protective mother.

Question
My hamster had a litter of 6 a little over 2 weeks ago. All of them are growing wonderfully and seems very active, however they are confined to their nest by Mom. I wouldn't find this to be a problem if they were on the first floor where they could wander a bit. Mom has them in the ball at the top of the cage. (critter trail Z) The babies don't get to move around much since all 6 of them, Mom, bedding and food are all in this small ball. They have never gotten thier own water so I've fed them fruits and veggies along with the hamster food. Please tell me, is it ok for them to be so confined to this small "bedroom?" Is thier anything I can do without investing too much money? Cinnamon is staying with me, but the babies will be going back to the pet store soon.

Answer
Hi Karen

At this age the babies should be leaving the nest - the mum usually gets pretty stressed around now as the babies wander off and she often drags them back by their legs.  You really ought to try and get them out.  There is always the danger that if you disturb the nest too much the mum might abandon them, but from 2 weeks it is usually safe to handle them.

Obviously this is your decision, but I would be tempted to open up the top of the cage where they are and get them out.  Get mum out and make a real fuss of her.  Then get her babies out and see if you can relocate the whole nest somewhere else.  If she still has access to this ball, then chances are she will move the nest back up there, but perhaps you can remove it/block it off somehow.  

Also, at this age, the babies need a lot more food and access to water and if this is being denied by their location I would think it could have an effect on their development.

Buy a packet of human baby food - the powdered variety.  I always find creamy porridge oats is a favorite with hamsters.  Mix a little with water and put it in a low dish/jam jar lid.  You can make it quite runny.  Mum and the babies can all eat this, along with their usual hamster mix and fresh vegetable (avoid lettuce).  Don't give them milk as this is indigestible and can cause diarrhea.

They will also need to have access to a hamster wheel - make sure it is a solid wheel and not the type that has spokes or drainage slits.  If you can, put another one or two wheels in the cage.

If your cage isn't suitable, perhaps the pet store that you are going to take them to would let you borrow a cage that might be more suitable.  If you do move them into another cage, let them keep their nest.  This will be less stressful for the mum.

At 4 weeks (exactly) you need to sex the hamsters and separate out the boys.  The girls can remain with mum (if you want them to) for another 2 weeks.  At 6 weeks they will all need their own homes - no doubt by then they will be in the pet store.

Good luck with this.

Regards