To breed or not to breed......

[souffle]

I think Bunsey means that from a judges scores you can determine which is the better hamster so that you can decide which to breed. But then the best hamster might have the worst temperament in my opinion and if that was not right I would not breed a multiple show winner. Judges opinions are also very variable. At the end of the day most hamsters end up as pets and our aim should be to produce healthy, tractable animals which will make good companions. You are only likely to keep a few to show and the pet hamsters you sell must be able to be just that - good pets as well as good example of their type. That is how I feel about it anyway. If you feel there are already too many hamsters then I do not think you should breed at all as your babies will add to that number of hamsters. If you think you can improve the breed then you should go ahead.

[Basia]

I would agree with souffle, temperment is the most important factor.
As a beginner, it is very hard to have top class show hamsters anyway, so I look at bloodlines. If they have come from winning bloodlines, the chances are you may breed a nice litter with possibly some show hamsters in it - if you can spot them!

[Yaffle]

I really loved having my first litter and really enjoyed the experience on the whole but I did find it pretty stressful and draining. There's so much can go wrong and the stress of finding homes etc I do hope to have another litter towards the end of summer but you really do have to be prepared for every eventuality as it's such a big responsibility.

[Spuds Mum]

Originally Posted by Yaffle

I do hope to have another litter towards the end of summer but you really do have to be prepared for every eventuality as it's such a big responsibility.

To quote Professor Yaffle What, What? who is going to be the lucky girl then....are we talking about this innocent baby on my lap?

[NaomiR]

I've bred guinea pigs for 8 years now so the "responsibility" won't be new to me and I'm still with Souffle on the temperament thing, I never bred the best show quality guinea pig if it's nature was appauling, it's just not worth doing because (oddly enough) those personality traits DO follow through.

And just "for the record" I would never contemplate breeding a pet shop hamster and CERTAINLY NOT a rescue, I think I mentioned that before but I wanted to reinforce the point, there are definiate NO NO's and they are 2 of them

My female syrian Mildred is a rescue so that rules her out, plus she's over a year old. And she's so fabulous I don't want to change her at all so wouldn't want to breed from her anyway.

Does littering a hammie sometimes "ruin" it personality wise? With guinea pigs sometimes littering them was the making of them but in other cases it went completley the other way I guess at the end of the day it's all down to knowing your animals and trusting that YOU know what's best for them

[Louby]

I think you would be great at breeding.

You know alot about breeding animals from you GP breeding, so you just need to do your homework on the genetics etc of hamsters.

As long as you know what you are doing, and have the finances and ability to keep all of the babies should you not be able to rehome them, then I can't see any reason not to. You will only learn by doing it, reading and talking will only get you so far.

I'm not an expert by any means, but I have thoroughly researched, and have planned everything that I can to prepare myself for every eventuality for when we breed our first litter during August.

I guess you will soon be on the lookout for a boyfriend for SBP then?

[Basia]

Well my 4 mum's were all very tame and friendly when I mated them and after the babies were weaned they all became even friendlier and quieter. It certainly hasn't spoilt them in any way at all.

[souffle]

We also find they tend to be more placid and content after a litter Naomi. They also tend to richen in colour and bulk out once over the rearing stage.

[Yaffle]

Originally Posted by Spud's Mum

To quote Professor Yaffle What, What? who is going to be the lucky girl then....are we talking about this innocent baby on my lap?

No not Evaine, I'm not going to marry her off before I've even met her
I'd like a litter from Mojito, I think she's too good not to breed from (I just need to find a suitable stud male)

[NaomiR]

Originally Posted by souffle

We also find they tend to be more placid and content after a litter Naomi. They also tend to richen in colour and bulk out once over the rearing stage.

Oh that's brilliant news, some of my guinea pigs really flourish too how lovely thank you for letting me know