'Aggressiveness in dwarf hamsters'

lily from deep south (Contact Member) -

I just bought my daughter a dwarf female and this little thing is the most hateful creature I have ever seen. It hisses and squeaks like someone is trying to kill it. It bit me this morning. My daughter loves it. How can I help "tame" it?

Comment #1 Bizzy from Hamster Wheel (Contact Member) -

The thing with hamsters is the smaller the hamster, the meaner the hamster. It may never be tame, but the more you handle it, the tamer it should get. Does it bite? Good breeds for children are Black Bear and Dalmatian.

Comment #2 lily from deep south (Contact Member) -

Yes it does bite. It has gotten a little better. I am making my daugher wear gloves just in case it decides it wants to bite her. I try to handle it a few times a day as well.

Comment #3 Turtle from Lily Pond (Contact Member) -

Good luck. I understand your reasoning behind the gloves, but with them on you're defeating your own purpose. The hamster isn't feeling your body heat or smelling you. How long have you had it? How long have you been handling it? Even though Black Bears are tamer and better with people, it took us two weeks with Bizzy. I think she heard us that we were going to take her back. LOL!

PS -- She's the hamster in the directory. ;-)

Comment #4 hannah (168.102.133.8) -

my old dwarf hamsters were very territorial.They never would let me hold them.The dwarfs would also shreik and hiss at me, too.

Comment #5 campbelli dwarf expert (130.108.231.24) -

I have been studying the creatures for a few years now. for one thing they have only been domesticated for about 60 years which is a blink of an eye in domestication. for a second point they only bite when they feel threatened or scarred. since they don't have very good eye sight they are probably not familiar with your smell so they become defensive when a foriegn object, say your hand, enters their home, the cage. i found if you wear a klenex on you for a day, so that it obsorbs your smell then put it into their cage for them to use as bedding, and they will, they love klenexes, they will eventually learn your smell and be a little less agressive toward you, the next step is to reward docility by giving them hamster treasts, say yogart drops. within a week or two, you will have a new furry footed best friend.

Comment #6 Jennifer (66.177.252.224) -

We bought my son a black bear and she was very sweet, but 3 weeks later she died. My son was heartbroken, ofcourse. So this week I bought him another black bear and it was phyco! She got on her side, put her claws up and bared her teeth if we went near her cage! So I took the crazy thing back. He now has a panda hamster, and she is the sweetest thing I ever saw. She is nervous and shys away alittle, but will let us pet her. She is very scared still, but we make sure we handle her everyday and talk to her sweet and soft while handling her. My son loves her! My daughter got a dalmation hamster and she is sweet as well, but already favors my daughter more than anyone else. The dalmation ecaped today and I found her in my daughter's room in the corner scared to death. She was happy to be rescued!

Comment #7 Andre from Ottawa, Ontario (Contact Member) -

I just got a new Winter White Dwarf hamster, I was told it's a female, She's super cute but she nips at anyone that tries to hold her or even pet her it doesn't hurt and never makes you bleed she does it more to some people then others, we always clean our hands first but nothing and also we try to get her to go in a toilet paper roll then in our hands and it makes no difference she lets me pet her but once she's out she starts to nip i'm really gentle and talk to her softly alot and watch her in her cage nothing seems to work I don't wanna have to bring her back is there anything else I can do thanks in advance

Comment #8 Jennifer (66.177.252.224) -

What ended up working with my son's panda is this: we put her between us on the bed, where she couldn't escape and put hamster food in our hands ( her favoite is sunflower seeds) and when she came near us we pet her softly on her back, even if she roller over scared, and offered her some food, which by the way she never took. We did this every single day for several weeks. Then I made sure both of us held her every single day, but only if she was already awake. Never wake her up to hold her! Now when I open her cage I just hold out my hand and she climbs right into it! Good luck!

Jennifer~

Comment #9 Taylor (64.12.116.76) -

Hi i wanted to get a hamster. the last one i got bit my mom and my friend so i was scared to pick it up. Now i want to get another but i still dont want it to bite me. What is the best type of hampster to get that is easy to train and does not bite alot. and what should i do to get my hamster used to me im just so afriad and i dont no what to do but i love the animals.

