Syrian or Dwarf Hamster

MonkeyTheNF

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Hi all, I am currently trying to decide whether to get a syrian hamster or dwarf.I have owned 3 syrians and currently have two gerbils. I have researchec a lot about robos and campbells but would like others opinions.
Thanks
 

scats

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I have robos. They are fabulous little creatures but much jumpier and far quicker than Syrians. They are generally described as an observational pet rather than a hands on pet, but I do know people who have successfully tamed theirs and handle them.
My two boys were in the pets at home adoption centre. They had been dropped off at 4 months old by someone who no longer wanted them. Robos can live together, unlike Syrians, but I had to separate mine after a few months as one started chasing the other quite badly. They now live in neighbouring cages.
To be honest, I will probably go back to Syrians after this. I love the boys, and they are so much tamer than when they arrived, but I miss the interaction and bond you get with a Syrian hamster. I have always previously had Syrians, so these are my first robos. Im so glad I got them though- they are fascinating little things to watch and they can’t half run fast!
 

MonkeyTheNF

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scats
Yeah robos do seem like gerbils that you mainly watch too.I would love a nice bond with a small pet again and since I had to seperate gerbils would only be able to get one hamster due to space constraints. I am looking into adopting so possibly there is a robo out there that needs a solitary home!
Thanks
 

waggit

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I kept both types and the dwarfs were my favourites. Might just be because the pair I had were very friendly and hilarious to watch. I bought them as two females but after a night of watching Chloe being kicked out of their little house and sadly dragging some bedding behind the wheel to set up a area for herself I had my suspicions. Which proved right when little squeaks could be heard from the home. At which point Suzy then marched Claude (previously Chloe) back home to help look after the kids. Separating them just made depressed unhappy hamsters and as there was high demand for a mate that had a pet shop who could guarantee good homes for them we let them stay together. They had quite a few litters and were really affectionate towards each other until the end. But every time Suzy got pregnant poor Claude got kicked out to behind the wheel. And as soon as they were born he was dragged back to be a Dad.
 

tabithakat64

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There's quite a lot of hamsters in rescues across the UK so that's probably a good place to start.
My Syrian is in a 1m cage and gets free range time. Ideally bigger than this for most larger Syrians would be better.
My dwarf hamster is in an 80cmx50cm cage with lots of tubes and tunnels, for smaller hamsters bar spacing is really important. The correct size wheel is also very important as too small a wheel can cause physical issues. Cotton wool type bedding is a no no.
Zooplus is probably the best place to purchase a cage.
There is a couple of good hamster welfare groups on Facebook that I'd recommend.

Character wise Syrians are generally easier to handle, but my dwarf is probably my favourite out of all of them as very tame. Another plus side of adopting from a rescue is you're likely to get an already tamed hamster. For taming make sure you do not smell like food, always surprises me how many people forget this and end up getting bitten.
 
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