Getting Bit is Part of Owning a Hamster

In recent discussion on HamsterHideout.com the question was posed whether it was reasonable to assume that getting bit by a hamster was part of what comes with owning a hamster. It was of no surprise that most everyone agreed, myself included, that it is indeed part of what comes with sharing your life with a hamster. Short of leaving a hamster in it's cage 24/7 with no human interaction, you are in the position to be bitten at any time. Any animal with a mouth is capable of biting after all.


It certainly ties in with the idea that hamsters bite a lot more than other small animals. In one way I do agree, hamsters do tend to be quick to use their teeth if ill at ease. On the other hand I would say 99% of any and all bites I have received , have been given due to my own error. Whether I did not let a sleeping hamster lie, I surprised them, my hands smelled of food or a cage territorial hamster felt their home to be invaded. I have yet to have a hamster bite for no reason. Even nibbles are given for the reason of exploration and understanding, and they often do not hurt. Especially as hamsters are seen as a child's pet, the notion that they bite often is only encouraged as young children who do not understand how to respect an animal's personal space and are often handle the hamster more roughly than they should be get bitten and a negative reputation is built with blame placed upon the hamster.


Biting before a hamster has been socialized or 'tamed' is to be expected as you must work diligently to earn your hamster's trust so that they understand that you are a friend and not an enemy. A taming guide can be found here: Dashing Hamster's Taming Guide.


Learning to read a hamster's body language for signs of distress, can go a long way to avoiding a hamster bite and in doing so you will not cross their threshold for stress, making them feel better about you. Not invading their space if they feel protective over it, food dishes or hoards as well as nests seem to be a sensitive spot for some hamster as an example; washing your hands with non-scented soap to get rid of interesting smells that may be mistaken for actual food or even a threat; letting your presence be known before touching your hamster such as talking to them or rustling some bedding and picking them up from where they can see your hands coming; not waking them and just overall respecting them and their space can definitely reduce the risk for bites. I used to consider hamster bites a regular part of keeping them, but as I have learned to read them better I have gotten bitten less and less over the years. Most importantly do not take the bites personally, your hamster isn't after all so why should you? The meaning behind each bite is situational and dependent upon the hamster, biting does not mean that they "hate" you though. Frequent biting experienced while a hamster is in their home may be linked to cage aggression, which is discussed in depth here: Cage Aggression.


So while biting can be made less likely getting bitten is always a possibility. Whether they will be quick to use their teeth in an attempt to solve their issues or if they will prefer to take things in a more mellow manner will depend upon the individual hamster. They have teeth and therefore they can bite and so it should be assumed that bites can happen, this does not mean that they will happen though. Basically be prepared. Despite it all, the bites are not as frequent as some make it out to be and with some thought into your actions around your hamster there is no reason why you cannot enjoy each other's company.

Star Gazing

What is Star Gazing?
Some lines of hamsters seem to produce hamsters with behavioural disorders. They are often termed as a neurological disorder or simply as Star Gazing. The term ‘Star Gazing’ itself comes from a behaviour that causes the hamster to stand on their hind legs, gaze upward (toward the stars) and either flip over or fall on their back; this behaviour is often repeated and is compulsive and involuntary, meaning they cannot control this behaviour. Also included under this term are behaviours such as compulsive spinning and pacing. No one knows for certain what causes these issues to pop up, but they are largely believed to be genetic. These behaviours can have varying causes however, not all of them being genetic.

Symptoms

• Compulsive pacing -- when a hamster is found to be pacing back and forth along the cage constantly.
• Running in circles -- when the hamster is found to continually run in circles. The circles may be more like spinning, almost on the spot, and is referred to “waltzing” by Linda Price. It may take the form as running laps in a certain section of the cage continually. A video of Hoppinghammy's roborovski dwarf hamster, from Hamster Hideout, "waltzing":
  Click Here to View Video
  
• Doing back flips or falling on their back, also called star gazing -- The hamster will stand on their hind legs either on the floor or on a toy and attempt to do a back flip, usually just falling on their back.Most of these hamsters, so long as they can eat, drink and sleep without too much trouble don’t need to be euthanized. With some effort on the owners part to make their life more comfortable, they can live healthy and happy lives. If the traits are extreme and the quality of your hamster’s life is not what is should be than euthanization should be considered. A lot of ethical points come into this decision and it is up to you as the owner to make the decision for what is best for your hamster.
  
