Hamster pregnancies last 16-22 days, depending on the species. Check the cage each day and mark on your calendar the day that the baby hamsters appear.
Leave new mothers undisturbed for 7 days. Make sure the mother has plenty of food and water that is easily accessible.
Make sure the food and water are accessible to even the smallest pups.
If some of the pups are particularly small or unhealthy, they may need to stay with the mother for an extra week. Hamsters should be separated from the mother by 10 weeks at the latest.
Make it impossible for one hamster to trap the other. Boxes or houses must have at least two exits. Tubes should not be too long and should not contain blind corners.
Hamsters are very active at night, so it’s possible you may not see them play together during the day.
If a hamster is bleeding or appears weak or wounded, you need to separate the hamsters immediately.
Make sure there is plenty of healthy bedding now that the space is larger. Giving them a larger space may not solve the problem. Keep an eye out to make sure that the hamsters aren’t hurting each other in the new space.
The separated hamster will need a new home with plenty of bedding and things to play with. The hamsters can be kept near each other, but make sure they cannot physically reach each other.
You may choose to introduce new hamsters to the cages, depending on the species of hamster.
Syrian hamsters must be housed alone. Never place hamsters of different species together.
When pairing hamsters, always choose two hamsters of the same sex, unless you’re an experienced breeder. Female pairings are more likely to work. Male pairings more often lead to conflict.
Look for signs of positive companionship and of competition.
