Hamsters are loved by everyone. They as pets are very energetic and fun-loving. When your hamster is about to give birth you must know the baby hamster’s care tips so that you can take care of them properly. Talking about the baby, they are born blind, deaf, hairless, and thin-skinned. So, you must take proper care of them at an early stage so that they can survive well.
When your hamster gets pregnant, you should know how to take care of her properly. The time of pregnancy to childbirth and then taking care of the mother as well as the child is very important for both of them. Let us see some baby hamster care tips that are very important for babies.
Avoid Looking At The Newborn Babies
We all know, animals trust human beings very easily. But sometimes they often doubt you for what you are doing. When these babies are born, that is an obvious thing that you have seen them at least once. But you must not move the things around them to have a sight of them.
Usually, the mother finds a place that is safe and not easily seen by others. Sometimes it happens that if she catches you trying to see her babies, she may think it is a threat even if she trusts you. These hamsters are quite a territorial kind of animals and of course, you are a giant in front of her.
So it is better to not go and look for the babies even if you have a strong bond with the mother hamster. Instead, You can hear them crying when you are nearby them.
Do Not Make Loud Noises!
This is an important baby hamsters care tip that everyone must follow.
A quiet and calm surrounding is very essential for the baby and Mumma hamster. So, keep the cage of your pet in such a place that there should not be any disturbance or noise that can disturb the baby or the mother. Sudden loud noise can cause the mother to panic, which can result in her killing and eating her babies.
This may seem harsh but hamsters have a great survival instinct that tells the mother about the nearby danger and due to this if any sudden noise she hears, she gets panic and also sacrifices her offspring for the safety of the nest. Put the cage in a room that is not much used where there is little or no noise.
Of course, you don’t have control over the outside noises such as motorcycle, sirens, weather, etc but you can control the noises that are inside the house. Make sure that small children don’t make any high noise, no kitchen appliance is used near the cage, no vacuum cleaner is used.
Do Not Let Other Hamsters Go Inside The Cage!
If you have more than one hamster, you should make sure that the other one is not there in the cage where the babies and mother are. You must separate them in the last weak of the pregnancy. Mothers also need a quiet and calm place.
As we all know, they have a survival instinct, this may happen when she gets frightened by other, and to keep herself safe, she may attack the other hamsters.
Hamsters are a bit different, they don’t get attached to their offsprings at the initial stage.
The mother can be a bit moody and getting another hamster can piss her off and she may get frightened. So that should keep all the other way from the cage where baby hamsters and mother are living.
Do Not Try To Touch The Babies For Weeks!
As we all know, they are born blind, deaf, and without fur; they are very sensitive to touch. As one of the tips is to avoid looking at them, touching them must also be avoided until they are moving and have their fur.
It is tempting to click the pictures of babies and post them on your social media accounts, but don’t even disturb them by taking the pictures. They may feel disturbed. If you touch the babies and their mother detects your scent on her baby, she will kill them. So better stay away from them until they are young and have fur.
Also, the baby hamsters’ skin is very sensitive for a few weeks after birth. So, if you touch them this may happen that they get some sort of allergy or skin infection from the germs of your hands.
Do Not Pickup The Mother Out Of The Cage!
Many of us think that out hamsters get bored in the cage so we take them out and play with them. But you can’t do the same with the mother hamster. Mothers should be left alone with the baby hamsters while she is taking care of them.
That is natural if you feel she must be lonely in there but the fact is she won’t get lonely as she will be busy taking care of her babies, feeding them, and keeping them warm.
So it is advisable to keep her in the cage and not disturb her or the babies in any way. Keep her alone for at least a couple of weeks. You must provide her with food and all the necessary things by not making any noise that may disturb the newborn hamster babies.
You can find information about the types of food that hamsters can eat in one of our previous blog posts. If you’re curious about whether your pet can consume tomatoes, celery, walnuts, eggs, or any other food, please stay on our website.
Do Not Clean The Cage!
It is ideal to clean the cage once or twice a week, but after the hamster gives birth to babies, cleaning the cage is not a good idea. As we all know till now, the baby and mommy hamster need a calm and quiet environment and you should not take the mother or the babies out of the cage anyhow, don’t go for cleaning the cage as it can disturb the mother and babies.
Keep extra food in the cage, change the water regularly, and drop kitchen rolls as quietly as you can. Mother hamsters can use those kitchen rolls as the bedding for their young ones. Make sure that you keep extra food for the mother hamster in the cage.
It is very important to keep full attention on the nutrition that is provided to the mother. If she feels that she is not getting enough nutrition supply for herself and the babies, then she may kill her babies
Conclusion:
Try to avoid the above-mentioned things and increase the chance of the babies to survive. Once these babies are grown up, decide what you want to do with them. If you have space keep them with you or else find a forever home for them. If you are giving them to someone else, make sure that the person knows how to pet a hamster and what care must be taken.