  A popular viral video of back flipping hamsters, suffering from neurological issues:
  
  

Causes
There may be several causes for these symptoms to appear:

• Ear Infection: An ear infection can cause a ‘head tilt’ (where the hamster’s head tilts a bit) and also for them to lose their balance, they often walk diagonally and sometimes also walk in circles. An ear infection doesn’t usually call back flipping. This can be treated by antibiotics from a vet.
• Swelling of the brain: If your hamster has fallen or you believe it could have received an injury to the head, than this could have caused swelling to the brain that would effect the hamster’s ability to walk properly or act normally. A vet should be sought immediately if this is believed to be the case.|
• Growth on the brain: If something such as a tumour is growing in the hamster’s brain than this too could also cause spinning, walking in circles and possibly even back flipping. If this is the case than a vet should be sought, though the prognosis is not a positive one.
• Stroke: A stroke is thought to be another cause of some of these behaviours, again a vet should be contacted to see if this is the cause and to see what can be done for your hamster.
• Less than adequate housing: Many times I have seen hamsters in small and bare cages displaying signs of compulsive pacing and circling. They’re bored and are attempting to compensate for lack of mental stimulation in their environment. One study on rats even suggests the following:
  
  “Repetitive stereotyped behaviours are often performed by both wild and domestic rodents in small laboratory cages. In this study, a behaviour resembling a backwards somersault or backflip is described and quantified in captive roof rats (ship or black rats, Rattus rattus). ... Cage enrichment in the form of a wooden nest box resulted in dramatically lower rates of performance. Increased cage height resulted in delayed development of backflipping, as well as changes in the form of the behaviour. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that the development and expression of backflipping in young roof rats may be triggered by weaning and maintained by a heightened state of arousal in a relatively impoverished environment with limited opportunities for perceptual and locomotor stimulation” (Callard MD, Bursten SN, Price EO 2000. Repetitive backflipping behaviour in captive roof rats (Rattus rattus) and the effect of cage enrichment. Animal Welfare 9, 139-152).
  
  It might be easiest to look into this possibility as a cause, at least while also consulting your vet for other possible causes. Enlarging the cage and providing more for your hamster to actually do, in order to stimulate them physically and mentally.
• Genetic Neurological Disorder: When these traits are caused through some sort of genetic link. They will begin to display the symptoms at a young age, usually around two to three months of age. Some lines of hamsters seem to have these issues, and should not be bred further, nor should their kin, even if the disorder doesn’t seem severe. Some have found that white faced Roborovski dwarf hamsters seem to suffer from this more so than agouti Roborovski dwarf hamsters. In Russian Campbell dwarf hamsters it seems most common in those with the mottled pattern. It is also attributed to be found in hybrid (Russian Campbell x Winter White) hamsters. This does not mean that it is limited to these variations or species at any rate. There is no cure for hamsters that suffer from this when it is caused by genetic issues, however they do not necessarily need to be euthanized in every case. Many can still lead happy and healthy lives.

Treating a Hamster with a Genetic Neurological Disorder

Owners of these hamsters such as Hamster Hideout’s “Hoppinghammy” or “Rhapsody” seem to agree that hamsters that suffer with this are greatly impacted by stress, leading to their behaviours to increase in severity and regularity. It is recommended that these hamsters are not subjected to unneeded stress.

• Instead of doing a full cage cleaning, try to do partial cage cleanings so that their whole cage isn’t disturbed at once. If a full cage cleaning must be done than be sure to leave several handfuls of the old substrate and sprinkle it around their cage so that their home doesn’t smell quite so strange to your hamster.
• Keep the layout of the cage similar or the same, as this will help to reduce the stress of a new environment. While this wouldn’t normally bother a hamster, even the smallest things can cause stress or excitement to a hamster that suffers from these compulsive behaviours.
• On top of reducing stress, a large one level cage is recommended so that the hamster has room to spin (or whatever the particular behaviour might be) without risk of falling or having to climb ramps or tubes.
• A variety of toys and things to do in the cage can help to keep them from becoming bored and to attempt them to divert at least from the frequency of their behaviour.
• The cage should be in a room that is quiet and free from too much excitement, activity or noise.
• If the hamster suffering from these compulsive behaviours is living with other hamsters it is best that they are separated. The behaviour can stress our the other hamsters and cause the affected hamster to be subject to more attacks causing more stress and a worsening of the behaviours.

