# Possible Hamster purchase



## janem_g (Sep 29, 2010)

Hi,

My girls are very keen for a hamster but I really don't know that much about them. My only real experience is when my sister kept them aeons ago. They are old enough and gentle enough. We have cats and fish, have had guiinea pigs and rabbits. Can I have advice on housing and where to purchase them from and also the different types ref handleability and friendliness. 

Thank you

Jane


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

I've always had Syrian hamsters which are the largest of hamsters and I'd say easier to handle. The dwarfs are pretty fast and small.
Don't get from any pet shops as they are not well bred meaning they could have all sorts of health issues and also they won't be hand tame! 

Go to a reputable breeder. Usually if you type in hamster breeders in your area it sometimes comes up but there is also a very good hamster forum called hamster central so if you go in there and seek out a hamster breeder you should get a few responses.

As for cages you need to get a minium of 80cm long x 50cm depth. Syrians need lots of floor space and very often people make a huge mistake of buying them rotastack cages,habitrail cages and rydon cages which are all no good for syrians! Or dwarfs really. 
I have the hamster heaven cage made by savic for my girl. 
You will also need a large wheel the size being between 8 inches and 11 inches if u only get a small size they will curve there backs causing injury.

It's very good to see someone like yourself doing research before going out and getting a hamster.


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

Hey

I've been keeping hamsters for 20 years, I've had 50 odd of them, of all the different types. My advice for a hamster for children would be a Syrian, as they are larger, slower and generally more docile than the dwarfs. Roborovski's are incredibly fast and more for watching than handling, Russians can be nippy little buggers (and it can _really_ hurt when they do nip!), which kids could find offputting, and Chinese are too fragile for heavyish handling. If you really want a dwarf I would go for a Winter White, as they are generally more like Syrians temperament wise. You would have to look for a breeder for WW though as its difficult to find purebred ones. I am also going to say, I live nowhere near any breeders so every single one of my hamsters have come from pet stores and I've never had a problem with any of them. Every one was healthy, well lived, and tamed up nicely. My current Syrian, Chinese and Dwarf are all from [email protected], none bite/nip, they are lovely and tame, love being held and come to the front of the cage as soon as they know I'm near. In my experience with them it's how you keep them not where they come from that makes them tame. With regular, gentle handling, there is no reason a pet store hamster won't make as good a pet as a breeder one.


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

I would never support pets at home. I don't condone how they breed there small animals. They are bred in rodent farms,mothers have litters one after the other without a rest and then when they become no good are gotten rid of!
Not a care goes into the health of these animals the mother could suffer with tumours etc but yet they still breed from them.

If you want a healthy pet and one that is from a good breeder where you know the background of the mum and dad and know that there's no history of tumours etc and you don't need to spend time taming them up because there already tame and cuddly then go to a reputable breeder.


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

And I'd just like to show this to the person who is enquiring about getting a hamster incase you haven't seen this yet. It's not just rats born this way but other small pets too.
Why not use Pet Shops?


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## Guest (Oct 24, 2012)

Wobbles said:


> Hey
> 
> I've been keeping hamsters for 20 years, I've had 50 odd of them, of all the different types. My advice for a hamster for children would be a Syrian, as they are larger, slower and generally more docile than the dwarfs. Roborovski's are incredibly fast and more for watching than handling, Russians can be nippy little buggers (and it can _really_ hurt when they do nip!), which kids could find offputting, and Chinese are too fragile for heavyish handling. If you really want a dwarf I would go for a Winter White, as they are generally more like Syrians temperament wise. You would have to look for a breeder for WW though as its difficult to find purebred ones. I am also going to say, I live nowhere near any breeders so every single one of my hamsters have come from pet stores and I've never had a problem with any of them. Every one was healthy, well lived, and tamed up nicely. My current Syrian, Chinese and Dwarf are all from [email protected], none bite/nip, they are lovely and tame, love being held and come to the front of the cage as soon as they know I'm near. In my experience with them it's how you keep them not where they come from that makes them tame. With regular, gentle handling, there is no reason a pet store hamster won't make as good a pet as a breeder one.