Comment #10 John (64.40.46.123) -

Syrian Hamsters are probably better friends for young children than Dwarf Hamsters (these require some skill at handling, and I would suggest adult supervision at all times with this sort of small mammal). If you do decide to get a dwarf hamster, I suggest Winter White (Phodopus Sungorus Sungorus) Dwarf Hamsters. Despite some reports of agressiveness, my experience is that they are sweet, intelligent, and loving creatures. I also have several Russian Dwarf Hamsters (Phodopus Sungorus Campbelli) that are great animals, and the males are definately the calmer gender in this breed. Robrovski Dwarf Hamsters are probably most suited to being kept by experienced small mammal enthusiasts due to their extremely small size and special care that is required in handling them.

Comment #11 Jennifer (70.187.83.31) -

I got a white winter hamster and i took it home let it settle for two days and let it get my scent then it turned around and bit me! then my mom tried to hold it and it bit her I HATE WHITE WINTER HAMSTERS!

Comment #12 Aleee (80.195.240.231) -

I have two winter white russian hamsters, one pearl and one sapphire, and they are the cutest and sweetest pets on the earth. The sapphire is very tame although a little shy, and lets me pick her up whenever I like and runs all over me when we play - she even comes out to lick my fingers sometimes. The pearl is more energetic and chews EVERYTHING but she only nibbles you if she thinks you smell like something tasty. I dont understand why people keep posting complaints on this particular breed of hamsters...or maybe I just got the only two nice ones. I would suggest getting them out a lot with your bare hands so they become accoustomed to your smell and touch, and also to offer them little treats. Dont throw a bad hamster back in its box or refuse it treats just because it bites you - a badly treated pet will never learn. Be patient, be gentle, always let it know where you are when you go to pick them up, and remember that all hamsters are different - some might just be bad tempered and therefore take longer. Dont be tempted to just take a hamster back or never play with it just because its a bit snappish at first - how would you like it if you'd been taken from your home and put in a new one with different smells, sights and sounds, surrounded by giant people who dont make any sense to you? Patience is the key. I hope your hamsters become as friendly as mine.

Comment #13 nancy (66.229.4.204) -

i have just gotten a dwarf hamster and it is 'kinda' aggressive too me, will the hamster calm down once it gets used to its surroundings?!?!P.S. it is a little rambunctious is that a problem e-mail back as soon as you can

Comment #14 Nat (62.190.231.74) -

i have a syrian hamster and everytime i try to pick it up it throws itself out of my hands although its fine with being stroked. the other day when i went to put it back in its cage after cleaning it , it bit me and it really hurt and went quite deep. i was planning on getting a female syrian and breeding them as i really wanted some baby hamsters but after if biting me im not sure. can anyone recommend a type of hamster that is friendly that i could breed

Comment #15 atlanta (79.64.2.46) -

I got a new one yesterday and i think im going in too fast. i think it might of got used to me it started to slow down in hes running and stsrted to smell my finger up close but my mum tried to get my hamster Ollie to smell any part of her hand for the first time and ollie ran extra fast away from her which is odd pets usually ran up to her. Than after it bit me well was about to and now it will not come out from hiding and im too scared to let him smell my finger.

please reply asap.

Comment #16 Christina (69.131.8.15) -

Okay, I breed dwarf hamsters and I have been raising them for awhile now, years. The one that you have now will probably never be nice and handleable.

First off, you can tell a hamster's personality right off when it's a pretty young but sometimes you may have a nice hamster and it got picked on by another hamster or if it's a female and has a litter, it will be protective of it's youngin'.

I was reading the other comments about, holding it more. It's not going to work, I've seen it successful in Syrians mostly. They might be wild, jumpy, and scared and the more you hold them then they get nicer but unfortunately unless your hamster is expecting and they get nippy because they don't want to be held or picked up or it has babies, I seriously doubt your hamster will ever be pet quality ever.

I just want to clarify that statement because I've heard people advising people not to buy them because they are mean. I have some sweetie pies and then there are some that are serious biters. If it was mean when you got it then I would sadly advice you not to buy a hamster until you know it's temperament and personality first. Your hamster might have been brought in from a distrubutor and that's basically like a big hamster farm, mass quantities of hamsters which aren't held and aren't pet quality are sold to pet shops and they haven't socialized with people. That's why many pet shops prefer to purchase them from personal breeders in the area due to the fact that the animals are healthier and happier and they make better pets.

