Hamsters as Pets

The best-known species of hamster is the Syrian or Golden Hamster (Mesocricetus auratus), which is the type of hamster most commonly kept as a pet. It is also sometimes called a "fancy" hamster. Pet stores also have takHamsters can be kept both in cages and in vivaria, both of which are available in pet stores.

Cages are easier to carry; their bars can be used for climbing. On the other hand, glass boxes keep hamsters from throwing litter out of their cages, provide a better view into the hamster's home, and create a quieter and more sheltered interior.en to calling them "honey bears," "panda bears," "black bears," "European black bears," "polar bears," "teddy bears," and "Dalmatian", depending on their coloration. There are also several variations, including long-haired varieties that grow hair several centimeters long and often require special care.

In the case of self-built dwellings, care should be taken to avoid materials that are dangerous to the animals. Plywood and wood from conifers is not suitable, because hamsters gnaw at their houses and both glue and resin are poisonous to them. Using standard water-soluble white wood glue to join pieces of solid wood, such as birch or beech wood, creates a safe environment for the hamster, although it may still chew through the wood. A purchased cage can be equipped with several intermediate levels, connected using stairs.

I had hamsters growing up. I loved them. Now I would not let my daughter get them.
They are a mess- the cages are a mess to take care of. I'm sure she would lose interest and I'd be the one taking care of them.

I'm not big on any rodents. I'm thankful she hasn't asked for them.

I have seen a few hamsters as pets in my day, but I really can not understand the fascination. To me they just seem like furry rats, plus I have been bitten by almost all of the ones I have encountered. I think I will stick to dogs!

Never had one, don't want any. Rodents and I don't get along.

My friend is a science teacher and she keeps a hamster in her classroom but she takes it home with her for the weekends and holidays. One day I went to her house and she showed it to me. Then she told me to hold it. I thought I'd be brave and hold in for a minute. I hated that thing. I wasn't afraid of it but hamsters look too much like mice and rats to me and I abhor them. Rodents, yuk!

Wow !Hemsters i like them too much.Its great to take them as a pet.

I asked for a hamster when I was a kid, but I was talked out of it. Now my nephew has one and he does not seem very thrilled, especially since his parents insist that he always cleans the cage by himself.

My neighbor is keeping a pair of gecko and they are just let loose inside the house. I always feel creepy whenever I need to see my neighbor because I dunno if these gecko's will possibly jump and attack me.

mandiees wrote:

I have seen a few hamsters as pets in my day, but I really can not understand the fascination. To me they just seem like furry rats, plus I have been bitten by almost all of the ones I have encountered. I think I will stick to dogs!

Me too! I got my first hamster at age 10, and I was so excited that I wanted to pet him right away. I reached down to pet him very gently and he bit so hard that blood came out of my thumb. After that I waited a while, hoping that he would get used to me after taking care of him and feeding him a while, but no. When I tried to pet again, he bit me like it wasn't anything.

I got a pair of hamsters two years later, and one of them nipped at me, but it wasn't as bad as my first one. But the worst part was that I came home from school one day, and one of the hamsters killed the other one and was eating into his little back . We never figured out why that happened, but that cured me from ever wanting to own hamsters again.

Hamsters are cute, little creatures. Some of my friends used to have hamsters as a pet however it died with in a moth due to some pet food poisoning.

Hamsters are so adorable. I used to have some when I was a kid. I don't think they ever bit me, though. Not once.