I thought you were only 18-19?
And I have said this before but it keeps going over your head, just because you haven't had problems with animals bought from petshops does NOT negate the fact they come from BREEDING MILLS.....

To the OP, Blade seems to have covered it all so I won't repeat


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## Maltey (Nov 29, 2011)

Blade's main point about petshops is their health. Yes with care and attention they can be just as tame but that won't change their bad genetics which makes them more prone to health issues.

Breeders are great, another option is rescues. I'm not side where you are OP but I know there's a hamster needing rehoming on the adoption board


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

B3rnie said:


> I thought you were only 18-19?
> And I have said this before but it keeps going over your head, just because you haven't had problems with animals bought from petshops does NOT negate the fact they come from BREEDING MILLS.....
> 
> To the OP, Blade seems to have covered it all so I won't repeat


Fair enough if you want to get a breeder hamster and that's your choice, I was just pointing out you _can_ get nice tame hamsters from petstores, their not all wildly unhandleable. And I'm a bit more than 18


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## Guest (Oct 24, 2012)

Wobbles said:


> Fair enough if you want to get a breeder hamster and that's your choice, I was just pointing out you _can_ get nice tame hamsters from petstores, their not all wildly unhandleable. And I'm a bit more than 18


That really isn't the point as several people have tried pointing out to you 

Sorry for getting your age wrong, for some reason I thought you were still young. My mistake..


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## MrRustyRead (Mar 14, 2011)

B3rnie said:


> That really isn't the point as several people have tried pointing out to you
> 
> Sorry for getting your age wrong, for some reason I thought you were still young. My mistake..


i think i remember her actually saying she was 18..


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

B3rnie said:


> That really isn't the point as several people have tried pointing out to you
> 
> Sorry for getting your age wrong, for some reason I thought you were still young. My mistake..


cant think why you would of thunk that, youuu numpty

i agree, pet stores are the worst place possiable to get ANY animal from, just because you have been lucky and not noticed anything genetically wrong with your animals doesnt mean there wasnt.
wobbles, how old have your pet store hamsters lived?
have you ever had one reach 3 and a half? 4? 5? what about 5 and a half? how many of your "50 odd" hamsters died before their second birthday?
how many got ill and died as a result? how many had tumours?

animals from breeders live much longer and tend to be more resiliant, less prone to picking up small bugs which can turn fatal with thier lesser immune systems


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## we love bsh's (Mar 28, 2011)

B3rnie said:


> That really isn't the point as several people have tried pointing out to you
> 
> Sorry for getting your age wrong, for some reason I thought you were still young. My mistake..


So did i b3rnie from previous threads.Tried to check back through past post but seems they are deleted


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## Guest (Oct 24, 2012)

we love bsh's said:


> So did i b3rnie from previous threads.Tried to check back through past post but seems they are deleted


And there was me starting to think I was going crazy :sneaky2:


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## we love bsh's (Mar 28, 2011)

Well i for one didnt forget some of those old threads plenty got locked


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

I don't want my old threads dragging back up, I've admitted I've made mistakes before, and I don't want any more trouble on here. Took me a while to pluck up the courage to post here again. Even people who commit actual crimes get to move on. Past mistakes are just that- the past.

Lil Miss, none of my hamsters have had horrible illnesses, most have lived to 2-3 (Syrians longer than dwarfs). Only one or two actually died of illness and they were fairly old. A couple or so got a tumor/ lump when they were older. Only one died young ( 8 months) and it was due to a pure accident ( a fiddlesticks bridge fell on her). I have certainly never experienced _any_ of the problems that other people say they've had.


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## MrRustyRead (Mar 14, 2011)

some things you have done are unforgivable so no they shall not be forgotten.


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## polishrose (Oct 26, 2011)

I'd never had problems as such but now I have rats who are not very well, and now I know more about hamsters and small animals I have realised that they have all died young. None ever made it to 3. The ones I had when I was a child lived longer than that, bred in the animal room at school. I will never buy an animal from a pet shop again :-(


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

MrRustyRead said:


> some things you have done are unforgivable so no they shall not be forgotten.


