Posts Tagged ‘Examine a hamster’

If you are interested in adopting a Dwarf Hamster, it is a good idea to search for an established Dwarf Hamster breeder. A good breeder can sell you a better quality Dwarf Hamster than you can find from your friend up the street who bred them by mistake for instance. When you look for a breeder you may find many listed in your local area, but try and get a recommendation, and do a background check and ask for references to make sure they are a bona fide breeder with a good track record.

Ideally, you want a full time Dwarf Hamster breeder rather than someone who is just doing it as a hobby. Many breeders will sell their hamsters to any interested buyer with the right money, while others will not put their pets up for sale, preferring to keep them for themselves.

A good hamster breeder typically spends time in selecting which hamsters will be paired together. However, there are also some unscrupulous breeders who are not as keen on breeding a good pair of hamsters, they just want to breed them and offload the pups for some cash. Do not assume that all breeders know how to pair and breed quality Dwarf Hamsters, because they vary greatly.

The fact that Dwarf Hamsters have a short gestation period means that breeders are able to produce a new generation of hamsters very quickly. The years of breeding experience means that a good breeder who knows what they are doing can breed Dwarf Hamsters with certain pre-determined qualities and characteristics that they want them to have. This has lead to some beautiful looking and well behaved creatures, including Dwarf Hamsters with sapphire coloring and unique patterns.

Aside from coloring and pattern, a good hamster breeder also considers health factors as well as the behavioral traits of the hamsters they breed. They do not breed hamsters with disease or abnormalities and they also avoid hamsters with bad tempers and observe the behavior of both hamsters so that the pups will have a good temperament, and be disease free.

We all would love to save the weak, scared and undernourished hamster shivering in the corner of the shop cage, but just be aware that you may be buying a pet with many problems that ends up becoming a money pit, so choose your Dwarf Hamster and its breeder very carefully.

Hamsters are obsessed with cleanliness. As a matter of fact, they spend almost 20% of every day cleaning their bodies. Although you do not need to clean your hamster every day, you must check their eyes and ears regularly to ensure that they are in good shape.

If the hamster’s ears appear red, swollen or infected, you should examine them immediately. Observe the hamster at regular intervals to see if he is scratching his ears frequently, because there might be ear mites in his ears. If you ignore these symptoms, they can affect your hamster’s health.

Get in touch with a veterinarian as soon as you see that your hamster is scratching his ears excessively or when any of his ears are already full of ear wax. A Vet must also be sought when you spot any discharge, inflammation, redness or peculiar odor from the ear. The vet will provide instructions that you must follow in taking care of them.

As long as you are not 100% sure that your hamster has ear mites, do not presume that they really have the parasites, and therefore never treat them with an ear mite treatment. Instead, check the hamster’s ears thoroughly by getting a white paper towel and rubbing it in each ear to see if there are ear mites. You can also take your hamster into a dark room and check his ear with a flashlight. If you can see tiny black dots that are moving around, then you can conclude that he really has ear mites.

A hamster’s sense of hearing is very important to them because they use it to interact with their surroundings, and their eyesight is terrible. If a hamster loses this sense, he will be stressed out. Therefore, if your hamster has ear problems, address them immediately to avoid any further or long lasting complications.

Similar to the ears, hamsters usually do not need help with cleaning their eyes, but sometimes their eyes can get irritated. This irritation is caused by tiny dust particles and bedding material that can get into them. Examine their eyes immediately if you see wet fur near or around their eyes.

Clean the eye area with warm water and a cotton swab. If the eyes are still irritated after cleaning, you must visit a vet. If there are small cuts or minor injuries around the eye, the infection may spread to the other eye.

When your hamster’s eyes have a cloudy appearance, then he is probably suffering from cataracts. Cataracts usually occur in the eyes of older hamsters and may lead to blindness. Although their blindness does not really affect their lives, they become much more timid.

If you have more questions or concerns regarding your hamster’s ears and eyes, do not hesitate to ask your vet for more details, it is most important that they are always kept in good condition so your pet will live a longer and much happier life.