Baby Dwarf Hamsters
The litter size for dwarf hamsters can be anywhere from one to ten pups but normally averages 5 or 6. After a gestational period of between 17 and 20 days, the mother dwarf hamster will give birth. While the prospect of pet babies is always exciting, it is especially important to take great care in overseeing babies that are so small and fragile.
We want you to be successful in your breeding venture, so we’ve put together some guidelines and suggestions to give you the best chance possible!
It is best to leave baby dwarf hamsters alone from the time they are born until they are about 10 days old. It isn’t necessary to clean the cage; just make sure mom has fresh food and water each day. If the litter is large, the mother may not have enough milk for all of her little ones. Supplementing mom’s regular diet with ‘kitten milk’ (available in pet supply stores) should help. Do not try to touch or pick up the pups – if handled this early, the mother may abandon them – or even eat them.
Baby hamsters are born with transparent skin, which is an amazing thing to see if they are not completely hidden in the nest. If they are hidden, don’t try to disturb them. At 4 days old, the pup’s skin begins to get pigment and their fur appears at about 7 days – that’s when they begin to look like pets instead of embryos.
Dwarf hamster pups will open their eyes at about 10 days and they will start crawling around the cage. Wait until they are this old to begin handling them and only for short periods of time. Be sure to pay attention to the mother’s reaction to this, as an overprotective mother might not appreciate you handling her little ones.
When you do handle the pups, be extremely careful that their sudden movements don’t result in falling from your hands. Take precautions, such as not handling while standing up or holding your hands over another surface (a table, your lap, etc.). This will prevent injury should a pup wriggle free. Keeping these handling periods brief but regular will ensure tame, friendly dwarf hamsters, while appeasing the mother’s protective nature.
About this same time (10 days old), the babies are able to reach the sipper tube on the water bottle; this is the initial step of the weaning process.
The pups will begin to eat solid food at about 2 weeks of age. Various food options are available for baby dwarf hamsters, including small birdseed, wheat germ, and oatmeal. Pet supply stores offer pressed pellets or dry blocks as hamster food but pups cannot get all the nourishment they need from these until they are about 3 weeks old. Baby hamsters will grow faster and be healthier if you feed them small grains.
As the babies grow, the cage may need to be cleaned more often. Keep an eye on the amount of droppings and clean at appropriate intervals. Hamsters are territorial by nature so, as the pups mature, you’ll also want to watch out for signs of fighting between littermates. They may have to be separated to avoid any injuries.
At around 4 weeks of age, the pups are usually weaned completely and ready to move into their own home(s), be given away, or sold.
A note of importance:
If the male is allowed to remain in the cage with the female, she will probably become pregnant while she is still nursing this litter. If that happens, remove the babies by the time they are 18 – 20 days old – about the time mom delivers her new litter. When you remove the babies, you should separate them by gender into separate cages to prevent unwanted, inbred pregnancies.