Er as far as I know I haven't murdered anyone I haven't done anything criminal either as far as I'm aware. I hope your not a judge if you think the few errors I made are "unforgivable", god knows what you'd think of proper criminals.


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## MrRustyRead (Mar 14, 2011)

Wobbles said:


> Er as far as I know I haven't murdered anyone I haven't done anything criminal either as far as I'm aware. I hope your not a judge if you think the few errors I made are "unforgivable", god knows what you'd think of proper criminals.


never said you have committed a crime did i, just because it isnt deemed a crime doesnt make it unforgivable.


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## HazelandDan (Apr 22, 2012)

Back on topic....



janem_g said:


> Hi,
> 
> My girls are very keen for a hamster but I really don't know that much about them. My only real experience is when my sister kept them aeons ago. They are old enough and gentle enough. We have cats and fish, have had guiinea pigs and rabbits. Can I have advice on housing and where to purchase them from and also the different types ref handleability and friendliness.
> 
> ...


Hey, It's great that you're doing research before getting your hammy, and although a good 'google' can get you a lot of information, I've found the up to date info you can get from real pet owners on forums is much better. As people have said for cages, the bigger the better. I believe the minimum for a syrian hamster is 360 square inches. Dwarfs need a lot of space too... not sure on the exact dimensions. I have an IKEA detolf glass cabinet (for my gerbils), that I've turned on its back... it's huge, but definitely the biggest and best tank you'll get for your money!!! 160 x 45 cm floor.

I recommend just having a good riffle through the topics on this forum and maybe hamster specific forums which I don't think I'm supposed to advocate (as they're a rival website) but have already been mentioned previously in this thread.

Enjoy your hamster search... i would recommend rescues/breeders.. there are so many unwanted animals/unexpected litters out there it does seem a shame to encourage mass breeding farms, when there is a surplus of unwanted animals.

Good luck!


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

MrRustyRead said:


> never said you have committed a crime did i, just because it isnt deemed a crime doesnt make it unforgivable.


No fair play you didn't, you said it was 'unforgivable'. But if someone's made a mistake they've ballsed up in error, not deliberately set out to cause a problem.


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## MrRustyRead (Mar 14, 2011)

Wobbles said:


> No fair play you didn't, you said it was 'unforgivable'. But if someone's made a mistake they've ballsed up in error, not deliberately set out to cause a problem.


yes but that still doesnt make it forgivable even if it was a mistake.


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## elmthesofties (Aug 8, 2011)

Wobbles said:


> Fair enough if you want to get a breeder hamster and that's your choice, I was just pointing out you _can_ get nice tame hamsters from petstores, their not all wildly unhandleable. And I'm a bit more than 18


Yes, it's your choice if you want to get an animal from a pet store, but why would you want to? You're almost certainly supporting a rodent farm and definitely supporting a bad breeder, they actually tend to charge MORE money and will probably need you to pay more money throughout their lives on vet bills, you won't be able to contact the breeder for advise, and if there are children involved (the OP seems to imply that) then you don't want to be bringing an untame animal into the family. Yes, it could be tamed, but an inexperienced owner may find it challenging and an untame hamster is obviously far more likely to bite.

And I'm sorry, Wobbles, but while we've all made mistakes, you don't seem to be very sorry for yours.


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

Wobbles said:


> I don't want my old threads dragging back up, I've admitted I've made mistakes before, and I don't want any more trouble on here. Took me a while to pluck up the courage to post here again.


welcome to the internet, this will happen to every one who ever posts anything online regardless of whom they are

as for your hamsters, i stand by what i said, unless you have had a necropsy done on them, you dont know what ultimately killed them, also i doubt a fiddlestick falling on a hamster would kill it, they are bouncy resiliant things, hamsters that is, not fiddlesticks. there was probably more going on that you didnt notice, and unless you saw the fiddlesticks fall you cant say for certain he didnt just crawl under it to die, or the fall of the fiddlesticks could have dislodged an internal tumor or something similar causing major internal hemoraging and death
you also admit you lost some to tumours, there for they werent healthy


