Chinese dwarf hamster
Chinese dwarf hamster
The Chinese dwarf hamster (Cricetulus griseus), unlike the other domesticated dwarf hamsters, is a long-tailed dwarf hamster. The Chinese naturally come from northern China. There the hamsters live in very diverse places from barren plains to densely wooded areas.
Name Dutch: Chinese dwarf hamster
Scientific name: Cricetulus griseus
Origin: Northern China and Mongolia
Age: 2,5 years
Height: 9-13cm
Wearing time: 20-22 days
Birth: viviparous
Nest Size: approx. 5-7 boy
Activity: Twilight and Night Active
Legislation: Bench?
Stay: Terrarium, Aquarium (with lid) or Rodent Cage
Minimum size: 80x50x50cm
Food: The diet of the Chinese dwarf hamster consists of various seeds, herbs, grasses, grains and insects.
The appearance of the Chinese dwarf hamster
The Chinese dwarf hamster is longer, slimmer and somewhat more elongated than that of the chubby, short-tailed dwarf hamsters. It grows to about 10-13 cm and has a tail that is about 2-2,5 cm long. The adult weight is on average 45 grams.
The coat is fine, soft and lies smooth back. The wild color is the original color of the Chinese dwarf hamster. The back is brown-grey with dark tips and a dark dorsal stripe along the entire length. The belly color is gray white.
Other colors common to the Chinese are white with black eyes and spotted.
The behavior of the Chinese dwarf hamster
Chinese dwarf hamsters are mainly active at dusk, but also at night. This means that the animals sleep during the day and therefore do not show themselves much. In addition to being a good digger, the Chinese dwarf hamster is, in contrast to the other dwarf hamsters, also an excellent climber and likes to do this. With the tail that he has he keeps his balance while climbing and clambering. Chinese are solitary dwarf hamsters. Female Chinese dwarf hamsters in particular are very territorial and intolerant of conspecifics and will certainly not shy away from a confrontation with another hamster. It is therefore never advisable to keep the Chinese dwarf hamster together with a congener. Although the Chinese dwarf hamster is not tolerant of conspecifics, it is certainly tolerant of humans. If the Chinese is approached calmly, he will almost never bite. Even older hamsters are quite easy to tame.
Housing
As mentioned earlier, Chinese dwarf hamsters are both very good diggers and good climbers. In addition to a good layer of ground cover, they also want to go up in height. It is advisable to keep them in a cage with a deep (glass) bottom, but a terrarium or aquarium (with lid) and a lot of branches and climbing material is also very suitable!
The minimum size for the accommodation of one Chinese person is 80x50x50cm, bigger is always better.
Hamsters keep their fur clean and healthy by taking regular sand baths. Therefore, place a container with rodent sand in the enclosure, so that the hamster can roll nicely in it.
Did you know that a hamster travels miles in the evening and at night in its search for food? To be able to imitate this behavior in the hamster house, a running wheel should certainly not be missing!
The minimum diameter for a Chinese dwarf hamster is 28cm.
What does the Chinese dwarf hamster eat
Chinese dwarf hamsters eat about 10% of their body weight per day, which equates to about 4 to 7 grams of food per hamster.
Chinese dwarf hamsters have a very varied nutritional needs. It consists of various seeds, herbs, grasses, grains and insects. The proportion of animal food is about 30%, small seeds about 50% and plant parts about 20%.
Fruit is not very suitable for the Chinese because it does not really occur in their natural diet and their digestive system cannot absorb the sugars that fruit contain very well.
Male or Female?
The difference between female and male Chinese dwarf hamsters is easy to recognize. A male Chinese dwarf hamster can be easily recognized by the balls that are about a third of his body length. He is therefore not nicely rounded like the female but his body ends in a point.
A female Chinese dwarf hamster has a nicely rounded body.
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