mother escaped with babies

Question
We bought a Black Bear hamster and a Panda hamster about two weeks ago and the mother got pregnant.  So we separated them and she had her young a couple days ago.  To our surprise when we woke up this morning the mother and babies were all missing... we don't even know for sure how many babies she had!  What can we do to track them down and catch them?  The way our house is set up is very open with many nooks and crannies, so that makes it harder for us to find them.  Please help us!!

Answer
Hi Alison, try not to panic, she cant have got far with the babies in tow, she would have had to transport them all separately so check in the immediate area first, anywhere dark and warm, listen for the babies squeaking and leave small food deposits in corners to try and establish what area of the house she is in. if/when you do find the family be very quiet about it as they will be quite stressed, rub your hands in the cage of the female and try to touch the babies as little as possible, once in the cage make sure it is secure and leave them in peace and quiet for a few days to recover. i do hope you find them but i know how difficult it is to track down escaped hamsters, i once had to find eight young and the mother in a large two story pet shop! all were found safe and well. hope this helps, good luck and let me know the outcome, Jen