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

Lil Miss said:


> welcome to the internet, this will happen to every one who ever posts anything online regardless of whom they are
> 
> as for your hamsters, i stand by what i said, unless you have had a necropsy done on them, you dont know what ultimately killed them, also i doubt a fiddlestick falling on a hamster would kill it, they are bouncy resiliant things, hamsters that is, not fiddlesticks. there was probably more going on that you didnt notice, and unless you saw the fiddlesticks fall you cant say for certain he didnt just crawl under it to die, or the fall of the fiddlesticks could have dislodged an internal tumor or something similar causing major internal hemoraging and death
> you also admit you lost some to tumours, there for they werent healthy


Honestly Lil Miss, I unfortunatly know one thousand percent the fiddlesticks killed my hamster, because I saw it happen. And I will never ever forget it. She was a tiny delicate little Chinese, and I had just moved her into a new tank and spent the evening decorating it out. I had fixed the fiddlestick as a bridge/ramp thing for her to climb up from the shelf, and fixed it securely, or so I thought. I put her in the tank and was watching her explore, when she climbed up against this bridge, it dislodged and fell before I could do anything, and knocked her clean on the head. Worse, it knocked her completely off the shelf and she twisted as she fell. She stopped moving instantly, her legs wouldn't work, I took her in the house, trying in vain to keep her with me long enough to get a vet, but she died minutes later in my hand. She was totally fine before that, so I am fairly sure the fiddlestick damaged her brain or broke something. I wish I had never put the stupid thing in the tank, I blame myself wholeheartedly for what happened, and I always will. Admittedly I don't know what exactly caused the death of my others (other than old age), but this particular one I do as I unfortunately got a front row seat.

Elmthesofties - I do regret my mistakes, and I am sorry for them, but I can't do anything about them any more. Life moves on. I certainly don't think any of them were bad enough to deserve being haunted by them forever, but I did try to right them.


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## Tomskrat (Aug 11, 2011)

Ditto looking for breeder, it just means that your much more likely to get tame, well handled hamsters . Good info so far on cages and care also echo what some others have said with Syrians being a good choice, dwarfs are also lovely but are small and can be quick. Some lovely fair priced cages online at the mo on zooplus, and some amazing hamster food available on the ratrations website, research diets carefully as not all commercially sold diets are suitable.

Sorry Jane for the thread wondering off topic.


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

I know this is an old thread but I can't say I'm surprised the op never replied kudging by some of the posts. I've been trawling old threads for information and came across this one. Another thing I would say also is its all very well going on about pet shops being a bad place to purchase hamsters but what if there are no breeders in your area like me, I've done lots of research on other forums re breeders in my area and there are none so what to do in that situation ?


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## Lopside (Mar 20, 2012)

There must be some breeders or else where do the pet shops get them from? You can use a pet courier I suppose if you found a particular breeder you liked. I have had four hamsters (Syrian) and one wuss from pets at home adoption centre and the other three from the RSPCA. I've just googled hamster breeders in kent and found one in boreham wood and one in Cambridge. Are they anywhere near you?
And with regards to the bickering on the thread, well one of the members is now banned so that speaks for itself.


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## StormyThai (Sep 11, 2013)

Bellaboo1 said:


> I know this is an old thread but I can't say I'm surprised the op never replied kudging by some of the posts. I've been trawling old threads for information and came across this one. Another thing I would say also is its all very well going on about pet shops being a bad place to purchase hamsters but what if there are no breeders in your area like me, I've done lots of research on other forums re breeders in my area and there are none so what to do in that situation ?


There are plenty of breeders in kent, you are also near a few rescues.


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## Colette (Jan 2, 2010)

If you don't want to support the unethical breeding and sale of animals via pet shops there are several other options. Many rescues have hamsters for adoption, eg wood green, plus the smaller more specific rescues. There are also plenty that come up on the free ads (preloved, gumtree etc) where people have got bored of them or decided a pet is too much trouble. Of course a good breeder is an option if you take the time to find one.

