Choosing which breed of hamster to adopt depends mainly on your desires as well as its future living conditions. Before knowing which species to buy, you should ask yourself the following questions: do you want to buy a hamster to pet or to look at? Will it be offered to young or very young children? Do you want to tame or train it? Do you want a small or a big hamster ? etc.
Depending on the answers to your questions, some species of hamsters will be recommended while others will be prohibited. You will find below all the information you need to compare hamster species and make your choice.
Choosing a Russian Hamster
- Name: Russian hamster
- Size: about 10 cm
- Morphology: it is relatively small and fragile, rather difficult to hold in hands
- Weight: from 45 to 65 grams
- Colors: Grey brown, white, sapphire, pearl
- Life span : 18 months to 3 years
- Character : shy, very friendly, likes to be petted, quite active
- Dressage : no problem, but to tame young preferably
- Recommended for children? ???(except for very young children)
Choosing a Syrian or golden hamster
- Name: Syrian or golden hamster
- Size: from 15 to 20 cm - it is the largest
- Morphology: it is large so easy to hold
- Weight: from 100 to 200 grams
- Colors: many choices, ranging from gold, reddish to brown
- Lifetime : 2 to 3 years
- Character: very friendly, calm and not aggressive
- Dressage : it is easy to tame
- Recommended for children? ???
Choosing a Cambpell hamster
- Name : Campbell's hamster
- Size: from 7 to 10 cm
- Morphology: small and fragile
- Weight: from 40 to 60 grams
- Colors : often grey
- Lifetime : 2 years
- Character: not particularly friendly, can be aggressive and bite
- Dressage : quite difficult to hold in hand, and thus to tame
- Recommended for children? ???
Choosing a Roborovski hamster
- Name: hamster roborovski
- Size: 5 cm
- Morphology: very small and fragile
- Weight : from 30 to 50 grams
- Colors: white, sand or grey
- Lifetime : 1.5 to 2 years
- Character : shy, stressful, very active, pleasant
- Dressage: possible but complicated because lively and therefore difficult to hold.
- Recommended for children? ???
Choosing a Chinese hamster
- Name: Chinese hamster
- Size: 10 cm
- Morphology: looks like a mouse, long body, quite small
- Weight : from 30 to 50 grams
- Colors: gray, brown
- Lifetime: 2 to 2.5 years
- Character : shy, good-natured, lively, climber
- Dressage: possible, likes to hold on to hands to play
- Recommended for children? ???
Comparative table of hamster species
You will have understood that each species has its own character and its particularities, its small advantages and its disadvantages, even if the latter are always minor! To summarize the previous characteristics and allow you to make your choice, here is a summary table of the elements described above:
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