Got my hammy! How old is he though?!

bubblewrap

However, the man in Pets at Home said he is 6 weeks old, I find it hard to believe although I know Syrians are large anyway, he must be about 3-4 inches long when he is walking, how big should they be at that age? Is he fibbing? Apart from that, he did seem to know his stuff and went through a lot with me.

He is beautiful, I don't have a picture yet but he looks like this! Say hello to Harry!

Interceptor

Hello hamster-that-looks-like-Harry!

They get big quite quickly and at 3-4 inches when walking he could be 6-9 weeks old but not much more than that. I'd need a decent pic to be really sure. The males are always a bit longer as a result of the testicular protrusion to the rear and this grows with age too. Check for scent glands (dark patches of skin) on his back just above his hips - these aren't usually noticeable until around the 12 week mark but aren't much of an indication either.

Don't worry about his age - just handle him as much as you can for the next few weeks.

'cptr

bubblewrap

Thank you!

The man in the shop said he had only come in yesterday, so I am guessing he would be in that range, it was just the size that made me wonder but I read they can grow to 15-20cms!! :eek:

I would say fully stretched (not that I have stretched him! ) he is about 7-9cms.

To be honest, I haven't seen that much of him, he came out for a nosy last night but he has made a bed in his carry box he came in, and keeps hiding!

Think I will try and touch him tonight, very nervous! He bit me through the bars last night when I was carrying his cage, thought the little bugger was in his bed! :eek::D

biko

Hammy sounds like ham, nyom

OT, lovely little look-a-like.

bubblewrap

I will try and get a good photo for all to see over the weekend!

I love him so.....:pac:

Sigma Force

He's gorgeous! Look at his little face! Hard to tell from the pic. but his face is very babyish still so he is a young hammie only a baby still. As they don't have a long lifespan they do grow fast, Syrians can grow fairly big compared to Russian hammies. Biting wise just approach him with caution, nice and slow. Big human hands can be scary, start by just lying your hand out flat with some food on it eventually he'll sit in your hand and stuff his cheeks.
Get a toothbrush (one just for him of course) and use that to brush his fur so he gets used to being touched and also to avoid fingers getting bitten.

Really gradual and gentle and he'll settle.

bubblewrap

He was playing in my hand last night, he even sat on my hand eating a nut!

He is really quite friendly, he is also smaller than I originally thought, it is just his fluff making him look bigger!