Hamster newborns

Question
We are wanting to move our mother and her babies to a better location.  Is this a good time to do this?  We think her nest is too small and needs more space, she keeps knawing at the sides of the cage and it seems like she is trying to get out.    Do we need to move her and the babies to our bigger cage right now or should we leave her alone for now?

Answer
Hi Brian

I wouldn't worry about the mum gnawing the sides of the cage right now - sometimes hamsters just do this. You could get some of the special wooden chews (from pet shops) for her to chew, or give her some of the treats that are stuck on wooden sticks - so she can gnaw these.  I also wouldn't worry too much about the size of the cage right now, however, it sounds as though this issue will need to be addressed in the next couple of weeks.  Do you know how many hamsters there are in the litter?  This will determine the size of the cage you need.

Moving mum and babies is always a bit worrying - I had a disaster with this once and two babies ended up dead, so you need to be very careful. The big questions is always, when to do this.  How well do you know the mum?  Have you had her for a while, or is she new?  What is her temperament like?  Sometimes it is easier to move them while they are this young, because you can pick the nest and babies up in one go without disturbing them, however, the mum can freak out.  If you decide you want to risk it, make sure you have put some of her soiled wood chippings into the new cage first and mix them with the new wood chippings so that the smell is familiar to her.  Lift the nest carefully but make sure you don't leave any of the newborns behind as they can get separated. (on another subject - what type of bedding do you have?  If it is the fluffy type - get rid of it now!  You need the paper type as newborns in particular can get caught up in the fluffy cotton bedding with disastrous results - usually requiring legs to be amputated - if you need to change the bedding, then I suggest you do this, and leave her in the existing cage for a bit longer, as changing her bedding will stress her and a cage move at the same time might be too much for her to cope with).

Funnily enough I have this exact dilemma myself right now.  I am fostering a rescued hamster who had babies in the car on the way to the rescue center.  Her cage is tiny and very smelly.  Because I don't know her and she is a bit jumpy I decided not to clean her out or move her(just put up with the smell).  The cage is far too small for her and the babies, so they have to be moved otherwise they'll end up fighting.  The babies are 12 days old and are just starting the leave the nest to explore.  Tonight I will move them into a much larger cage.  I'll get the new cage ready with as many wheels as I can fit in (they must be the solid wheels and not the ones with spokes or a drainage slit as these are dangerous for babies).  I'll mix some of their soiled wood chippings in with the new, then put loads of food in it before I move mum and her babies.  I will let them have their whole nest -if possible I will pick them all up together in one go inside the nest and transfer them that way (this hamster only has 5 babies, but obviously if you've got a lot more you might have to do it in stages - if so, make sure you put all the babies back in the nest. As your scent will be on them, put your scent all over the cage and on the mum so that you haven't singled out any one baby). Then I'll leave them alone and let them settle down for a couple of hours before I go anywhere near them.

I have transferred a nest of newborns before - in a way this is easier as the nest is easy to pick up - the danger of this is that if the mother panics and turns on her babies they won't survive, however, if there is a problem when they are around 2 weeks old, their chance of survival is so much greater if she rejects them.

It is a very difficult decision, and one that you need to make - as you obviously know how well you get on with the mother and what her temperament is.  

I don't know if this is your first litter - if so, it is good to get some human baby food - the powdered variety is best (creamy porridge oats or rice are a favorite - but others are fine too).  Mix a small amount with water and give to the mum - this will give her extra nourishment so she can feed her babies.  When the babies are a couple of weeks old and are feeding outside the nest, put a teaspoonful of this morning and night on a jam jar lid or low dish so they can reach it.  Also, make sure there is a water bottle low enough for them to drink from - if you can't reposition one, I suggest you build a 'stairway' up to one or build up the bedding near one so they can reach it - but be careful it doesn't drip on the bedding and soak it.  Also, from about one week old, you can start dropping some food into the nest - bread crumbs, raw porridge oats, seeds etc.

I don't know if I've been much help to you.  Good luck with this - I'll be interested to know how you get on.

Regards