hamster

a kind of animal – mammal – rodent – looks like a large mouse — a stout body with thick silky black, grey, white, brown hair (fur);

wide ears covered with fur, large sharp teeth, short legs with wide feet, short tail; size: different species, different sizes – on average, 2-4 inches long (‘common hamster’ can be 13 inches long), and weighs (some species) 50-75 grams, and (some other) 125-150 grams; feeds on (eats) grain (mostly wheat), nuts, fruit, roots, vegetables and small insects; lives for 2-3 years (some individuals can live up to 5 years); about 20 species (kinds) found in the semi-desert soils of central Europe; Syria, China, Korea, India; (native to Europe and Asia)

male ~~ buck

female ~~ doe

baby ~~ pup

group ~~ horde

voice (call) ~~ squeak, bark

home ~~ burrow; {nest – a separate place in the burrow for giving birth to pups} cage (man-made)

Some common hamster species are: dwarf hamsters: winter white Russian dwarf hamster, Chinese dwarf hamster, etc.; Chinese striped hamster, common hamster, golden hamster, Siberian hamster, Hoborovski hamster, Mongolian hamster, Ladak hamster, grey hamster,  long-haired/teddy bear/Angora hamster

Special Features:

a popular pet in many homes

Hamsters are a popular pet.  And they are also used in the laboratory experiments.

The meaning of the word ‘hamster’, which is from the German word ‘hamstern’ is “to hoard” (‘to hoard’ = to hide something, such as food, money, etc., in large quantities)!

fur-lined cheek pouch

And to hoard their food hamsters use their fur-lined pouches on both sides of their head, which grow from the mouth to the shoulder!  Hamsters use these pouches to carry food back to their burrows to hide and use it later.

Hamsters are known to eat their own droppings (shit) to save water!!

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