All You Need to Know About the Chinese Hamster

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Chinese hamsters are liked for being small and playful. Anyone interested in making a journey to have a hamster as a pet prefers Chinese hamster.

They can be tamed easily and faster than most other breeds of hamsters. Intelligent and full of energy, you can raise them at a younger age without any major fuss. They hardly cause any issues to live in the same-sex community.

They are truly a perfect pet

A perfect small pet, they do fit into the definition of enjoyable pets. These are slightly different in comparison to other varieties of hamsters. For instance, they are immensely gentle and good-natured.

Yes, you might experience a little difficulty in handling them compared to their Syrian counterparts. Fortunately, over time, you can pave away this difficulty effortlessly.

Most breeders are unanimous about one thing – they are the easiest to tame from the entire hamster family.

Discover some of their amazing features

The Chinese hamster is well-known for its special features like:

• They are nocturnal animals – unlike most other animals, they are at their active best during the nighttime. They spend their entire day sleeping. This should not be a problem for you provided that you are willing to spend quality time in the evening after your work, for instance. Avoid waking them up during the day. If you do so, they will experience grumpiness.
• Their bodily features are amazing – they have a very limited growth that can range between 9 and 7.5 centimetre in length. Likewise, the adult weighs around 50 – 75 grams. In terms of body proportions, it appears to be ‘long and thin’.

Their habits and lifestyle is worth mentioning

When this Chinese hamster spends their life in the wild, they choose to live in burrows. Interestingly, they take all the effort to dig it on their own.

Burrows become an integral part of their lifestyle. They dig burrows with one or multiple entrances.

The territorial limitations play on their minds. Normally, they prefer building a burrow close to each other. Due to this reason, they are often misjudged for living in colonies.

Foraging is a very serious business for them. The collection of food is done amazingly. For instance, they collect all food via their pouches. This is thereafter carried to applicable burrows. Once done, they prefer eating the food in total safety.

Even in the wild, they refrain from hibernating. They wake up frequently to eat all the stored food. During colder times, they seldom wake up. This is the time they readily agreed to choose a torpor.

The breeding phase contains spectacular features

The Chinese hamster takes around 18 to 25 days to complete its gestation period. During this time you can find around 4-6 pups in the litter. Breeding maturity time span in young hamsters stretches to 8 weeks of age.

If you are housing them with their siblings, ensure to separate them during this time. This will help you to do away with unintentional breeding.

The housing ought to be done with utter diligence

These Chinese hamster are diminutive. In case they are housed in the wrong cage, they may escape very easily. This is particularly true if the cage in question is made of wires.

This is the only reason you need to opt for a tight-locking type of plastic commercial house or an aquarium-style tank. It will also ensure their total safety and security.

Choose the bedding material diligently. Ideally, prefer timothy or aspen bedding. Avoid pine and cedar as they might give rise to respiratory problems.

Hamsters like to burn their energy regularly. They choose to do so with the help of doing some playful acts. Make sure their habitat contains a place to hide. You can choose from two popular options:

• A plastic commercial structure, or
• Hut

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Giving them food they like is hassle-free

You want your hamster to be in its best health and fitness. This is possible when you provide them with nutritious food.

A commercial hamster food will suffice the purpose. Make sure to blend it with supplementary items like:

• Fresh fruits
• Leafy vegetables

Avoid offering more high-fat snacks such as nuts. Likewise, make sure you never give them things like:

• Sugary processed foods
• Candy

Hamsters need to remain hydrated all the time. On account of this, you mustn’t allow them to get dehydrated. A gravity water bottle will be helpful. Have a sufficient amount of fresh water in it all the time.

It will help them to remain hydrated and their digestive functions will operate perfectly.

Learn why the number of these hamsters are on a decline

There is no concrete documentation on the current total population of these hamsters . To make matters worse, the dwarf hamsters are on brink of extinction. Right now they fall under the vulnerable category. Due to reasons as varying as short life expectancy and lack of breeding, their numbers are bound to take a nose-dive in coming years.

Warm weather suits them the best

History has it, the hamsters were first round in countries like:

• Syria
• Greece
• Northern China, and
• Romania

There is one thing common in all these countries. It is related to the warm weather they have.

This fact in a sense proves hamsters love warm and humid climates.

Unearth some interesting observations about their habitat

You are most likely to spot Chinese hamsters in dry and warm surroundings. This can pertain to areas such as :

• Sand dunes
• Deserts
• Steppes

If your house already has a hamster and you are bringing a new Chinese one, make sure to separate them.

Similarly, give the latter a big cage since it loves to remain in a solitary environment.

The colors and appearance are praiseworthy

In case you are planning to get the Chinese hamsters from a pet store, chances are you may not find one. Nonetheless, they are still considered to be great pets in comparison to their Russian counterparts.

As a proud pet owner, you can expect to have a wonderful and rewarding experience with Chinese hamsters.

Certain features of its appearance set it apart from other hamsters. This includes:

• They contain stripes
• Their body shape is much thinner and longer
• They do have a long tail
• It is almost half the size when compared with a Syrian hamster.

Their appearance can be a little confusing. For instance, some mistake it for a rat. Fortunately, they possess a gentle temperament and are easy to tame.

Coming to colors, this includes:

• Greyish brown together with a distinctive black dorsal stripe.
• Greyish white together with a distinctive black dorsal stripe, and
• The very rare – Greyish white with a distinctive black dorsal stripe.

People and breeders resort to selective breeding. This in turn has produced fur of many colors.

Nevertheless, there are certain yardsticks and parameters you can employ to distinguish it from other breeds:

• A long and very thin body shape
• Dark brown fur
• A long rat-like tail

They belong to the ratlike hamsters community

There is a group or community called ratlike hamsters. The Chinese Hamsters belong to this group. This group is rightly called by this name because of their body shape.

This group comprises like-minded people. You can share your experiences and get valuable feedback from similar hamster owners.

Where can you find them?

A lot of interested people are not aware of how to find these hamsters with the least hassles. Well, you can find one at:

• Breeders – approach the specialist Chinese hamsters breeders. They do stock this species. Experienced and knowledgeable, they have proper expertise in this domain. You can always count on their suggestions and advice to keep your hamster in good health.
• Animal shelters – these shelters often keep mistreated, orphaned, or abandoned animals. Depending upon the availability and other factors, they regularly give hamsters for adaptation.

You need to keep in mind a few things before adopting one from them. For instance, the hamster in question might be a little apprehensive to accept you due to their earlier owners.

Nonetheless, these shelters are still a viable option. They will offer guidance and advice. This can end up begin very rewarding for you.

• Pet stores – if you decide to procure one from a pet store, do your homework first before approaching the store. Give preference to a store that enjoys a good reputation. They are more likely to keep the hamster well-fed, healthy, and exercised.

Before finalizing a particular hamster, pay attention to details like its condition, look for signs of illness and make sure the cage speaks of total cleanliness.

What are the relevant costs?

There is some great news regarding the costs involved. Initially, you might have to shell around $15 to buy it. Subsequently, you will need to spend money on procuring all essential supplies. These supplies play an instrumental role to keep the hamster healthy and raise them appropriately.

Yes, you have to make payment for special licensing fees stipulated by authorities.