the precise timing for mating

Question
QUESTION: hi.. my name is bernard keith

female hammie = campbell russian (misa)

i would like to ask something regarding the timing to mate.. as we know female hammie comes in heat every 4 days right... what does that really mean every 4 days? er..for example...

my female hammie mated on saturday(8th of sept) so.. when is the next 4 days? is it on tuesday (11th of sept)? cause i saw them mating on this date.. is that how u count the 4 days? i just wanna know the precise timing.. and whether do female hamsters have delayed ovulation or maybe prolonged ovulation.. something like that... i'm really curious.. it will be better that i'm able to change the bedding for them at least 2-3 days before she's giving birth.. normally the incubation period is 18 days or more if i'm not wrong... so that she will be able to prepare her nest in a fresher environment..

oh yea... well.. is there a 'real' timing on wat period of time normally female hammie will give birth...? like.. mostly during the night time.. or maybe midnight... haha.. cause i dont think i heard so much bout hamsters giving birth during morning.. haha.. hope u can enlightned me.. ^^ thanks....

ANSWER: Hi Bernard,

From the research I've put into your question, I cannot find anything about there being a precise mating time. Females will simply go in heat for a period of time, and the male will mount her randomly during this time, he may mount her several times during this period.

as for cleaning the cage, you should do this once, and its when you are 100% sure she is pregnant. After this time, do not touch her nest as she has prepared it specifically for the arrival of her babies. You can clean the cage roughly a week to 10 days after the babies have been born.

*Note, the father may try to mate with her again straight after the birth, so if you don't want a second litter, take him away and put him in another cage. Do this also, if the mother appears to be rejecting his company after the birth, reintroduce him after the babies have gone.

They are more likely to give birth at late afternoon, during the night or occaisonally early morning.

Best of luck and thank your for your question.

Joanne xx

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: great.. thankz for your help... i understand better now..

just want to ask one more question...
when the female is in heat for that period of time... does the male living with her KNOWS bout it and will start mating with her? because.. i have seen few days ago that the female disturbs the male while he was sleeping.. and she kept on squeeking from time to time.. finally the male woke up and started mounting on her... and happened even after 4 hours of mating... the female looks sleepy but the male kept on mouting on her.. suddenly i thought she just lost interest in it.. hahahaha..

okie... great... i'll give extra attention on the second week from now on... i quite positive she's pregnant.. thank you joanne.. ^^

Answer
Hi Bernard,

Yes he will know that she is in heat, and yes, it not uncommon for the female to instigate the mating....poor fella hahaha. They are acting completely normal as far as breeding and mating is concerned, so don't worry about them.

clean the cage out 2 weeks before the babies are do, and then leave it until after they are born...if it becomes obvious that they are dirty and i need of serious cleaning before this time, simply take away all the soiled sawdust, but leave the nest completely alone until the babies are coming out of it.

Thanks for your questions :)

Joanne xxx