Although Syrian hamsters are able to breed as young as 3-6 weeks of age this should be avoided as it is detrimental to the female's health and development. Therefore breeding a female at this age or buying such a young pregnant female from a pet shop or breeder should be avoided.
The ideal age to breed a female for the first time is when she is between 4 and 6 months of age. Breeding a female younger than this can stunt her growth, result in a poor litter and often leads to cannibalism of the litter. Breeding a female for the first time after 6 months can result in complications in giving birth and so is best avoided.
The strain of rearing a litter will weaken the female and so it is recommended that 3-4 months is given for her to recover her condition fully before breeding again at 8-10 months of age. This will help to ensure the successful rearing of a second healthy litter. Generally 3-4 months between litters is sufficient time for the female to regain condition.
Females often become sterile at around 12-14 months of age and take longer to regain condition after the second litter later in life. Therefore for most females a third litter is not advisable. However, if a female remains fertile at 12 months of age and is still in a good, healthy, robust condition a third litter may be bred from her but this should be given careful consideration.
Males can be used for breeding from as young as 5 weeks of age although may not always be able cope with a full grown female! It is usually best to wait until a male is 2-3 months before using him for breeding. Males usually remain fertile for most of their life.
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