Grey Hamster: Animal behaviour and problems.

General information

Being steppe-prairieanimals, the common hamsters are modest with regard to feed and need little drinking water. Moreover, they are odourless even for delicate noses. And it is just this undemanding nature that has made of the dwarf hamsters, even more so of the golden hamsters, a most popular "toy" for children. It must, however, be emphasized that dwarf hamsters are of limited suitability for small children. It's true they may be more active during the day than the golden hamster, but they, too don't want to be woken up in the daytime just to be stroken. Furthermore, dwarf hamsters are such tiny animals that only older children dispose of the necessary fine-motor capacity to stroke these little fellows without running the risk of crushing them to death.

Social behaviour

Hungarian dwarf hamsters are shy animals by nature who over and over again scrutinize the environment closely from their hiding place to be sure that the coast is clear. They go and get their feed à la hamster, stuff it into their cheek pouches and bring it home to safety. This way of life of a "grabber" always nearest to himself has, of course, a solitary character. He doesn't want to share, but just wants to look for himself. He doesn't enjoy company. Dwarf hamsters are, however, much easier to get on with fellow species than the golden hamsters. When two unfamiliar animals meet, they first go around one another several times, sniff at each other and then continue to go peacefully their own way. This allows the pet owners to keep several peaceable nest brothers and sisters together.

Behavioural disturbances

The blowing up of the legendary chubby cheeks is a display pattern and not a behaviour disorder. Neglect, keeping the animals in ways not appropriate to their species, wrong feeding, diseases, irritation through noise and touching the animal the wrong way promote the tendency to bite and to cannibalism. Because of the latter it is important that the dams are not disturbed the first week after giving birth and the cubs should under no circumstances be touched. Otherwise it can happen that completely distraught mothers eat their cubs!

Man-Animal communication

The first step to be able to communicate is the effort to get to know as much as possible about the life of the dwarf hamsters in the open countryside. This will help to soon be able to interpret body posture, behaviour patterns, vocalization. For instance one will detect that animals with put up bottom and erected tail signal their humility. Or that they stand up straight and take up a threatening position with blown up chubby cheeks. If the pet owner feeds the dwarf hamster with a calm hand, the animal will come to trust him and become tame. He then climbs on his hand and later on the whole person with familiar smell.

Animals "talk" to their fellow species by body posture, position of the tail, facial expression, vocalization and many more. If the human being has the position of companion and substitute for fellow species, then he must try to make up a little bit for the big deficit. The easiest way to do this is to talk calmly to his pets. Just the way he would talk with other human beings. Animals are extremely capable of learning and understand very quickly what words, the tone of voice and gestures want to say.

Undesirable behaviour

With his sharp teeth the dwarf hamster can cause considerable damage. He should only be allowed to have free run in the apartment when he really has become tame and when he does not seek refuge anymore from men. He will try everywhere to gather padding for his little house and put it in his chubby cheeks: Carpet fibres, pieces of wallpaper and many more. The run-out yard is indeed very risky for the animal (accidents!). It is far better to have a large enclosure.

Mood barometer

DThe body posture of the dwarf hamster tells a lot about his state of health and his mental state. When he eats and sniffs curiously and when he assiduously cleans his pelage, then he feels well and lively. When he puts his ears back, this can mean a lot: Fear, tiredness, bad mood, aggression. When he stands up straight and blows up his chubby cheeks, then he wants to threaten and impress ennemies (also the human hand) and possibly put hem to flight. This is the time when one must leave him in peace, because otherwise he might bite. If the dwarf hamster jumps in the air, then he certainly is in a good mood and high-spirited. If the animal flinches or cleans himself suddenly and persistently, he he got a fright from something. It is important then to leave him in peace.

Psychology of animals

A nocturnal animal and active also in the twilight who feels well above all in caves and in the security of a store cupboard filled to bursting, is everything else than a cuddly toy. If the dwarf hamster is frightened and shy, he can bite like lightning. This means that it needs a lot of patience to have his trust.