petcarefun.info

February 26th, 2009 by KittyKitty

Breeding teddy bear hamsters can be an educational and rewarding experience; You need to think about a number of things before you decide to breed your hamsters:

Are there any buyers already interested in buying your baby hamsters? Around 20 to 25 days of age, baby hamsters are weaned. Around 45 days of age, they may start breeding. Once the babies are born, you will not have that much time before they will need to go to their new homes. I recommend that you find homes for your baby hamsters well before the time comes. Please, do not turn the babies loose. Some other animal will probably eat them, or they will starve to death. In the unlikely event that they survive, they will start to breed and will become a pest. They will have to go to their new homes sometime between 4 – 7 weeks old.

Do you have the required supplies as well as enough space to breed hamsters? You need enough space and housing area. At least four housing areas are needed: one for males, one for females, one for a quarantine tank, and one for a birthing house. The quarantine tank is for sick hamsters, or for new hamsters before you add them to your other hamsters.

Are you committed to all the work necessary for breeding hamsters? To successfully breed hamsters requires a great deal of commitment. Cages need to be kept very clean. Your expenses will increase since you will need more supplies for all your hamsters. You also need to remember the cages, the toys, exercise wheels, and so on. Before you decide on breeding your hamsters, be sure that you are willing and able to invest in those resources.

Once you have decided that you want to breed hamsters, follow these steps to make sure you get a good start:

1. Buy your hamsters from a reputable breeder. Find a breeder who takes good care of their hamsters.

2. Observe the hamster you are interested in closely before finalizing the sale. Is the hamster friendly? Calm? Tame? Curious? Pass on any hamster who seems overly timid or overly aggressive. These traits can pass on to their offspring, so you wouldn’t want to breed them. Pica a hamster that seems to be tame, or at least does not seem to be hostile. Try to locate a breeder who handles and tames their hamsters before they sell them. You will probably want to get your hamsters for breeding from a good breeder. This is because the local pet store does not usually handle their hamsters often enough.

3. Be sure to separate the male and female hamsters. Only put them together when it is breeding time. Females will often abuse their male partners if they are not yet ready for mating. About once every four days, a female hamster becomes fertile. You will know a female is fertile by the way her tail freezes up in the air around a male hamster.

4. Keep a pregnant or nursing female hamster away from too much noise. Do not handle them too much. Do no handle any of the babies until they are weaned. Remember to separate the males and females right after they are weaned. This will prevent any unwanted breeding.

Visit Hamster Care Answers for more information on hamster breeding.

Stop by Pets Care Store for all your exotic pet supplies.