Table of Contents Hide
- The normal lifespan of a hamster
- The caring and feeding it receives will influence its lifespan
- Enhance its lifespan by providing it with the right ambiance
- Remain aware of factors that affect its lifespan
- Know the vital facts about your hamster’s life expectancy as it matures
- There are ways to improve its lifespan
- Know all about their type or breed
- Learn about the popular hamster species in terms of shortest and longest
- Keep them stress-free for better longevity
- Take it for regular checkups for safe health
- Practice good hygiene standards
- Avoid disrupting their natural cycles
- Allow it to have a fun time with chew toys
Are you yearning to have a hamster as your pet? Before you have one, ensure you know all important facts. For instance, educate yourself about how long the hamster will live. Having prior know-how of a hamster’s average lifespan is the right move.
The normal lifespan of a hamster
Normally a hamster lives for around 2-3 years. Well, this is the known average hamster life span while some hamsters live longer as well.
Of course, longevity will keep varying depending on several factors. For example, it will all depend on the care it receives from its owner. On account of this, it is of utmost importance you take appropriate responsibility to care for it before you bring one to your home.
The caring and feeding it receives will influence its lifespan
Like any other pet, even a hamster deserves rightful care and attention. You ought to give it a healthy lifestyle to ensure its longevity. A perfect lifestyle is possible only when you make sure it is receiving things like:
- Quality bedding.
- Appropriate fresh water and food.
Likewise, you are required to purchase hamster mix that has an abundance of:
- Protein pellets.
- Corn, and seeds.
Ideally, you ought to supplement its diet with fresh:
- Lettuce.
- Carrots.
- The occasional almond and spinach.
Ensure the hamster has proper access to water all the time. You can do this simply by attaching a bottle to the drinking tube available in the cage. Maintain adequate freshness in the water. You can attain this objective by changing the said water very often preferably every few days.
Create the correct bedding ambiance in the cage. Take some shredded paper so that you can cover the bottom of the cage with it. In this way, the hamster will get the much-needed encouragement to nest and burrow.
Enhance its lifespan by providing it with the right ambiance
Hamsters have a huge amount of energy. They are very active and need to burn this energy all the time. You can offer it some help in this regard. For instance, give it a roomy wire cage having a very strong and solid bottom.
Offer amenities so that it can exercise whenever it feels like. For example, you can keep toys and an exercise wheel inside the cage. Allow it to explore new things like toilet paper tubes and paper towels. It will permit the hamster to have an inexpensive tunnel to explore.
Extra bedding facility is loved by a hamster. Keep a few pieces of tissues inside the cage. They will shred the same and make their extra bedding.
Hamsters love to gnaw. Give them untreated and hardwood blocks. This will serve twin purposes. First, they will get enough to chew on and remain busy. Second, this will aid the teeth to grow.
Opt for a cozy and private sleeping or rest area. For instance, you can choose an overturned box with a tiny door opening.
Remain aware of factors that affect its lifespan
Several factors play an instrumental role in deciding hamster life span. While some of them are in your control, others are not. This will include factors like:
- Species
- Genetics
The factors that you can easily manage include:
- Exercise
- Living environment
- Diet
- Illness
- Quality of care
When it comes to the factors that are not in your control, exercising due diligence before having one is recommended. For instance, you can hardly do anything about its species or genetics once you have brought it into your home.
This is why you cannot do anything if the hamster in question has acquired some genes from its parents. If the genes are related to a shorter lifespan, you will fail to increase its lifespan.
Know the vital facts about your hamster’s life expectancy as it matures
As the hamster matures, its sexuality comes into play. For instance, when it comes to a female hamster, they become sexually mature mostly around 6-8 weeks of age. Of course, there are certain exceptions to this. For example, the Chinese hamsters become sexually mature at 14 weeks of their age.
However, in the case of male hamsters, this time is 8-9 weeks. The best way to determine this is by having a look at their rear ends. As they have descended testes, you can find a pointed outline. Hold it in an upright position to view it for yourself.
