# Bullying dwarf hamster!!



## synesthesiac (May 23, 2010)

Help!

We got two Russian dwarf hamsters last November. We got them young from a large and reputable UK chain pet store; we understand they are brothers. Photo below! Pinky's white and very small; Brain is grey-brown, and has grown to twice the size of Pinky, though you can't tell in the photo! They live together in a hamster cage, and one keeps picking on the other.

*Edit: Having looked, and read up a bit, I wonder if they're not boys but girls! I know hammies are hard to sex.. well, I can't see any kind of male appendages!! Think they may both be girls. Anyway - still need advice!*

Brain usually seems happy enough. He exercises way more than the little one; he's always on his wheel, and he doesn't seem to over-eat. Very easy to handle, a real sweetie, not an agressive bone in his body.

Pinky is okay to handle but a lot more nippy. He nests and burrows a lot more; doesn't exercise so much, but doesn't put on any weight at all - really tiny. But every day I hear squeaking - Pinky gets on top of Brain (who just falls over and lies on his back) and just biffs him about! Despite being twice Pinky's size, Brain doesn't put up a fight at all, just squeaks and waits for it to stop!

He doesn't seem overly traumatised by it, but I worry. Why does one pick on the other, when they seem mostly to get on okay? There's no biting or injuries, but I'm worried that he never stands up for himself (and it's weird that the tiny one is the boss!). Is this okay/normal? I don't want to interfere unless I need to but I want to be sure my hammies are okay... it would be so sad to have to separate them as I know they don't like to live alone.


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## synesthesiac (May 23, 2010)

Can no-one help?? I am worried


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## Flissy (Jul 27, 2009)

I only have one dwarf hamster, but I've heard that its quite normal for them to play fight, as long as theres no blood then I think its ok


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## synesthesiac (May 23, 2010)

Yeah I'm not worried about a bit of fighting... it's the fact that one always picks on the other, and the picked-on one never ever fights back.. it seems kind of weird!


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## Lavenderb (Jan 27, 2009)

I've got 3 dwarf female hammies living together and they have the odd squabble but no injuries or blood.

Its normal for them to have these fall outs. They are just working out who is the boss and making sure the others know it.

The submissive hamster won't fight back because it knows its place i.e. it is the' under dog 'so to speak.

I also keep rats and its the same with them. Once they have established their alpha male rat the others are submissive to him.

Have your hammies got a dish each for food? It's a good idea to have one dish per hammie so the dominant one can't claim the one dish and stop the other from eating.


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## synesthesiac (May 23, 2010)

No, they share a dish.. but actually the grey one (the submissive one) uses it lots so I don't think there's any dish hogging going on!

Thanks


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Keep a close eye on it as dwarfs fights can quickly turn from play to serious, get a spare cage sorted out just in case you need to seperate them in the future. You will need to provide them with two of everything (wheels/houses/bowls and water bottles) then there cant be any reasons to defend an area. Hope it sorts itself out anyway.


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## Sarah+Hammies (Jul 20, 2009)

Keep a very close eye on them they can live happily together but when things go wrong, they go wrong very quickly so try to make sure they have 2 of everything just in case they start to get territorial over things. it might be an idea to keep a spare cage just in case but fingers crossed you wont need to use it. 

I used to have 2 hamsters together (they were the roborovski hammies though) they used to do the dominance thing like your hammies do where one submits, but i woke up one morning to find one of them was in a very bad way and i had to separate them immediately and nurse my little hammie back to health.

They are both in separate cages now and living quite happily.

ETA ok i have just reread the other posts and ive basically just said what tdm has said   just ignore me


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