Wanting to get 'Russians'

ryanjc · 11-07-2011, 11:12 AM

Hi there i have found a breeder near my area who has just 'received' a new batch of 'russian' hamsters, now are hamsters labelled as Russian actually Hybrids? :S and sorry for the ' ' ' i couldn't stop once i had started :P

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mangoandmimi · 11-07-2011, 11:20 AM

If they're a reputable breeder then they'll either be winter whites or campbells but by the way they call them russians, probably hybrids. are they nhc registered?

Erin Loves Dwarf Hamsters · 11-07-2011, 01:15 PM

'Russians' sounds far too suspicious to me. Real breeders or at least those who know what they are doing would call them campbells or WWs. So yes they are probably hybrids hmm

Try asking the 'breeder' lots of questions and like M&M said find out if they are a member of any of the clubs.

fluffymunchkins · 11-07-2011, 01:40 PM

If they are called russians, I would suspect they are most likely hybrids.
I will always advise against getting hybrids, purely as the breeding of them shouldn't be supported due to the health problems it can cause.
However, they do make just as wonderful pets and its up to your own personal judgement x

**Hamtastic** · 11-07-2011, 01:42 PM

In the US chain stores, "Russian" or "Fancy Russian" hamster is generally a label for a Campbell hybrid--has been every time I've seen it. When they mean to say "Winter White", they usually put that or "Djungurian", at least in my state. If it's a chain store or any store where the owner is reluctant to tell you about their suppliers, these hamsters would be most certainly hybridized.

P.S.: I've seen such hybrids that it was impossible to tell if they had more winter white or campbell in them, so it depends on your store's distributor what kind they get.

firedrake13 · 11-07-2011, 01:45 PM

I'm going to have to agree with everyone thats posted. "Russian" is the term used in the US as Hamtastic said by pet shops for hybrids. Most every pet shop I go to has "Fancy Russian" or "Russian Dwarfs" for sale, and some places will have these, plus hamsters labled as WW. Ask a lot of questions, and if they can't give you a history on the hamsters genetics, I would always assume hybrid.