First Time Breeders

Question
I have had a male Syrian for 7 months. I just got a female two days ago. I have them in seperate cages for now but would eventually like to breed them.  After the female gets more settled in, about a month or so I would like to try to mate them.  I have already planned the precautions to getting them used to one another but am not sure how to go about breeding.  I have read about other people that have had the pups. I wanted to know what kind of precautions should I take if she does get pregnant.  A few questions...Should I prepare the cage in any way? We have a wire cage or a glass one. Is there a prefered cage?  I use pine bedding. Should I change that? She has a hut that is edible and a wheel...should those items be removed? Any answers would be helpful. I will continue to look up on your website for any more answers that could help in the desicion making. Any opinions would be great too.  Thanks alot.

Answer
I too am preparing to breed my favorite male. What you must do once your female is settled into her home, you can introduce her into the males cage (or in a neutral area), do not put him in her cage. The female will come into heat every 4 days, so be prepared for fighting if you put her in on days 1-3. She will have a webby discharge on her bottom when she is in heat if you can notice it. Have a pair of gloves if they fight when you introduce her, and try again the next day until mating occurs. Once mated, she will have 16 days of gestation before she gives birth. About 2-3 days before the pups are due, do not disturb her. Make sure her cage is clean, and that she has plenty of bedding, more then usual since they build a large nest. I would remove anything that could harm any wandering pups like a wheel. Use aspen bedding instead of pine for all hamsters, aspen is the best for a hamster's lungs.