About the Hamsters

Winter White Dwarf hamsters.

Winter White HamstersWinter white Russian hamsters, sometimes referred to as Siberian hamsters' or Djungarian hamsters grow between 9 and 12 centimetres and are also a breed of dwarf hamster. Winter White hamsters are very similar in appearance to Campbells Russian hamsters, however, Winter White's have furry feet and are sometimes referred to as furry-footed or hairy-footed hamsters.

Winter whites have gained their name from their coat changing colour in winter but in modern homes with central heating and artificial lighting its very unlikely an animal will change colour in a pet environment.

They are, in my experience, the most tame, handleable, tolerant and friendly of the hamster breeds, it is possible to wake up a Winter and take it from it's bed without incurring more than a cross expression. They very rarely bite however some individuals will touch the skin of your hand to see if you are food ,this normally only seems to occur in hamsters who may be short sighted, and by no means do all Winters do this.

Winter whites are the most vocal of the hamsters. It is not unusual to have an individual who will scream or "swear" at you. This can be disconcerting and they do look aggressive when they scream but their bark is much worse than their bite, in fact even though they may be screaming away they will still be held, I have never been bitten by a winter even one of the “swearers"!

As with the Robo's the Winter White hamster requires a sand bath to keep its fur in good condition, unlike the Robs they will probably use this as a toilet which makes cleaning the cage very much simpler as one just removes and replaces their sand.

Winters come in many colours. I currently breed “Grey” (sometimes called Normal or Agouti which are similar in colour and pattern to a chipmunk), “Sapphire” (which look bluey grey), “Pearl” (which are white with a pale grey or occasionally nearly black stripe on their back and face), “Mushroom” ( which are pale beige), “Brown” (which are a paler version of the “grey”), “Mandarin” (which are pale apricot with an orange stripe down their spine. Some Mandarins have grey and some have white ears,Very rarely some have red eyes but this is most unusual, some appear in the photos of my hamsters) and “Orange” ( which are apricot with silvery blue stripes and bright red eyes.) Occasionally I have mushroom and brown Winters with ruby eyes but they are not very common.

Winter whites live 1.5 to 2 years.

All photos and text copyright ©Lydia Sefton/Cheshire Hamster Breeder 2009.
Please do not use without permission.