I live in Milwaukee, WI. I breed syrians and dwarf hamsters, if you have an interest in a pet or you have questions you can email me.

Comment #17 kay (88.110.211.193) -

I just brought on wednesday two winter white hamsters but when i got them home one started attacking the other.

I returned the attacking hamster back to the shop but the other hamster seems very timid and stays in the house bit.

When i was cleaning out some wet sawdast from where the water bottle was leaking with dry sawdust today the hamster was still in the house but was making this horrible hissing/shriek/gurgle-y noise.

It's the second time she's made this noise, is it normal for winter whites or is she just scared or something else?

Comment #18 igotmyhamsteryesterday! (90.197.31.157) -

aww the hamster i got yesterday is really swwet but wen i picked it up something hurt mu finga n after wards it wen red did it bite or nip me???

xxthnx byexx

Comment #19 Christina (74.129.133.230) -

I just bought a male Russian Dwarf Hamster and it trusts me but only a little bit, when i hold out my hand so it can get on (because i want to hold it, but only if it wants to, i dont make it do anything it doesent want to)it gets on but nips at my fingers, it feels like a pinch but sometimes it bites harder! it really hurts then and i dont know what to do! i set it down and leave it alone for a while, can you please give me some trust tips so my hamster can become more friendly twards me?

-Christina and Shadow!

Comment #20 UGgly Uber (218.186.8.13) -

Hi I'm looking for a friendly female hamster so that it won't fight with my other male hamsters so how can I tell if its friendly or not just by looking at it?

Comment #21 Kelsie Hyde (64.12.116.206) -

I breed dwarf hamsters and panda hamsters all the time. I usually put a male panda hamster with the female dwarf hamster, but you can do it the other way but sometimes its hard for the little dwarf to get to the big female panda without her acting defensivly. Sometimes they get a little grouchy at first, but after time they learn to like each other and eventually they mate. Thanks, Kels.

Comment #22 lily sand (159.134.48.163) -

im getting a dwarf hamster soon but after hearing soo much aggresive behavior about them i dont know will i? i already picked one out.are females more aggressive?

Comment #23 Zory (70.134.228.130) -

With hamsters, you have to understand that sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you just don't. I got very fortunate with my honey bear hamster. He doesn't bite me or any new person he meets, exept once my finger smelled like a carrot so he thought it was one and ouch. Hamsters don't see very well so never offer them a finger that smells like food.

But there are some ways you can make sure your hamster is friendly. When it first got home I let it get used to the cage for a day or two before trying to pick it up. I did put my hand in his cage so he can sniff it and pet him a little, but made sure he knew my hand was there at all times so he doesn't get jumpy. The first night I was surprised, he made A LOT of noise. Be ready to put him in another room if you want to get any sleep. He sleeps in the day, and if I try to wake him up before evening comes, he falls asleep on me. Actually, he's snoozing on my sweatshirt right now even though he should be awake. Anyway, never try too pick up you hamster when he's asleep. It may make him panic. Wake him up first. If he doesn't want to climb into your hand just yet, place three fingers under his belly and your thumb on the other side then lift him up and into your other hand. If he is afraid of your hand to death, put an irresistable treat there. And if your hamster is very aggressive, pet him gently with a tooth brush and don't stop until he stops biting it. Keep a tooth brush around for him, it's great for sleaning everything from his cage to a spot he missed while groming him self on his back. And always remember that just because you may have had a bad expirience with a hamster it doesn't mean they're all horrible. If you handle your hamster the right way and don't give up on it, it may just become your best friend. When my hamster is in his ball, he follows me around the house. I never even imagined hamsters could do that!

Comment #24 Mary (1) from South Carolina (Contact Member) -

I bought a honey bear hamster about a week ago and when we got her home she was curious as usual at night and would run in her wheel like crazy, but now she doesn't wake up until very late and does not run as much. Is anything wrong with her? Also she just started hissing at me and getting jumpy all of a sudden. I have been bitten twice so far. I am a little afraid to pick her up. If anyone has any tips that might help besides the ones above please email me!

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