As a last resort, if you insist on going to pets at home you can limit the damage by finding a pet in the adoption centre, but I would suggest buying all the equipment etc elsewhere.


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

StormyThai said:


> There are plenty of breeders in kent, you are also near a few rescues.


Really ? Where are you looking then ? Please tell because I haven't found any ! Looked on preloved etc


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

Lopside said:


> There must be some breeders or else where do the pet shops get them from? You can use a pet courier I suppose if you found a particular breeder you liked. I have had four hamsters (Syrian) and one wuss from pets at home adoption centre and the other three from the RSPCA. I've just googled hamster breeders in kent and found one in boreham wood and one in Cambridge. Are they anywhere near you?
> And with regards to the bickering on the thread, well one of the members is now banned so that speaks for itself.


Cambridge is Essex suffolk way and borehamwood is herts. Ive been a member on here for a while so someone being banned to me doesn't necessarily speak for itself imo ! There are members on here that should have been banned but are still here so that means nothing


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

StormyThai said:


> There are plenty of breeders in kent, you are also near a few rescues.


I've found rescues that's not the problem


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

Colette said:


> If you don't want to support the unethical breeding and sale of animals via pet shops there are several other options. Many rescues have hamsters for adoption, eg wood green, plus the smaller more specific rescues. There are also plenty that come up on the free ads (preloved, gumtree etc) where people have got bored of them or decided a pet is too much trouble. Of course a good breeder is an option if you take the time to find one.
> 
> As a last resort, if you insist on going to pets at home you can limit the damage by finding a pet in the adoption centre, but I would suggest buying all the equipment etc elsewhere.


I already have cages etc I was interested in WW dwarves which I've read can really only be guaranteed through a breeder, pet shops etc they are more than likely hybrids apparently. Actually I have been researching for a while so I have looked into breeders but as I said I can find none, only one in sittingbourne whose website I found but its old and not updated so maybe not breeding anymore. I have got a syrian from a local pet shop I was thinking I could ask where their breeder is, its a small family run shop so can't see them buying from rodent farms. No I would prefer not to buy from PaH


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## Lopside (Mar 20, 2012)

Well I'm from up north so past Watford is foreign to me. If it's a particular type you are afte the. I think you would be better finding a breeder that can provide you with the animal you are after then arrange for a courier to transport it to you ?


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

Lopside said:


> Well I'm from up north so past Watford is foreign to me. If it's a particular type you are afte the. I think you would be better finding a breeder that can provide you with the animal you are after then arrange for a courier to transport it to you ?


Thanks courier is an option. I have messaged the sittingbourne breeder so I will see what they say


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## StormyThai (Sep 11, 2013)

Bellaboo1 said:


> I've found rescues that's not the problem


Well then, you have no need to fund pet shops then do you 
Now if you wish to purchase from a pet shop then that is your choice, but there is always other options.

Even if there was nothing neasr you we have the option of animal couriers these days 

As for where I am finding the breeders in Kent, well Google is your friend  I can't link as I am not on my desktop but they are about, the NHC (national hamster club) would be a good place to start.


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

StormyThai said:


> Well then, you have no need to fund pet shops then do you
> Now if you wish to purchase from a pet shop then that is your choice, but there is always other options.
> 
> Even if there was nothing neasr you we have the option of animal couriers these days
> ...


As previously posted I am looking for a WW have looked at a few rescues with syrians. I have googled and done both southern hamster club and the national one :wink5:


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## MerlinsMum (Aug 2, 2009)

blade100 said:


> Go to a reputable breeder. Usually if you type in hamster breeders in your area it sometimes comes up but there is also a very good hamster forum called hamster central so if you go in there and seek out a hamster breeder you should get a few responses.


I second this - I used to breed and show hamsters. All my hammies came from well-known breeders and they were, without exception, of wonderful calm temperament, great personality and also bigger than pet-store hamsters (making them easier to handle for young children).

I had one or two pet shop hamsters as well, but they simply did not have the easy-going friendly natures of the show type.


