| Hamster breeding / raising pups |
| Raising the litter - Dwarf hamsters are dedicated parents. Mom will run dad off right after birth, sometime after he has bred her back. She will keep him at bay for a few days, but he will sneak in to check and clean the babies, keeping them warm while mom is off eating, drinking, etc... Keep them well feed, record all the info on the litte as you go, adding some oats of egg to the nest at about 10 days. Mom will have another litter at about 18-20 days. This will continue for 4-5 litters, then they may take a break, starting up again for 3-4 more, but often these last litters will have fewer pups. Dwarf hamstes are very good dads, and larger litter often occur when dad is there to help.... or if she has a older daughter. If the cage needs cleaned before the babies are 2 weeks old, spot clean the area away from the nest, and then do the other part in a few days. My Campbells are very forgiving, and I have picked up whole nest of 3 day old babies and never lost a pup. Babies should be separated from the parents at 3 weeks and cages males to one cage, female to the other no later then 4 weeks. ****For any species, make sure the water bottle hangs low enough allowing babies access at about 10 days of age. Syrians - Make sure to clean the cage about the 12-13th day after mating. Be very careful handling mom taking care not to startle her. Get her back in to her cage ASAP. If not now, in the next few days the female will look huge!! Once the babies hit the ground avoid the feeling you must look at them. Syrians are notorious for destoying their litters if stressed or frightened. Young mothers are even more prone to this. Just feed, water, drop in a treat or two and leave her be for that first week. If you get a chance to quick count the babies, do so... a bit of treat may distract her, as long as you dont touch or disturb the nest!... but there is no point in pushing her too hard. You will know soon enough. Babies will get some fine hair and color in just a few days. They will start to crawl before their eyes open. Mom will try to haul them back to the nest, but 3 will flee as she retrives one! Just as this is happening, you will want to step up the rations, maybe feeding 2 times a day, putting some food right next to the nest. The water bottle should be adjust to a low level so the babies can get all they need. Once they are eating on their own, you will see a rapid growth surge in the litter. You may notice there is a runt, but dont worry too much, you cant change that. At about 2-2.5 weeks, the cage will need to be cleaned. If there is a need before that, just do spot cleanings after the first week to 10 days, leaving the litter as peaceful as possible. I hate to say that there is a certain age or day when these babies will do "whatever", since there are so many variables. Litter size, milk production of the mother, and other factors can make for many changes. The one point I will state, is look for the ears on the babies and how the position on the head. Once they are un folded and erect, and the babies are almost perfect miniatures of the parents, then they will be close to weaning. This should occcur at 3-3.5 weeks. I would remove every one and clean the cage completely, and maybe let mom go back in with the group for a day or so, but then take her out and leave the babies in familiar surrondings. A few days later, about 4 weeks or shortly after, the litter should be split in to male / female cages. Now, it is off to market we go!! |
 |