There is some suggestion that there may be a medical approach to treatment for these behaviours. “missPixy” from Hamster Hideout, has suggested these treatments:

“I don't know if you are interested, but in my research
I found some treatments that are used in birds to treat
stargazing. since so many medications for hamsters use
birds as a basis for dosages, these should be safe for
Ruby, too:

1. The drug Nystatin (safe for guinea pigs)

2. The drug Trimethoprim Sulfa (one drop per day)

On the forum, 'HamsterHideout' a member under the username of 'Luci' began treatment of her star gazing hamster, Mirabelle, with the drug Trimethoprim Sulfa (mentioned in the original article) and within days reported a noticeable difference in Mirabelle, namely walking normally and capable of better balance. Mirabelle has since passed away, though as far as I know, her death is not believed to be caused from the drug. 

3. Vitamin B 12. (one drop in mouth per day, 5 - 6 drops in
8 ounces water)”
This can be obtained from a pharmacy (chemist) should a vet not be available right away.

Before any of these are attempted you should talk with your veterinarian first to discuss treatment options. I have no information on the success of these treatments on hamsters at this time.

Euthanization

Most of these hamsters, so long as they can eat, drink and sleep without too much trouble don’t need to be euthanized. With some effort on the owners part to make their life more comfortable, they can live healthy and happy lives. If the traits are extreme and the quality of your hamster’s life is not what is should be than euthanization should be considered. A lot of ethical points come into this decision and it is up to you as the owner to make the decision for what is best for your hamster.

Further Reading

R&R Hamsters- Health Page
Harvey Hams- Hybrid Dwarf Hamsters
CHA- Breeding Pairings to Avoid
Southern Hamster Club- Roborovski Hamster

Cage Aggression

First let's define what I'm talking about here. When a hamster is aggressive or otherwise 'attacks' only while in their cage or especially in their cage then they are described as "cage aggressive". This stems from what is usually termed as "cage territorialism". The hamster is territorial over their home and so resorts to aggression to defend their space. Cage aggression is sometimes also called "cage rage". Most of these hamsters are quite fine with being handled outside of their cage however. It seems to be most common among Russian Campbell dwarf hamsters, though any species of hamster can fall to this behaviour. It is especially evident when the hamster is kept in an undersized cage. Usually once their cage is upgraded to an adequate size they fall away from this behaviour. Other times it becomes habit and even with a large enough cage they are still cage aggressive.

This behaviour was not spoken about much when I first started keeping hamsters. Since it was a common behaviour in RC dwarfs they were often simply termed as 'evil' instead of trying to figure out why they were 'evil'. I became aware of it when I (and I tell this story a lot) had a RC dwarf in a 10 gallon tank, his name was Dusk. I thought he was evil as he always viciously attacked me when I tried to pick him up from his cage. I never thought to try handling him outside of his cage I assumed his behaviour would be the same. Several months later I finally got a 20 gallon long tank for Dusk. Within an hour of moving in, he let me pick him up and he never bit me again. 

I began to pick up on this same behaviour in other people's hamsters. It started to become clear to myself as well as to many others that we weren't dealing with evil hamsters but a negative behaviour often picked up by hamsters as a result of undersized cages.

So for those people that believe that they have a cage aggressive hamster consider these next few points:

• How big is your cage? If it is too small (I recommend a bare minimum of 360 square inches of floorspace) than perhaps this is the driving force for your hamsters behaviour. This is just one reason to upgrade.
• Is your hamster ok with being handled outside of his or her cage? If not than perhaps your hamster just isn't socialized. If this seems to be the case then go here: Taming. Or it could be a combination of both too.
• Have you upgraded your hamster's cage and this behaviour is still persisting? Sometimes this is the case, it has become ingrained in your hamster as a habit and may never be broken. If this is the case then respect for their space on your part is required. This does not mean that they cannot be handled, but rather that they should only be handled where they are comfortable. That is, outside of their cage. Use a tube, a ladle, a cup or something for them to climb into from their cage and then once they are out of their cage try handling them. Most people seem to have no problem with this, it takes only a few seconds longer and you are respecting their space. Some people do this even if their hamster is not territorial.

The other issue with having a cage territorial hamster is that they (provided they are a dwarf species) often have issues with any cage mates. If you have multiple hamsters it is very important that you have a large enough cage for them. Otherwise you are going to end up needing two cages anyways because fights will ensue. It doesn't always happen right away, but very few pairs or groups can thrive in a small set up without issues arising eventually. In the end even if they don't fight, they don't seem to be very happy either, it's surviving not thriving.