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## StormyThai (Sep 11, 2013)

Bellaboo1 said:


> As previously posted I am looking for a WW have looked at a few rescues with syrians. I have googled and done both southern hamster club and the national one :wink5:


You'd be hard pressed to find a true WW in a pet shop either, hybrid, yes, plenty of those about.


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

StormyThai said:


> You'd be hard pressed to find a true WW in a pet shop either, hybrid, yes, plenty of those about.


Yes I know that's why I'm looking for a breeder !


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

MerlinsMum said:


> I second this - I used to breed and show hamsters. All my hammies came from well-known breeders and they were, without exception, of wonderful calm temperament, great personality and also bigger than pet-store hamsters (making them easier to handle for young children).
> 
> I had one or two pet shop hamsters as well, but they simply did not have the easy-going friendly natures of the show type.


Thanks yes I do go on Hanster Central and a few other foruns doesn't seem to be many breeders this way, lots in the midlands and up north I noticed


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

what about traveling to hamster shows, im sure there are 1 or 2 kent way, shows tend to have sales tables


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

Lil Miss said:


> what about traveling to hamster shows, im sure there are 1 or 2 kent way, shows tend to have sales tables


Only show I can find that's on end of jan I think is in bradford but I will keep looking


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## Lopside (Mar 20, 2012)

I would have thought this would be an excellent place to start;

About the Small Animal Show - Burgess Premier Small Animal Show

You could meet and chat to people and they could probably point you in the right direction to your nearest breeder. 
Except for some reason I thought this was LONDON! what is the name of the small animal show they have in London? My friend shows her rabbits there!

If you look at the hamster shows for 2013 are any of those near you? If so it would be worth getting in touch with the club secretary and seeing if they are to be repeated this year. http://www.hamsters-uk.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=87&Itemid=77


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## StormyThai (Sep 11, 2013)

Bellaboo1 said:


> I know this is an old thread but I can't say I'm surprised the op never replied kudging by some of the posts. I've been trawling old threads for information and came across this one. *Another thing I would say also is its all very well going on about pet shops being a bad place to purchase hamsters but what if there are no breeders in your area like me*, I've done lots of research on other forums re breeders in my area and there are none so what to do in that situation ?





Bellaboo1 said:


> Yes I know that's why I'm looking for a breeder !


My posts were in response to the bit I have bolded, where someone purchases a hamster is up to them but I will always inform people of what goes on to "make" these hamsters, and I will always inform people that there is no need to buy from a pet shop.

I am rescue orientated, yet I would still prefer to see people source a good, ethical breeder over lining the pockets of rodent mills.


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## Bellaboo1 (Aug 10, 2011)

StormyThai said:


> My posts were in response to the bit I have bolded, where someone purchases a hamster is up to them but I will always inform people of what goes on to "make" these hamsters, and I will always inform people that there is no need to buy from a pet shop.
> 
> I am rescue orientated, yet I would still prefer to see people source a good, ethical breeder over lining the pockets of rodent mills.


I totally understand and respect your opinion and agree wholeheartedly, I will endeavour to buy a hamster from a breeder, I'm in no hurry so will wait until I find one or maybe a rescue baby. I feel the same about all animals amd I am of the same opinion as yourself, unfortunately I don't think rodent farms or puppy mills etc will ever be eradicated when there are people who will buy from them but at least if you take the time to buy from an ethical breeder its one less I suppose. If only more people would think about this before buying any animal things may change.


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## Snuggles uk (Jan 1, 2014)

Hiya Bellaboo, i am also looking for a breeder and have been looking online for a few days.
Have you had any luck?
Im waiting to hear from the National Hamster Council to see if they can help.
Also waiting on a reply from a breeder in Cambridgeshire.


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## Soo (Jun 19, 2013)

London Pet Show 2013 - Dates announced for Earls Court 2014

This might be worth a visit. We will be there with the NFRS (National Fancy Rat Society) as we have done for the last 3 years, it is a brilliant weekend and a good place to find information and contacts for lots of different species.


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## Snuggles uk (Jan 1, 2014)

Oh thank you, that looks like a good trip out!

I might come along to see if there are any APD keepers about.

I have 2 Syrians from Norwood hamstars now (they are wonderful! )


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