Russian Dwarf Hamsters

El Guapo!

Ok so I bought a russian dwarf hamster yesterday along with the cage, wheel, bedding, ball, the whole kit. I brought him home last night and everything was cool. He was a bit nervous but settled down quick enough.

I decided this evening after work that I'd go get him a friend to keep him company in the cage. I went back to the same pet store and got another one from the same cage as the first (I assumed as they were likely from the same litter they'd already be accustomed to one another)

I came home this evening and the original one was rambling around the cage doing his thing and I put the new one in with him. The original one walked over to check out who the new guy was and than all of a sudden the new one just slapped the head off him! This happened a few times and I thought it would take a while to get used to being together again. But straight away the original one just hid under his bedding and has been afraid to move since. Meanwhile the new guy is bouncing around like a lunatic.
I'm just wondering have I made a mistake getting the 2nd one? Should I have just stuck to having one or will they settle down and live happily ever after?!!:D

Sorry for the long post I'm just worried the original fella will be butchered in his sleep or something!

MarthaMyDear

If they are both male they could possibly fight to the death! I remember reading that you shouldn't keep hamsters together as they can kill each other especially when they get older.

I would get another cage for the new one asap.

Zapperzy

MarthaMyDear wrote: »

If they are both male they could possibly fight to the death! I remember reading that you shouldn't keep hamsters together as they can kill each other especially when they get older.

I would get another cage for the new one asap.

That's syrian hamsters that cannot be kept together. Dwarfs are usually ok but there's still the possibility of fighting no matter what you do if personalities clash.

What sort of cage do you have? Keep away from cages with multiple levels or compartments as they could end up fighting for territories. Have 2 of each resource (food, water bottles, beds) so that one does not guard them and deny the other food or water.

So long as there's no blood drawn keep going but be prepared to separate them if blood is drawn.

El Guapo!

Cheers for the replies.
They seemed to have calmed down now. The original one has came out and they're both rambling around taking turns on the wheel. They seem to be tolerating each other now. I'll keep an eye on it though.
The cage I have has 1 big ground floor and a small balcony type of thing with a slide to go up and down. They have both been up there together earlier on with no fights yet though so its goin ok so far. Hopefully there's not too many fights.
I was thinking about getting another cage the same size and connecting them together with a tube so they can be seprate if they want.

Zapperzy

Dean09 wrote: »

Cheers for the replies.
They seemed to have calmed down now. The original one has came out and they're both rambling around taking turns on the wheel. They seem to be tolerating each other now. I'll keep an eye on it though.
The cage I have has 1 big ground floor and a small balcony type of thing with a slide to go up and down. They have both been up there together earlier on with no fights yet though so its goin ok so far. Hopefully there's not too many fights.
I was thinking about getting another cage the same size and connecting them together with a tube so they can be seprate if they want.

No don't bother with connecting 2 cages like that, it could possibly result in territorial fights, your better off sticking to one cage with a big ground level like the one you have. What's the name of it? The savic hamster heaven is a lovely cage, absolutely massive and loads of room to add stuff.

I forgot to add have 2 wheels, the wheel would be seen as an important resource in the cage so it's best to have to have 2 so no fights occur over it.

Given that there both young and possibly littermates it should work out but just keep an eye on them as sometimes it doesn't always work out. You will probably find one is the dominant one and will bully the other around a little at times but just keep an eye that no blood is shed and that both are getting access to food and water. Also have you checked that they are both the sex they are supposed to be? Mistakes are common!

Any photos of the pair? I used to have 2 dwarf brothers, funny little things to watch, really miss them.

eeyore2502

I use to keep Dwarf hamsters and have to say never had a problem other then them every now and again nipping us but other then that no problems. I would just keep a close eye on them and make sure there is enough food to go around so as not to be causing fights over the food and bedding, maybe put two houses / bedding areas.

Vojera

Could you take them both out, give the cage a good wash and put in fresh bedding? By putting the second hamster into a cage that smells like another hamster, that can set off a lot of territorial instincts. If you pop them both in to a fresh cage and hide treats around the place to distract them they may not be as likely to fight.

Just another point, be on the look-out for hamster babies in the next 3-4 weeks. Pet shops are terrible at sexing hamsters in my experience, so just keep an eye out in case you've gotten two different sexes.

Sigma Force

Agree with Vojera double check the sex of both of them just in casey.

El Guapo!

I asked the pet shop owner to double check the sex as I don't want any surprises. He assured me they're both male. I'll take his word for it but I suppose I'll just have to wait and see!
I could try cleaning out the cage and put in all fresh bedding and food etc but to be honest I don't think it'll work--just got a phonecall off my gf a min ago saying when she was home on her lunch-break from work the new guy was still bullying the other one and he was hiding under the bedding and seemed terrified.
So as much as I don't want to, I think I may have to give away the new one. I don't want them to kill each other. The original one is nice and placid but the new one is a bit hyper and can be nippy. I think he'd be great fun on his own but isn't really suited to share the cage with the other fella.

El Guapo!

Zapperzy wrote: »

Any photos of the pair? I used to have 2 dwarf brothers, funny little things to watch, really miss them.

I haven't taken any pics yet but I'll take one when I get home from work and put them up for ya.

Zapperzy

Dean09 wrote: »

I asked the pet shop owner to double check the sex as I don't want any surprises. He assured me they're both male. I'll take his word for it but I suppose I'll just have to wait and see!
I could try cleaning out the cage and put in all fresh bedding and food etc but to be honest I don't think it'll work--just got a phonecall off my gf a min ago saying when she was home on her lunch-break from work the new guy was still bullying the other one and he was hiding under the bedding and seemed terrified.
So as much as I don't want to, I think I may have to give away the new one. I don't want them to kill each other. The original one is nice and placid but the new one is a bit hyper and can be nippy. I think he'd be great fun on his own but isn't really suited to share the cage with the other fella.

They sleep most of the day anyways so I wouldn't worry about him hiding under bedding during the day as he may have just been sleeping. When I had 2 males there was a bigger more dominant one and at times he would bully the little guy a little, he would push him over onto his back and the squeals of them did sound like they were murdering each other but they always got on and there was never any blood spilt. They used to sleep in the same bed and both climb into the same bowl together to eat which as they got older and bigger became a bit of a squash! But It was always obvious which one was boss. Keep going for another little bit anyways as it does sound like only minor squabbles so far.

Sigma Force

How big is the cage?
If it's not just a bit of a spat and something more serious, you could always house them side by side so they might have the company of each other without getting too stressed with who owns what.