Owning hamsters is a lot of fun, particularly Russian dwarf hamsters as they are lively, friendly and sociable. One of the most appealing things about owning Russian dwarf hamsters is their ability to live in pairs, or groups, unlike most other hamsters.
This often makes them more attractive to keep as it is always nicer watching these cute and interesting little animals playing around with company rather than in isolation.
Be very careful when choosing your hamsters
If you agree and you decide to get two or more hamsters together, when choosing your hamsters, it is important to be very careful about their gender. As, if you combine males and females together, the inevitable animal instincts will result in you being overrun by hamsters, in a very short space of time. As these hamsters have a very short pregnancy (18 days) and recovery period (less than 24 hrs) after birth before they can do it all again!
So if the hamster sexing is not done correctly in your beautiful and cute new Russian dwarfs, you may have a very big problem on your hands, and determining the sex of a dwarf hamster is far more easily said than done. The hamsters themselves are small, and you would imagine that their gender determining parts are rather tiny, and you would be correct. Particularly at the age that they are usually obtained as pets, which is at about 6 weeks old. Even in the hand of experts, and pet shop staff mistakes are not uncommon. The end result of which, is that very shortly after you settle your hamsters into their new home, one morning you check on the hamsters only to find an additional litter of pink, bald and rather alien looking little creatures, baby hamsters, in the bedding box.
You find a litter of tiny baby hamsters one morning
Ok, so you happen to find yourself in the same position that we did just a few days ago. The first thought is usually "Oh, my God, what do we do now?" and this is very understandable. I mean, it's not usually exactly what you were planning, is it? You didn't set out on this venture to become a hamster breeder, but that is exactly what you have become!
The next stage, after the shock is usually - fantastic, how cute what a great little bunch of cute furry little hamsters we now have to look forward to. But, just as you get built up with all of the excitement you know, deep down, that there are going to be some responsibilities and it's not going to be that simple, is it?
No, it isn't. Unfortunately, you have now had thrust upon you some rather large, grown up and sensible decisions to make, both for your own good and the hamsters. Left to their own devices, the hamsters may eat their first litter. This may solve the immediate problem, although, I'm sure it's not what you would want the baby hamsters to have to go through. The mother can become pregnant again within 24 hrs and if the babies have not been eaten, by 6 weeks of age the baby hamsters will be capable of reproduction themselves, and they will. So if you don't start thinking about separating some hamsters pretty soon, you will have yourself a nuclear powered hamster production factory!
Hands off for a bit
The first step, if you want the babies to survive that is, and who wouldn't? Is to have a very hands-off approach for about the first two weeks. Apart, that is, from separating out the father, although he can be very helpful in looking after the litter, if you want to minimise the risk of an immediate re-pregnancy, get him out of there. Keeping the hands off is important as, at the slightest hint of human scent on the baby hamsters, the parents are much more likely to kill them.
It is therefore, a time for breaking the usual hygiene routines for a couple of weeks, forget about cleaning out the hamster quarters and just leave them to it. Obviously, plenty of food and water is important, but it should be introduced carefully and quietly. Soft tissues or paper should be provided to help with the nesting process and only an occasional peek to try to see the babies should be attempted. The parents will be very protective and may show untypical aggressive behaviour towards you at this time.
The hamsters will be ready for weaning at about 3 weeks old and at this time you should try to separate out the males from the females and keep them separate. At this point you can decide if you want to keep any of them and if not it is time to find good homes for them. Pet stores and breeders will often offer to take young animals back if they made a mistake with the genders when they supplied you with the parents, so that is another option that may be open to you.
Crisis, what crisis?
So there you have it then, it's not that difficult is it? Just a bit of a hands off approach (no cleaning for 2 weeks, enjoy the holiday) for a time, some extra food and some important gender determination in the babies. It is a lot of fun when you can handle the baby hamsters, and although unplanned it can be a very enjoyable and valuable learning experience to observe. As long as lessons are learned and, other than for the would be hamster breeder, the rest of us take the appropriate action to avoid further unplanned litters.
The biggest disappointment in the whole process for us is that our two lovely hamsters, who seemed so happy together, now have to live apart. That is a great pity.
So if the 
The next stage, after the shock is usually - fantastic, how cute what a great little bunch of cute furry little hamsters we now have to look forward to. But, just as you get built up with all of the excitement you know, deep down, that there are going to be some responsibilities and it's not going to be that simple, is it?
