The Teddy Bear Hamster - A Hamster for Your Home

The original name of the teddy bear hamster is the Syrian hamster, but it is also known as the golden hamster because of its fur, which has a special color. According to their characteristics, the range of strange names has widened, some people calling them “the alien hamster” (hairless Syrian hamsters), “black teddy bear” or “European black teddy bear” (black Syrian hamsters).

The Syrian hamster is the best known kind of hamster that is raised as a pet, together with the dwarf hamster. Its body is about 17 cm long and it has a short tail. Its limbs are not covered with hair and it has four fingers on the front legs and five on the hind legs. Its cheeks are like small bags, helping it to carry the food around. In fact, a hamster can carry about half of its weight in its mouth. This hamster is quite isolated and lonely and doesn’t usually live more than 8-10 weeks if it shares the cage with another hamster.

In the wild, the teddy bear hamster is more active at night and lives in deep tunnels which ensure a lower temperature and a higher humidity level than in the desert. It feeds on seeds, fruit and vegetables. When kept as a pet, this animal is pleasant and easy to take care of, so it can even be watched by children. It lives for about two and a half years, although there have also been cases where the hamsters lived for 3-4 years. Also, they have this bad habit of biting if held in the hand at the wrong time, when hastened or hurt.

Aspect, behavior, feeding and reproduction of the teddy bear hamster

The body weight of this hamster can reach 95-100 grams in females and 85-130 grams in males. What is characteristic about these animals is that their incisors grow continuously. The females are bigger and more aggressive than the males. Then, it should be said that teddy bear hamsters hibernate in certain conditions. Their exposure to cold stimulates their food collection behavior and they need a temperature of 5 degrees Celsius during hibernation. Their hibernation is postponed if they do not find the food they need. Hamsters do not get fat before hibernation, which means that they can easily wake up any time to feed. However, they respond to external stimuli, waking up if they are held in the hand, for instance.

 The teddy bear hamster needs to be fed commercial products for rodents and water. This type of diet is highly effective from a nutritional point of view, without there being a need for supplements. The daily ration is about 10-12 grams and the water one is 8-10 ml.

Last but not least, here are a few things about the reproduction of the teddy bear hamster. The gestation period is sixteen days and the babies weigh about 2-3 grams at birth and their eyelids are shut, as well as their ears. A rule of thumb is that the baby and the mother are not separated the first week after birth.