Hi :)

Harry's Mom · 02-24-2005, 05:21 AM

I'm Jenn, and this is my hairless hammy, Harry, in his old wheel.

(if the image doesn't work, it can be found at http://pics.livejournal.com/lucky_jenn05/pic/0000s47y )

I've since got him a Wodent Wheel, but he likes using the holes in the front to climb on top of it. lol. It's a good thing I got clips for the lid of his tank.

I only got him a couple of weeks ago, but I had two syrians before him who passed away last summer, Hammy and Sped.

Anyway, great idea for a website/forum!

Harry's Mom · 02-24-2005, 05:23 AM

I figured the image wouldn't work. BBCode is evil

**babyboos** · 02-24-2005, 05:41 AM

It is strange because it appeared to be working just fine yesterday but today all our images are not working!! I think it is a little tempermental as I just typed mine in again and it works fine now!

Anyway Jen you are very welcome

Where did you find your little darling? My little guy came from a really crummy pet store and I never really knew anything about them at that time. He has now passed over the bridge after a hopefully happy 23 months and I have never seen another commercaially available (this was a good two years ago now). Was he a deliberate choice or just caught your eye? I know they are proposed to be better for people with allergies. I have always found the litter layer choice to be more of a problem personally. Wodent wheels are great aren't they and used for so much more than just spinning, as you say climbing, but also sleeping, playing hide and seek...! I do like the silent spinner your little guy had to start with as well as they fit in some cages a lot better.

SnuggleHam · 02-24-2005, 05:42 AM

Hi Jenn *waves*

Hairless hams kind of remind me of rats, they are rather odd looking but still as precious as a hamster comes I’m sure.. Id imagine that this kind of ham is more rare, at lest I’v never seen them in pet stores, I didn’t even know they existed until I started doing re search.

Not sure why BBCode is evil it should work if the web address is correct. Maybe I should allow html?

**babyboos** · 02-24-2005, 03:23 PM

I can't understand why it is not working with the web location link as it shows up fine if you put this in the browser address bar. Even with html allowed it is still not showing?! Bizarre, anyway here is your precious little darling Harry courtesy of Photobucket. Maybe someone more technical will know what is going on. I tried adding ".jpg" to the end and I got a red box at least! Does linking to this journal gallery service normally work?

hammydude · 02-24-2005, 03:30 PM

Pretty cool

I've never seen a hairless hammy!

Emma · 02-24-2005, 03:38 PM

I had reservations about hairless hams when I first heard about them - I guess that's a debate we can all have at some point! If they're cared for correctly by a responsible owner though I guess it's no big problem for the hamster.

He's quite handsome as baldies go, not too much of the ET about him

!

Welcome to the forum Jenn, look forward to reading your posts.

**babyboos** · 02-24-2005, 05:05 PM

I understand what you mean Emma - I remember a few years ago when I had Alec (Baldwin), a male visitor to the hamstery wanted him to help make more hairless, or "alien" hamsters as they are also called - he wanted to specialise in them because they were so unusual. I refused as I was not willing to part with him, I loved my wee guy to bits, and to be honest I do not think this is a natural state for them to be in. Their lack of hair does have implications for heat regulation for example, and although I have never had a female, or bred them, I have read that they have a problem with lactation, and therefore the mother is best to be a carrier of the gene rather than hairless herself. Mating two satin coated hamsters together can produce a hamster with very fine, thin hair, similiar but not identical to the hairless hamster, and really should be avoided.

I have heard of other animal species being bred deliberately to be hairless, such as guinea pigs (skinny piggies), cats and dogs, with claims this is to help allergy sufferers. I have my doubts this is the aim in all cases though, and there are other pets already which do not have dander or other allergens so personally I do not see the need. I have worked with children with asthma and often find that the litter layer choice has far more influence than the hamster itself.