How to Sex Baby Hamsters
Hamsters are great and they know it. But if you don't separate the boy hamsters from the girl hamsters, you'll soon be knee deep in them. Baby hamsters need to be separated from others of the opposite sex as soon as they are weaned at one month of age. However, tiny baby hamsters do not want to cooperate with showing you their private parts. You need to be able to tell the boys from the girls, but in a way less stressful to the baby hamsters and to you.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Baby hamsters
- Picture or line drawing of male and female hamster genitalia
- Mom hamster
- At least two cages already kitted out for the hamsters
- Habitrail or equivalent clear plastic tube
- Magnifying lens (optional)
- Human helper (optional)
Instructions
-
-
1
When baby hamsters are one month old, get together two cages, water bottles, wheel, food dish and bedding for the girl hamsters and the boy hamsters. Make sure you know which cage is for which sex.
-
2
Gather together the hamsters in question, all of the cages, the Habitrail tube, the magnifying lens (if you have one) and a picture or line drawing showing the difference between how far apart the genitals and anus are in boy hamsters in girl hamsters. In one month old babies, it's this difference that will tell the difference.
-
-
3
Pick up the mother and quickly peek at her to see her spacing.
-
4
Take up first baby and stick in tube. Be sure there is circulation in there. You may have to hold both hands over the ends to keep the baby from escaping.
-
5
Lift the tube up so you can see the baby hamster's privates from beneath. In this way, you can tell whether they are males or females.
-
6
Place sexed baby hamster into appropriate cage.
-
7
Repeat steps 4-6 until all of the babies have been sexed and seperated.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Syrian (Golden) hamsters have to be separated from any other hamster once they become sexually mature. Occasionally siblings can live together longer than that, but don't count on it.
Even after doing all of this, be sure to check weekly or daily to be sure you were right.
Don't try to sex the baby hamsters by holding them in your hands. You may hurt them.
Resources
- Photo Credit hamster image by Vasiliy Koval from Fotolia.com
