Your Complete Syrian Hamster Care Guide: Food, Habitat & Health

Typical Syrian hamster appearance and behavior

Syrian hamsters were originally called golden hamsters because they had short, reddish-gold fur. Today, Syrian hamsters come with coats in a variety of colors and lengths and are typically divided into short-haired and teddy bear categories. They have poor eyesight but an exceptional sense of smell.

General handling & care tips

Behavior

• Hamsters are typically nocturnal, which means they're more active at night, but they can adjust to your schedule so they're more awake during the day
• With gentle daily handling, hamsters bond to their pet parents and can be cuddly companions
• Never squeeze a hamster’s body when you are holding them, as you may inflict injury, and hold hamsters over soft surfaces in case they jump so they don’t get injured if they fall
• Hamsters may run in their wheels at night, so they might not be the best pet for light sleepers
• They love to chew and should be provided with safe wooden toys, mineral blocks or other chewable items to gnaw on to keep their continuously growing incisor teeth worn down
• Their incisor teeth naturally become yellow as they age due to deposits of iron pigments
• When startled (especially if they are sleeping), they may bite
• They like to burrow and hide food
• If housed in a cool area that has limited food available, they will hibernate

Appearance

• Hamsters have large, muscular outpouchings called cheek pouches Inside their mouth on both sides of their face. They store food, bedding and other small objects in these pouches, which can become so filled that the cheek pouch swelling stretches from the sides of their face all the way back to their shoulder
• Their scent glands, located bilaterally on their flanks (hips), are flat and often produce a greasy to waxy yellow secretion that males may use for territorial marking; females also have scent glands, but they are less prominent, and the secretions are associated with the estrous cycle
• Their urine normally looks cloudy
• Hamsters can be trained to use a litter box, which can help keep their habitat cleaner
• Female hamsters normally pass a thick, creamy, white discharge after they ovulate

Characteristics

Hamster supplies

• Appropriately sized habitat
• High-quality hamster food
• Treats
• Bedding
• Nesting fluff
• Food bowl/water bottle
• Exercise wheel
• Exercise ball
• Hideaway place
• Toys
• Wood chews
• Mineral chews
• Chew tubes
• Dust and dust bath
• Small animal playpen

Habitat

Habitat size

Provide the largest habitat possible so your hamster can hide, burrow, exercise and play. Metal, wire-based habitats have better ventilation, but their bars be narrow enough to prevent escape. Glass or plastic habitats may be used but are harder to keep properly ventilated; bedding in tanks may require more frequent changing to prevent an ammonia smell accumulating from droppings. All habitats should have a securely attached lid to prevent escape. At minimum, your habitat should be 24” L x 14” W x 15” H. Habitats should be placed off the floor in a place where they can’t tip or fall over and away from potentially predatory or overly inquisitive pets, such as cats and dogs.

Building your hamster's habitat

Hamsters acclimate well to average household temperatures, not to exceed 80°F; be cautious of extreme temperature changes. The habitat should never be in direct sunlight or in a drafty area.

• Bedding: Use 1–2” of high-quality, commercially available, paper-based bedding or crumpled paper. Paper-based bedding is preferred over wood shavings of any kind; it is digestible (in case your hamster eats it) and produces less dust, so it’s less prone to irritate their respiratory tract. Wood shavings can cause gastrointestinal (GI) tract obstruction if ingested. Nesting material provides additional enrichment, allowing hamsters to bury themselves and build nests
• Décor:
  • Many hamsters enjoy a hiding place within their habitats. Commercially available wood and hay-based habitats are available for them to hide in and chew on; hard plastic hideaways are easy to disinfect but should be removed if hamsters chew on them to prevent ingestion of plastic pieces
  • Provide an appropriately sized running wheel for exercise; ensure the wheel has a smooth running surface to prevent hamsters from catching and injuring their toes and feet
  • Hamsters appreciate a variety of toys and tubes to help keep them mentally and physically stimulated
• Additional accessories:
  • An exercise ball and small animal playpen provide additional opportunities for your pet to get the exercise they need

Cleaning your pet’s habitat

• Spot clean the habitat of soiled bedding and discarded food daily
• At least once a week, thoroughly clean and disinfect the habitat and its contents with a small animal habitat cleaner or 3% bleach solution, emptying and replacing all bedding; rinse off any cleaner or bleach residue completely, allow the habitat and décor to dry fully and return your hamster to their habitat.

What do hamsters eat?

A well-balanced hamster diet consists of:

• High-quality hamster lab blocks or other commercially available, nutritionally complete pelleted food for hamsters and limited amounts of grains, vegetables, fruits, treats and Timothy or other grass hay
• Clean, fresh water in a water bottle, changed daily; water bottles should be checked regularly to ensure water flow is patent

Things to remember when feeding your hamster:

• Fresh food and water should always be available
• Do not feed chocolate, caffeine, or alcohol, as these are toxic to hamsters and can cause illness or death; avoid salty, sugary and fatty treats
• Offer food in the evenings, as hamsters are generally more active at night; feed once daily
• Limited amounts of grains, vegetables, fruits, treats and hay can be given daily but should not exceed 10% of their total diet
• Vegetables and fruits not eaten within 10 hours should be discarded

Hamster care

• Hamsters stay clean and rarely need baths but can be spot cleaned with a damp washcloth or unscented baby wipes, if needed. Some hamsters enjoy a weekly dust bath to help keep their fur clean, dry, and less oily; provide a shallow dish of commercially available rodent dust for hamsters to roll around in
• Consult with a veterinarian if a hamster's teeth seem too long; they may need to be trimmed

Where to buy

Hamsters are available for purchase at your local Petco location. Please call ahead to check availability.

Habitat mates

House adult hamsters separately. Different types of small animals should not be housed together.

Health

Signs of a healthy hamster

• Active, alert and sociable
• Eats, drinks, and passes droppings regularly
• Healthy fur without patches of hair loss
• Clear eyes and nose
• Breathing is unlabored
• Walks normally
• Enamel covering hamsters’ front teeth is normally yellow and does not need to be cleaned off

Red flags

• Weight loss
• Abnormal hair loss
• Diarrhea, dirty bottom or lack of stool
• Labored breathing or open-mouthed breathing
• Lethargy
• Eye or nasal discharge
• Skin lesions, bumps or scabs
• Itchy skin
• Overgrown teeth
• Decreased appetite
• Coughing, sneezing or wheezing
• Swollen cheek pouches that don’t empty in a few hours
• Bloody droppings

Common hamster health issues

Notes and resources

Ask a Pet Care Center associate about Petco's selection of products available for the care and happiness of your new pet. All products carry a 100% money-back guarantee.

Because all small animals are potential carriers of infectious diseases, such as lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus, bacteria that causes rat bite fever and Salmonella bacteria, always wash your hands before and after handling your small animal or habitat contents to help prevent the potential spread of disease.

Pregnant women, children under the age of 5, senior citizens and people with weakened immune systems should contact their physicians before purchasing or caring for small animals and should consider having a pet other than a hamster.

Go to the Centers for Disease Control at cdc.gov/healthypets for more information about small animals and disease.

The information on this care sheet is not a substitute for veterinary care. If you need additional information, please contact your veterinarian as appropriate.