will hamsters mate what is there litter time?

Answer 1

Hamsters can be left together for around half an hour in which time they will mate repeatedly. After mating has been completed the hamsters will separate and show disinterest in each other. The babies are born 16 days after mating has taken place. (if a pregnant hamster has not given birth by the 18th day a trip to the vet is essential)

Answer 2

After a female hamster mates, there is a gestation period of 16-18 days for Syrian hamsters, 18-21 days for the Russian hamsters, 21-23 days for Chinese hamsters and 23-30 for Roborovski hamsters before the female gives birth. If the mother-to-be is a dwarf hamster, she will sometimes drive the male away from the nest when the birth is about to occur.

Answer 3

Here is part of a really good article I found:

The male will mount the female many times within a short period of time but will eventually become tired and disinterested. The female can now be removed and returned to her own quarters.

The female will come back into season after 4 days, so if the mating is unsuccessful the first time there is still chance to try again. When her season finishes there will often be a thick white discharge, which may make the urine appear cloudy. When this happens, wait for 4 days and then you may try breeding the hamsters again.

The period of gestation in the female is usually 16 days for Syrian hamsters and for dwarf hamsters the gestation period is slightly longer, around 18 days. The baby hamsters are born naked and blind but develop extremely rapidly as fur commencing growing after two or three days and the eyes open around the 12th day. Shortly after, the hamsters will be moving and making their first appearance outside the nest.

During the period of gestation the female should be disturbed as little as possible and not handled at all as she nears the time of birth. Once the hamsters are born they should not be touched until they are at least 14 days old and preferably nearer 21 days old. You should always check first by picking up one of the pups then placing it in front of the mother and watching her reaction. If she is upset, leave it a few more days. If you don't do this the mother may kill the pups as she may feel threatened. If the pups must be moved before this time rub some of the sawdust or shavings on your hands to remove your scent. If this is not done the female may well kill the babies. During the lactating period the female will appreciate soft food like bread soaked in milk and also higher protein foods, such as small pieces of plain, cooked meat, tofu, wheat germ or hard boiled egg are good for pregnant mothers.

The process of converting baby hamsters to normal adult diet is known as weaning, and is usually completed by the time they are about four weeks old at the latest. By this time the mother will be tiring of them and may start to attack them. They should be removed to their own cage(s) at this time.

At four weeks the males and females should certainly be separated and kept in separate groups until they begin to fight or they reach 8-10 weeks, whichever is first. As long as they live in harmony they may be kept together and will play and have mock fights. However, once the fighting becomes for real, then they must all be separated. In any case the females will be sexually mature by this time so if you do not want them to become pregnant they must be kept separate. It is advisable to maintain a soft food ration for a few weeks, as well as the normal seed mix, as they will still be growing and in need of extra protein.

Answer 4

just one piece of advice... if your hamster ever has a litter, do not touch the babies. the mom will eat them!

Answer 5

What do you mean? Like how long until they have their litter?
Good Luck!

P.S if you don't want to read this on Answers! here's the URL: http://www.hookedonhamsters.com/hamsterbreeding.htm


Hamster Breeding

There are many things to carefully consider before deciding to breed your hamsters. It’s fun to think about all the cute little hamsters you will have as a result of breeding, but how will you care for all of them? Eventually, you will need to find homes for your new litter of hamsters. A Syrian hamster can have as many as 16 or 17 babies with the average litter size being about 9-10. You will need to have extra cages ready when the babies need to be separated by sex and then later, depending on the type of hamsters you have, in solitary cages or pairs. Think carefully before undertaking such a venture. There are many hamsters that need homes, so please consider a rescued hamster before breeding. Please be responsible. If you do decide to breed your hamsters, be prepared for how time-consuming and costly your venture will be.

There are differences in the breeding process depending on the type of hamsters you have. Many things are the same or similar though, no matter what type of hamsters you have. There are important steps and precautions you need to take to guarantee the well-being of the adult and baby hamsters. With that said, if you do decide to proceed with hamster breeding, here are some things to help you along.



Breeding Syrian Hamsters

First, you must have a male and female hamster from different litters. Breeding siblings is not advised. They should be young and healthy. Syrian hamsters can mate as early as 5-6 weeks of age, but it’s best to wait until they’re about 4-6 months old. Females bred too young will have small and weak litters and it's not good for the mother's health. A female hamster should not be bred for the first time after the age of 6 months, since a female hamster's hips become stabilized at about this time. Breeding a female for the first time after this would make it very difficult for her to give birth and could result in her death as well as that of the pups. Peak breeding age for a female is about 10-15 months. After that, her litters will become smaller. Females need about 3 months to recover before having another litter. Never breed a hamster that is unhealthy in any way.

The female comes into heat about every 4 days. Estrous usually lasts about 10-12 hours. Always place the female into the housing of the male-not the other way around. If the male is introduced into the female’s cage, she will most likely be even more aggressive towards him. Evening is the best time to attempt this. If the female is not ready to mate, she will act aggressively towards the male, possibly biting him. Be prepared to quickly remove the female to avoid injury to either hamster. If the female hamster is ready to mate, she will stand stiff with her tail raised. Mating will usually take place very quickly if the female is ready and may be repeated several times before the female has decided she’s done. After about 30 minutes, the female can be removed. Always supervise the mating process and be ready with gloves if you have to separate or remove a hamster.

You can also use a neutral cage for breeding. If you decide to do this, place the male hamster in the cage for about an hour and then remove him. Next, repeat the process with the female hamster. After removing the female, place a wire mesh divider in the center of the cage. Place the male on one side and the female on the other. Observe the female to see if she seems interested in the male. If she does, remove the divider so they may mate. If the female becomes aggressive, remove her, replace the divider, and keep each hamster on its own side. Try to mate them again the next day. You may need to try this for a few days until mating takes place.