Males have a pointed outline due to the descended testes, which you can see in the upright position. Females have a more rounded rear end.
Their levels of activities gradually slow down as they grow older. You can employ a very simple yardstick to know if they have become older. Keep a track of the turns it makes on its wheel. In case there is a drop of around 10 percent in the number of turns they used to make when young, it is a clear indication that they have become aged. Normally, such a thing takes place after the completion of 15 months of the life cycle.
There are ways to improve its lifespan
Every owner of a hamster wants the furry animal to live longer. Fortunately, irrespective of which breed of hamster you opt for, there are ways to enhance the hamster life span.
- Encourage as much as possible to exercise regularly.
- Ensure to feed it with healthy treats and foods. In other words, make efforts to fulfill its nutritional needs.
- Early detection of signs of illness is recommended.
- No matter which environment you subject it to, make sure it is always healthy and clean.
- Exhibit good traits of proper care by giving them suitable playtime, giving proper attention, and feeding them properly.
Know all about their type or breed
Faulty genes at times might not produce outstanding outcomes for you. It is a wise move to learn about their types or breed before procuring one. The popular among them include:
- Chinese Dwarf
- Campbell’s Dwarf
- Syrian hamsters
- Siberian Dwarf
- Roborovski Dwarf
Yes, there are going to be some differences depending on their genes. Nevertheless, overall most of them are the same. You can make your preferences in terms of their sex and coat color.
Learn about the popular hamster species in terms of shortest and longest
- Syrian hamster has a lifespan of 2 to 2.5 years
- Winter White Russian Dwarf hamster has a lifespan of around 1.5 to 2 years
- Roborovski Hamster has a lifespan of around 3 to 3.5 years
- Chinese Hamster has a lifespan of 1.5 to 2 years
- Campbell’s Dwarf Hamster has a lifespan of 2 years·
Keep them stress-free for better longevity
Like humans, even animals get adversely affected due to unwarranted stress. Make sustained efforts to keep it pleasant and light for a good hamster life span. One way to achieve this is to play with them at regular intervals. For instance, you can encourage your kids to spend quality time playing with them.
Take them out of the home surroundings and the cage as time permits. Similarly, keep aside a certain designated time to have fun with them. Hamsters are very active animals, and they love to have loads of fun as well. They are very social in nature and love to spend time with human beings. If ignored for a prolonged period, they instantly feel lonely.
Give it a quiet habitat to minimize its stress levels. Give preference to an area in the home that experiences the least noise or foot traffic. In this regard, the best alternatives are :
- The dining room
- A home office
- Corner of a bedroom
- Another option is to offer them numerous hideout options. The hamsters love to play and hide in. Having numerous hideouts is the best way to reduce their stress. Burrowing in the cage is their favorite pastime. Provide them with as many hideouts as possible.
Take it for regular checkups for safe health
The best approach is to get it checked by a vet as soon as you bring it to your home. Thereafter, keep a proper tab on early signs of ailments such as a wet tail or diarrhea. Whenever they catch up with a cod, provide them with appropriate medicines. Remember- a simple thing like a wet tail can bring adverse health consequences. The quick it gets medical attention, the better!
Practice good hygiene standards
Clean the cage at frequent intervals. With better cleanliness, you can bring down the instances of diseases and infections. Apart from cleaning all surroundings of the cage, offer them an atmosphere that is conducive for growth and a better hamster life span.
Avoid disrupting their natural cycles
Every animal has its unique natural cycles. This could pertain to activities like sleeping or reproduction. Avoid disrupting these cycles. Failure to do so may make your hamster get old very soon. They are most active during the night and at dawn or dusk. Make sure they are not bothered unnecessarily during such times.
Allow it to have a fun time with chew toys
Provide sufficient chew toys in its cage. In absence of these toys, it might start chewing the enclosure or cage. You can easily find these toys in pet stores. Go for the ones especially meant for hamsters.
