Pictures courtesy of Jaslee, Alvin and sherry.
Text written by Alvin and Sherry
These are the more recent additions
to Singapore and are favored for their small size (4-5cm) and cute faces.
They have a white nose area and a white patch ("eyebrow") above each eye.
However, this variety is said to be extremely active and difficult to handle.
They tend to sleep quite a bit and owners have noticed them sleeping in
some odd postions, including sitting up. They are very interesting to watch,
thus making them enjoyable pets even if they cannot be handled often.
I've just got the five of mine and
they are very timid. When putting anything into their tank, they will already
start to panic. Heaps of wood shavings allow them to burrow and a paper
towel roll is where they spend time sleeping. 
Breeding them has also been difficult
for some Singaporean owners but they are available in pet shops around
Singapore.
Spiky! A robo Star!
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| Spiky has his own feature and this
can be read here. |
Favorite food
(compiled from owners' personal experience):
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sweet corn and greens. cabbage
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carrots
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bird seed
Sunflower seeds
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Robos love to use the wheel and can spin them very fast.
If using a tank, putting the wheel on the side of the tank using a siphon
cup might be the best idea but these can easily drop.
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| Irish the male robo. He is father
of 3 litters (17 babies) |
Oh, are you going to let me out?
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| Hmmm.... |
Out on a food hunt.... |
Roborovski babies and breeding
I have always thought that Roborovski's
are difficult to breed. Even pet shop owners and breeders had told me that.
The breeder that I got a pair of robos from, assured me that they'll breed
only after one year and have only 1-2 ltters. Little did I suspect my pair
bred 3 litters consecutively at about 20 days interval!
The female hamster was a good mother
always taking care to keep the litter warm by brooding them. She'll carefully
shred tissue paper provided to make a cosy nest. When the mother is nursing
the litter, u can provide hard-boiled egg or cheese to supply extra protein
and calcium. I found cheese most convenient and hygienic compared to even
egg or milk. You can always remove uneaten portions to keep the cage clean.
The litter grew rapidly. Fur began
to appear from 10 days on. The pups opened their eyes from about 14 days.
By 20-21 days, they are weaned and fully furred.
Keeping the male with the female,
after the litter was born will result in consecutive litters. This can
put stress on the female due to the strain ofraising the pups. Even leaving
the male in for 1 day, can result in mating and conception! This is due
to the potential of robo's (and other Dwarf hamsters) to breed rapidly.
In the wild, due to their harsh habitat, the hamsters have only one summer
to breed.
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Young Robos at 3 weeks (20+
days)
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| Robo pups - young robo
pups at 10-12 days. thin layer of velvety fur already formed. |
Mother with litter - Cream the
mother robo with her litter. |
Female robo - Cream (the mother
above), inspecting the camera.
See u again, no?! *big smile*
More about them at the Complete
Hamster Site
Links
http://www.jirds.cwc.net/robham/rhindex.htm
If you know of a suitable
link, email me