If pregnancy has occurred in your Syrian hamster, you will be blessed with a litter of pups in about 16 days. Sometimes, gestation can take up to 18 days, but not usually. During her pregnancy, you will notice some changes in your female hamster’s behavior. She will get bigger and rounder, of course, and she’ll most likely start hoarding larger amounts of food. She’ll do more burrowing and preparing of her nest.

It’s not a good idea to handle or hold your pregnant hamster during this time. You can help her best by making sure she has a well-balanced diet rich in vitamins and protein with some fresh fruits and veggies as well. A small piece of bread soaked in milk adds needed calcium, but be sure to remove the uneaten part right away as the milk will spoil within a couple of hours. Tofu and boiled eggs are good sources of protein as well. About 3 or 4 days before her due date, clean your hamster’s cage (leave the nest alone) and make sure she has an ample supply of fresh bedding material. My hamsters like to shred paper towels or tissue. Never use the stringy, fluffy cotton-ball type bedding for hamsters. Their tiny feet and paws can get tangled and twisted in the fluff causing damage, dismemberment or death.

Most likely you’ll know when your hamster has given birth because she won’t come out of her nest when she usually would. You may also be able to hear the tiny peeping of the new pups. Birth usually occurs at night. The average size litter for a Syrian hamster is about 9-10 pups. They are born blind, naked and about 1/2” long.

It’s not unusual for a mother hamster to eat her young. There are many reasons this could happen. If the mother or the babies are disturbed, she may feel threatened and eat her babies. Also, if a pup is stillborn or weak in any way, the mother will most likely eat it. Other causes could be too frequent breeding, breeding at too young an age or protein deficiency in the mother.

To be safe, before birth, the mother’s cage should be placed in a dark, quiet area and kept there. After the birth, your new mother hamster and babies should be left alone as much as possible. Only the normal caregiver should do the feeding and then be as non-intrusive as possible. Never disturb the nest.

The mother will barely leave the pups the first few days. After a few days, she will cover the babies with some bedding to keep them warm if she leaves the nest. Sometimes a baby will accidentally get out of the nest, and the mother will have to carry it back in her cheek pouch.

The pups will start to grow fur in about 5-6 days and markings will become visible. They can be handled when they’re about 10 days old. They’ll probably start crawling out of the nest about this time as well even though their eyes and ears are not open yet. You can supplement their diet of mother’s milk with some finely chopped veggies and fruits. Also, make sure the water bottle is within their reach.

By day 15, the pups will open their eyes. By day 18, their ears will pop open as well. They will start becoming much more active at this stage. They’ll need seeds and fresh fruits and veggies now. Babies are weaned from mother’s milk by 3 weeks of age. At this time, you need to remove the males from the group and place them in a cage by themselves. The females can remain with their mother another week, but then they should also be removed to their own cage.

Syrian hamsters can continue to live in these small groups for a short while longer, but once they reach sexual maturity (about 8 or 9 weeks), they will start to fight and should be put into separate cages. That is why it’s very important to make arrangements for good homes for your pups before you decide to breed.

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Breeding Dwarf Hamsters

There are four basic types of dwarf hamsters. The Djungarian (aka Russian Campbell), the Siberian (aka Winter White), the Roborovski and the Chinese. There are some differences in the breeding process among these types.

Since some dwarf hamsters can be kept in pairs or small groups, your hamsters could mate without your knowing it. However, if you keep your hamsters in separate cages, generally you can follow the guidelines above for introducing the female to the male when attempting mating. Once mating has occurred, gestation takes about 18-21 days.

An exception is the Djungarian (Russian Campbell). These male and female hamsters must stay together in the same cage even after they mate. The male actually produces pheromones which stimulate the female hamster’s reproductive cycle. If the male is removed within two days of mating, the female’s pregnancy will fail. Russian Campbell hamsters become sexually mature as early as 30 days of age. You can also introduce a younger female to an older male, but not vice-versa. It’s not recommended to try to introduce two adults.

You may not know exactly when a litter is due, since it may be hard to know when mating has occurred , but the gestation time of 18-21 days is the same for Russian Campbells as the other types of dwarf hamsters. If you check your female hamster daily, you may see what is called a copulatory plug. This is a whitish vaginal discharge occurring five days after breeding. This is normal and means your hamster is pregnant. You can check any type of dwarf hamster for this plug.

Also, if your hamster is pregnant, she will exhibit the same type of signs as listed above for Syrian hamsters. That is, she’ll start hoarding more food and busy herself preparing a nest. She may also become more aggressive as her due date approaches.

The males of the Siberian and Roborovski type hamsters also help the female raise pups, but their roles are not as crucial as the male Djungarian Russian Campbell. A female Siberian or Roboroski hamster can raise a litter of pups on her own, if need be.

The Chinese dwarf hamster is much less sociable than the other types of dwarf hamsters. Pregnant females can be very aggressive. Some people do keep these types of hamsters in a group setting which can be done if they have been raised together and the habitat is large enough with plenty of hiding places in case of fighting. My experience has been that it’s best to keep a pregnant female in her own cage and definitely never expect to keep the male in with her after mating.

Dwarf hamster babies develop a bit faster than Syrian babies do. They should have full fur by about one week of age and their eyes open by 12 days. At three weeks, they are ready to leave Mom and should be separated by sex.

If your male and female hamsters are in a cage together, be warned, the parents can mate again as soon as 24 hours after giving birth, so you can expect another litter to arrive just as the previous litter is leaving!