Hamster Toys – An Introduction to Hamsters

Hamsters are one of the most common and popular small pets. They are cuddly and cute while their small size makes them easy for children to handle. They don’t smell, are easy to look after and it’s relatively cheap to buy a hamster and all that is needed.

There are a number of different breeds of hamsters today (approximately 32) but only a few of them are kept as pets. The most common is the Syrian Golden Hamster which is found in a variety of colours and fur and the Siberian Dwarf Hamster.

The Pet Hamster’s Basic Family Tree:

Golden Hamsters

Rumanian Golden Hamster
Syrian Golden Hamster

Dwarf Hamsters

Campbell’s Dwarf Hamsters
Winter White Russian Dwarf Hamsters.
Roborovski’s Dwarf Hamsters
Chinese Dwarf Hamsters

Hamsters belong to the rodent family

which is the greatest group of mammals with nearly 2000 species. Like other rodents hamsters are known for their front teeth which continue growing throughout their life. To prevent their teeth from growing too long hamsters need to wear them down by gnawing. You’ll often see your hamster gnawing things in it’s cage. To help them it is a good idea to but a gnawing block (which is made of some nice tasting abrasive material) from you pet store for your hamster.

The hamster has apparently got it’s name from its amusing habit of storing seeds and other food in its cheek pouches. These cheek pouches can in fact hold quite a lot, up to half the hamsters body weight.

When we study the hamsters senses we can see its strong and weak sides are very different from ours. Hamsters are very near sighted and as they are very nocturnal animals don’t depend on their eyes as we do. Therefore hamsters can be startled and jump when you suddenly put your hand down to pick him up.

On the other hand a hamster has good hearing and sense of smell. Both of these senses are far better developed than ours. They can for example hear sounds beyond our hearing. The hamster’s sense of smell is also essential for him and he relies on it continually . All animals have olfactory glands and leave scent trails to mark their territory.

The hamsters whiskers are also an important way for it to gather information about it’s environment. When the hamsters whiskers come into contact with anything the hamster feels it immediately and this can help to compensate for it’s bad eyesight.