That brings me to my current predicament.

Question number one: Can someone please help me find some sort of guide on raising syrian hamster pups? Care, feeding, and socializing are what's most necessary.

Question two: I suspect she got pregnant by a son, and quite soon after her last litter(~2months). Should I be on the lookout for genetic defects/problems?

Question three: Does anyone know confidently of a hamster rescue group in California who will take the pups? Where in California does not matter; I'm more than willing to make a drive when the pups are old enough.

And if any of you live on the West Coast of the United States: Queenie is a very good mother(thank god!) and is a very nice hamster. Gentle, and loves attention and exploring. With this in mind, I anticipate the pups being pretty nice as well(assuming the father isn't a hamster wastrel)

Thanks!
(*sob* why me?)

souffle · 08-02-2012, 03:01 PM

Oh dear what a time you have had. The pups need separated from mother at 4 weeks and kept in single sex groups.
1)Here is some help with the care of the pups
Breeding Syrian Hamsters - Advice & Guidance - National Hamster Council
2) There could be some issues with genetic problems but at this stage I would just wait and see when the pups are older and hope they are OK.
3) I hope some of our USA members may be able to help. You could advertise them yourself as well tamed baby hamsters are quite popular and you could vet the potential owners.
Good luck and ask anything you need to know.

HadleyHam · 08-02-2012, 03:08 PM

I'm here if you need some Team USA moral support!
I wish I could help more, but I'm all the way on the East Coast

SPCA shelters are primarily (possibly all) no kill so worse comes to worse you could surrender the pups when they're old enough

gutterglitterxx · 08-02-2012, 03:58 PM

I, too, am on the east coast. I wish I could be of more assistance! But I wanted to say good luck and HC is a wealth of knowledge so I think you will be okay.

Squishes to mum and the little ones. xx

Pearl Hamletry · 08-03-2012, 04:39 AM

Try posting an ad on Craigslist or online classified sources. sometimes people will even reserve the babies before they are ready to go. You can set up a paypal account to so that they can reserve them. I only suggest charging a small fee like $5 to prevent the hams from becoming snake food.

kutorei · 08-06-2012, 02:50 AM

Thank you very much for the support and advice!

So far, things are going quite well. I'm writing on day 6 for the babies; their skin pigment is starting to come in except for one or two of the pups. I don't know if they're just slower developers, but either way I'm thanking my lucky stars that Queenie is an excellent mother.

Actually, it's kind of funny how confident she feels. The last two days, she's been begging in front of her cage to come out. I obliged her for about fifteen minutes and then put her back...let's just say she thought she hadn't been out long enough!

The only concern I've had-I found one of the pups a bit far from the nest this morning. I used a spoon and replaced this little pup right next to the nest where it promptly rolled into the nest. Queenie didn't seem upset that a pup magically found its way back to the nest, but should I not have moved it?

mangoandmimi · 08-06-2012, 02:53 AM

Oh don't worry about the pup, they're mischievous little things and i'd let mum deal with it. If the pup seemed genuinely lost and had been out for a while and mum really hadn't noticed, then a little help wouldn't hurt but they are up and about quite early!

Arraminta · 08-06-2012, 02:59 AM

No advice to give just a ((((HUG))))

Arraminta x

HadleyHam · 08-06-2012, 05:37 AM

Sounds like things are going smoothly. I would give the momma some treats with extra protein like some boiled chicken or egg whites

I think the babies that still aren't showing much pigmentation might be light colored like a cream. What color is the mom?

souffle · 08-06-2012, 05:59 AM

Pups start wandering when they start to get hungry so I would start giving mum small seeds to take in for the babies. We give oatmeal, budgie mix and very important small tiny bits of veg for fluid like teeny bits of cucumber and crumbled brocolli. Not a huge amount, maybe a teaspoonful. Either near the nest or in a dish and let mum take it in to the pups. Lighter colours like white and cream don't show the skin colour change like darker ones would. You can also see the eyes of black eyed babies under the eyelid where as red eyed ones don't show through

They sound to be doing well.