The idea of having a black bear hamster as your own pet seems exciting, for both children and adults alike.  However, every aspiring pet owner needs to try and learn more about this specie since your knowledge about them will increase your ability to properly care for them, understand their behavior, and foster a comfortable living situation depending on their needs.

 Basic Black Bear Hamster Info

 Before you decide to buy a hamster, it is important to learn about basic facts about its origin and specific qualities to make it easy to care for them. They belong to one of three Syrian hamsters that are naturally equipped with long furs for a fluffy appearance. As compared to the other breeds, they are highly favored as pet due to their unusual coat that makes them really cuddly to carry around and pet. In addition, they are quite tame despite being a large and fancy breed, thus making it easy to socialize.

 Black bear or angora hamsters originate in Middle East wherein they are often utilized for research studies. Shortly after 1930s, they were introduced in the United States and underwent selective breeding process. Hence, you can now find up to 50 unique varieties of the Syrian hamsters in the market, with each one possessing distinct length and color of coat.

 The average size of an adult black bear hamster averages around 4 to 5 inches. Meanwhile, the natural color of the coat is brown but you can now find hamsters with either dark or lighter tones of coat. You can also find dark markings starting from their jaw towards the ear. Typical maturity rate for these hamsters take place about 6 weeks and the average black bear hamster life span is between 2 to 3 years. You can therefore maximize that life span with proper care and treatment, which you can learn more of later on.

 Characteristics of This Pet

 Black bear hamsters are nocturnal, which means that they are awake at night while they spend the entire day sleeping. Thus, most pet owners like having to keep their pet inside their home to keep them safe while nobody else can look after them during night. Make sure you buy the right hamster bin cage to lessen the noise they create when eating, playing, or walking around.

 When it comes to their temperament, they are generally tame and are therefore easy to handle. In addition, they are good-natured but it might take some time before they can get accustomed to their pet owner. If you should decide to buy more than one hamster though, you might have to reconsider your decision since they prefer to be housed alone and dislike the company of fellow hamsters.

 Caring and Grooming

 If you previously avert the idea of keeping pets at home due to the possibility of incurring lots of cost in caring for them, then a pet hamster is ideal for you since they are generally low-maintenance. In addition, they are easy to care for since they have been naturally inclined to thrive on their own.

 Bathing is not required for a black bear hamster since they bathe their own bodies with the use of their tongue, just like cats do. You must also avoid bathing them since it could expose them illness when they become damp. For regular grooming, you can opt to brush its hair using soft toothbrush daily. In cases wherein they become really dirty and needs to be cleaned out, you can take a washcloth and dampen it with water to wipe all over its body or specific areas that need cleaning.

Wheels and Run-Abouts

Some hamster cages come with wheels inside them. But there are also those that you can buy separately. What you need to check on wheels is its safety. Choose those that are placed on the surface of the cage to avoid any types of accidents. Meanwhile, run-abouts are plastic balls where you can place your hamsters when they’re out of their cages. With run-abouts, your hamsters can just run and play around on your floor, and you won’t have to worry about them getting away from you.  Both wheels and run-abouts are great hamster toys that promote exercise. It is recommended that you get at least one of them for your black bear hamsters.

Climbing Toys

Climbing blocks and ladders are also great items for your black bear hamsters to play with. They are sure to enjoy climbing up and down the different elevations inside their cage. Along with this, you need to make sure that the elevated levels are not too high as these are sure to cause injury on your hamsters in case they fall. It is also important to note that if you are using wooden ladders, you will need to constantly replace them. Hamsters are very curious in nature and would love to chew on things just to see if they can be eaten, and that includes wooden ladders and toys. You can also make ramps and other climbing structures such as hanging toys and ropes, as well as walkways and bridges. When doing these, you need to be very careful since such can be very dangerous to your hamsters. Use ropes that are thick and make sure your mini-walkways and bridges are sturdy enough to carry your hamsters.

Chew Toys

Chew toys is one of the most important things that you need to provide your hamsters. They need to always have something to chew and gnaw on as these will keep their teeth in perfect condition. You can use wooden pet chew toys but make sure these woods are free from any chemicals or pesticide. Cardboards are also good chewing items. This may sound inappropriate but you won’t really have to worry about the dangers of cardboards since there hasn’t been any known significant sickness that hamsters have gotten from chewing them. But if you want to be on the safe side, you can always choose to buy chewing items that are specifically made for hamsters or commercial tubes that are proven safe and sturdy.

Plastic Toys

You can also provide your hamsters with plastic toys to play with, but you need to be cautious about it. Although hamsters love to play on plastic tubes and structures, this might create a problem for you since you will constantly need to replace them as hamsters love to chew on plastic items as well. And since they can chew on them, they can also swallow plastic items, and this isn’t good.

Sand and Digging Items

Almost all kinds of hamsters love to dig so you may want to include sand and digging items on your must-have black bear hamster items. You may opt to use the dust bath used by chinchillas or you can make your own. All you need to do is to place sterilized soil inside a deep box that is big and high enough for hamsters to burrow and dig in.

Choosing the proper playing items is one of the most important considerations in owning a black bear hamster. Apart from food and cages, you should never forget to include toys in your must-buy items for black bear hamsters.