Hamsters are small rodents that are often kept as pets. They are similar to other rodents due to their short tails, legs and small ears. There are many different colors of hamsters, including black, grey, brown, white, yellow, red and a mixture of several colors.

According to the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, there are 24 different species of hamsters. The European breed can grow as large as 32 centimeters and are some of the biggest varieties of hamsters.

The hamster is named after it's name. According to AZ animals, these tiny hamsters grow to around 2 to 4 inches long. The Syrian hamster, also known as the teddy bear hamster or golden hamster, is the most common pet hamster.

Hamster habitat

The first hamsters were found in Syria, but they also live in Greece, Romania, Belgium and northern China. According to World Atlas, they like to live in warm, dry areas in the wild.

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The Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association says that hamsters were brought to the US from Syria in 1936. They were the first domesticated hamsters.

Dwarf hamsters

Dwarf hamsters are social hamsters. (Image credit: Getty Images)

According to the ASPCA, hamsters like sleeping during the day. In the wild, they dig burrows to live and breed in. Hamsters will store food in their burrows. hamsters are cool in hot climates.

Some hamsters are social while others are not. The Syrian hamster dislikes living near other hamsters, according to the Hamster Society Singapore. They should not be put in a cage with other hamsters. The other hamster may be killed by it. Dwarf hamsters like to have a friend nearby.

If the weather gets cold, wild hamsters will go to sleep. According to the journal Hormones and Behavior, hamsters wake up from their sleep to eat. hamsters will wait to hibernate until they have enough food to eat.

Classification/taxonomy

  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum: Chordata
  • Subphylum: Vertebrata
  • Class: Mammalia
  • Order: Rodentia
  • Suborder: Myomorpha
  • Superfamily: Muroidea
  • Family: Cricetidae
  • Subfamily: Cricetinae
  • Genera: Allocricetulus, Cansumus, Cricetus, Cricetulus, Mesocricetus, Phodopus and Tscherskia
  • Species: 24 species. The most common hamsters found as pets are: Syrian golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus);  Chinese hamster (Cricetulus griseus); Campbell's or dwarf hamster (Phodopus campbelli); Djungarian or winter-white Russian dwarf hamster (Phodopus sungorus); Roborovski hamster (Phodopus roborovskii)

Hamster diet

Hamster eating

Some hamsters can fit up to 20% of their own body mass in their cheek pouches.  (Image credit: Getty Images)

According to the Hamster Society Singapore, hamsters like to eat seeds, grains, nuts, cracked corn, fruits and vegetables. hamsters eat insects, lizards, and other small animals According to the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, a captive hamster diet should include at least 16 percent fat and 5 percent meat.

The journal Aging and Biological Rhythms states that the German word for hamsters is hamstern. This is a good way to describe how hamsters eat. They stuff their cheeks with food. They will bring their food back to their colony so they can eat it later. hamsters store food under their cage

Offspring

Male and female hamsters are in love with one another. The female will become pregnant very quickly if you put two hamsters in a cage together. The Young People's Trust for the Environment (YPTE) says that the period lasts 15 to 20 days.

The litter is blind until they are two weeks old and then the young are taken care of. The journal Scientific Reports states that female European hamsters have two to three litters per year. Hamsters can live up to three years in captivity.

Hamster with offspring

Golden hamsters can produce five litters a year.  (Image credit: Getty Images)

Conservation status

The International Union for the Protection of Nature and Natural Resources has a Red List of animals that are vulnerable to extinction. In Syria, agriculture and human development are taking over the hamster's natural habitat.

The European hamster is in danger according to the journal. Changes to its habitat are the main threat to this species. Large dense habitats are divided into small patches when land is cleared for agriculture.

Growing plants that provide food for hamsters is one way to protect populations. In an attempt to increase numbers, captive-bred hamsters are sometimes released into wild populations.

Other facts

hamsters are easy to take care of and are ideal house pets. They will bite when frightened or startled. Pets Radar says they will bite if they are awakened. Humans are more likely to bite since they sleep during the day and are awake at night.

Hamsters have poor eyesight. Their backs have scent glands that produce a smell. They leave a trail of scent by rubbing their backs against objects. A hamster will use the scent trail to find their way back home.

The teeth of a hamster grow continually. They keep their teeth short by chewing on wood or twigs. Without something to chew on, their teeth would grow so long that they would hurt the roof of the mouth and lips.

The mother hamster is very protective. She will put her babies in her mouth pouch and carry them to safety if she fears they are in danger.

Additional resources

There are more facts about the biology of hamsters on the Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association website. If you are considering keeping a hamster as a pet, this page from the RSPCA has essential information.

Bibliography

The Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals was written by the University of Florida. The Universities Federation for Animal Welfare was founded in 2010.

Rodents model for toxicity testing. There are biomarkers in Toxicology.

The History of the Capture and Domestication of the Syrian Golden Hamster is written by Michael R. Murphy. The animal. Springer published a chapter titled "Chapter/10.1007/978-1-4757- 0815-8" in 1985.

TheCircadian Organization and Female Reproductive Cyclicity. The chapter on Aging and Biological Rhythms was published in 1978.

The European hamster is on the verge of extinction because of maize monoculture and increasing winter rainfall.

The maintenance of dominant/subordinate status in male golden hamsters is marked. The article is titled Physiology and Behavior.

Ice, rats, hamsters and gerbils. Chapter 10 of BSAVA can be found at www.bsavalibrary.com.

Is all of the measures for the protection of the species legitimate? There are lines of thinking with a hamster. The article "Ecology and Evolution" was published on Frontiersin.org.

Predation and survival in reintroduced populations of the Common hamster Cricetus cricetus in the Netherlands. There is an article in the Springer.com about mammalian biology.