i am getting a hamster tomorrow. i currently have seven pets: 1 dog, 2 cats, a chinchilla, 2 guinea pigs, and a bearded dragon. my dog is a chihuahua and he is 3 years old. he and my one cat are best friends and he also looooooooooves my guinea pigs and bearded dragon. he plays with my cuddles with them, and protects them. he hates my chinchilla tho, and i think it is because i never let him get close to it or play with it when i first got it. because when i got my guinea pigs and lizard, my dog loved them from day one.
how should i go about introducing my dog to the hamster so that he will like him and know he has to be gentle?
i have a humongo hamster cage (it's actually two cages linked together by tubes) on my floor and i have been letting him sniff all around and inside the cage while telling him the name of my hamster.
what else can i do now, before i get my hamster, and also when i get my hamster, to help them get along?
2007-01-21 09:37:47 · 7 answers · asked by lifeistough_period 1 in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
when he was a puppy, i had 3 hamsters, and he did really well with them, and he would watch them play in their excercise balls and he didn't seem to care if they ran into them and he even seemed to enjoy them. but now that he is older will that change?
2007-01-21 09:39:37 · update #1
All dogs have an instinctive prey drive and small furry little hamsters look like prey. Your dogs is small and your other pets are large enough that they don't represent prey to a little dog. But the hamster will be pretty small and is best kept away from the dog for its own safety. Also, being around a dog is likely to stress the little guy out. Friends is probably not a realistic goal.
2007-01-21 09:51:47 · answer #1 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My experience with dogs and hamsters is not too good. My older dog has killed nearly every hamster that got out while she was indoors. My younger dog he found all of them that were killed and brought them to us. The one that survived, he showed where it was hiding and never tried to harm it. We knew which one did it, the slobber was cold not warm. If you choose to introduce them, hold the hamster firmly in your hand and let the dog sniff. If your dog shows any sign of aggression, put the hamster back and don't do it again. Otherwise your doing everything right so far. Also if your dog starts pawing at the cage, I'd see about putting it up higher away from the dog.
I'd use some caution with bearded dragon and handling the other pets. Make sure an sanitize your hands in between handling each.
2007-01-23 14:09:39 · answer #2 · answered by wolfinator25840 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's really not a good idea to introduce your dog to a hamster. These are animals that are just best left alone, as many other people have pointed out.
Rodents that play with dogs are rodents that get eaten by dogs...or at the very least chewed on and tossed about.
2007-01-21 09:58:06 · answer #3 · answered by gypzndog 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
oh dear, if my dogs were introduced to a small, furry animal - well, I don't want to get into it. Sometimes certain species of animals are not meant to be 'friends' - the prey drive of most dogs makes this impossible! May be best to avoid heartbreak (and carnage) and let Mr. Hammy do his own thing.
Come to think of it, you would probably be sparing the hamster a lot of stress if you skipped this. I don't think he would choose to hang out with a dog.
2007-01-21 09:41:58 · answer #4 · answered by Misa M 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you got a zoo going on there, you should charge admission.
only you will know how the hound will react but since doggie has had previous experience with small furry rodents it seems that in all likely hood that he will get along with the new addition.
by the way whats next, a small herd of buffalo?lol
2007-01-21 09:52:12 · answer #5 · answered by barrbou214 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Our hamster got out of it's exercise ball and the dog was "playing" with it and bit a hole in it. Obviously, the hamster died.
2007-01-21 09:42:01 · answer #6 · answered by T Time 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
On a bun, with ketchup
2007-01-21 09:40:37 · answer #7 · answered by superjoezzz@sbcglobal.net 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