After nearly 2 years of looking into a pet for our girls, we eventually decided to surprise them with Dwarf Hamsters. I’ll add that this was one of their Christmas presents, but that wasn’t the reason we got them. While deciding a Dog wasn’t going to fit that well into our lives we felt that Dwarf Hamsters would work.
Dwarf Hamsters are NOT Just for Christmas!
Abigail was desperate for a pet and we’ve been very tough to crack on this as we felt it wasn’t right to rush into this decision. She had said that she was saving all her Christmas and birthday money up to buy one. Bear in mind she is only 6 years old. We spent a lot of time researching Hamsters and compared the options of Dwarf Hamsters to Syrian Hamsters. Another point we needed to be aware of was what type of pet did we want to be looking after. As I’m sure that it won’t be long before they became Our pets to look after.
As Christmas approached we wanted to keep this gift a surprise. However, making sure any livestock was happy and comfortable was more important. So we purchased the entire kit needed to set up a dwarf hamster home. Instead of buying the pets for Christmas we bought a couple of gift cards to be exchanged for them after the festivities. In our house, we spend Christmas and boxing day at relatives, which meant we wouldn’t be around to spend time setting the habitat up.
Setting up our Zolux Rody Lounge Trio and Hamster Tubes
We wanted to choose an expandable cage that would be large enough for 2 dwarf hamsters. We’d read lots of information about different types of dwarf hamsters and what they need. Looking at different types of cages with hamster tubes and finding something that would keep both the pets interested and the Hoopsters. Certain cages are not suitable for the smaller dwarf hamsters as they can be master escapologists. So we chose the Zolux Rody Lounge Trio. The three-story clear plastic cage allows excellent visibility, which gives enough room for two sociable critters to play.
Can Two Dwarf Hamsters live together?
After posting our videos we were offered lots of advice about looking after dwarf hamsters. One comment theme that kept coming up was that they will fight to the death! How come all the research I did from various sources had said that they could live in pairs and small groups? Even the lady in the pet shop said that they can live together. We specially chose female Russian Dwarf Hamsters as “They are the most sociable of all breeds of hamster and can live happily side by side”.
I’ll also add that I’m aware that not everyone gets along, so we’ll keep an eye on them to prevent any dominance displays. To help prevent this they each have their own food bowls, two hamster wheels and plenty of chew toys to gnaw on.
So far they have settled in nicely and our Hoopster Hamsters are continuing to fascinate.
How Long do Dwarf Hamsters Live?
It seems crazy since we’ve just got these cute fur balls, that I’m thinking about how long Dwarf Hamsters live, but it’s a valid issue. On average a happy Russian Dwarf Hamster will live 16 – 24 months in captivity. Assuming that everything runs smoothly, then we should expect 2 years of entertainment before they go. Which was one of the points we looked at before buying?
How old would Imogen and or Abigail be when their pet’s time has come to an end. How will they accept it? Imogen will hopefully be old enough to accept it as part of the life cycle, but Abigail will be probably a little more affected by the loss. I mean we’ll all be sad when it happens, but being prepared when when it does is another important parenting issue.
Improvements to the Hamster Cage
After making our set up video we added a bundle of shredded paper. Knowing that hamsters love to dig and burrow we thought we’d give them the chance to make their own bed. It didn’t take long for the furry pair to pull their additional bedding into the bedroom and snuggle down.
We’ve also seen other areas to improve on. First steps will be silent hamster wheels. These nocturnal animals love creating a rattling noise through the early evening. I’m looking into more tubes and play equipment, which may end up being a cage expansion making it even bigger!
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