As with any pet, keeping a hamster requires a commitment to care for it during its life which could be 2-3 years or longer. The commitment required includes not only routine feeding, care and time spent with the hamster but also the provision of veterinary treatment if the hamster becomes ill which can be costly. Although proper care will go a long way to ensuring that any hamster remains happy and healthy there may still be times when prompt veterinary treatment is needed and once a hamster is ill it can deteriorate quickly.

Hamsters are mammals which belong to the rodent family having large incisor teeth that are continually growing necessitating gnawing to prevent the teeth from overgrowing. The word 'rodent' is derived from the latin word 'rodere' which means 'to gnaw'.
Hamsters form the Family Cricetidae which is broken down into different Genera (including Cricetulus, Phodopus and Calomyscus). Within each Genera are various species of hamster. There are many different species of hamsters throughout the world and most hamsters inhabit semi-desert areas where they live in burrows. These burrows consist of many tunnels and separate chambers including chambers where the hamster will store food and sleep. Hamsters are nocturnal, sleeping during the hot days and waking in the cooler evenings. They have very poor eyesight but a keen sense of smell and excellent hearing.
Most species of hamsters have expandable cheek pouches in which they can carry food and bedding back to their burrow where they will store food. The word 'hamster' comes from the German word 'hamstern' which means 'to hoard'.
Only a few hamster species are widely kept as pets but the hamster is the most popular of the smaller rodents kept as a pet in many countries today.

Hamster Land...

Hamsters are rodents belonging to the subfamily Cricetinae. The subfamily contains about 18 species, classified in six or seven genera. Hamsters come in lots of different colours and shapes.[1] Because they are easy to breed in captivity, hamsters are often used as lab animals and kept as pets in more economically developed countries. Recently hamsters have become established as popular small family pets. Hamsters are crepuscular. In the wild, they burrow underground in the daylight to avoid being caught by predators. They are most active around dusk and dawn, which has led many people to mistake them for being nocturnal. In the wild they will eat any wheat, nuts and small bits of fruit and vegetables that they might find lying around on the ground, occasionally eating small insects such as small crickets or mealworms. Hamsters got their name from the German word "Hamstern" which means to hoard. They have elogated fur lined pouches on both sides of their heads which extends to their shoulders, which they stuff full of food to be brought back to the colony or eaten later.
Their diet contains a variety of foods both in the wild and when kept as a pets including dried food, berries and nuts, hard boiled or scrambled eggs, chicken and turkey. Fresh fruits and vegetables are also an integral part of their diet. Behavior really depends on their environment, genetics, and interaction with people.