Cheshire Hamster Breeder

Two gorgeous baby boy Degus ready to leave home

2010-11-29T11:52:00.024Z

BABY DEGUS FOR SALE. These two wonderful boys are ready to find a new home. They are really friendly and very handle able as you can see from the photos. Degus are communal animals so the two boys would live together. If you would be interested in giving them a good home please contact me on 01625 669957.

Baby Boy 1

Baby Boy 2

Naja and Milans Two Super Sons.

2010-11-24T17:11:00.002Z

Naja and Milan had these two darling little Argente Platinum Mottle boys. They 're so beautiful and I am looking for a home for them where they can live together.

Where Winter Whites are really prone to fighting if kept in pairs Campbells are much more friendly with each other. As the boys were the only two babies in that litter they get on really well together...even sharing their wheel.

The Terror and Sal Dare's babies

2010-11-23T16:12:00.001Z

The Terror and Sal Dare have had these three gorgeous little girls, very sweet and very friendly.

The Paparazzi and Londons lovely babies

2010-11-22T15:32:00.009Z

Pap and London's babies are gorgeous and very nosey. These photos show their beautiful Agouti Platinum Mottles and Agouti Babies.

An Agouti Platinum Mottle in the sand bath.

A sweet little Agouti.

The Paparazzi and London

2010-11-17T13:24:00.004Z

This is the very beautiful London. He is a dark Argente so has black eyes instead red.

The Paparazzi is a really beautiful girl. She is a pale Agouti Platignum Mottled. She is one of The N.P and Milan's daughters and is a wonderful mum

They had a real "dolly mixture" litter of Agouti Platinum's ( left and bottom) Argenti Platinum Mottles (middle) and Agouti babies

Campbells have the most wonderful soft fur and will usually live together hapily in same sex pairs.

The Naja Pallida and Milan

2010-11-08T12:36:00.015Z

Introducing The Naja Pallida (right)and Milan (left)
The N.P is a beautiful very pale Agouti Mottle. She is the daughter of Sal Dare and his first girlfriend.

Here she is enjoying some millet with her very pale Argente Mottled baby

Milan is one of my stunning Satin Campbells. He is Argente with quite long silky satin fur. He is seen here with his daughter who is a super little Agouti Mottled Satin. She has now left home and has a lovely Satin boyfriend so there may be some more silky soft Satins on the way soon.

Milan loves his sand bath. Satins really need clean sand to keep their fur looking clean and beautifully shiny

Introducing my Campbells

2010-10-25T11:47:00.001+01:00

This is The Terror and Sal Dare with their gorgeous babies.

Terror ( second photo down with one of her babies) is a beautiful Argente and Sal Dare ( bottom photo with his son) is a Black Eyed White.

They had a beautiful litter of Argente Mottles (middle photo) and Agouti Platignums (bottom photo)

Our breeding Pair of Degus

2010-08-09T15:06:00.004+01:00

We are very excited to introduce our breeding pair of Degus.

These wonderful friendly animals are expecting a litter soon.

Happy Easter.

2010-04-04T16:42:00.001+01:00

Who needs chocolate when these are so scrummy!

These are the babies of one of my new pairs, Ravenna and Volcano.

They have the most gorgeous Mandarin babies.

Five little Easter chicks.

My Christmas wish granted.

2009-12-25T16:00:00.003Z

I got just what I wanted for Christmas.

Santa brought me my escapee dormouse....although it may have had something to do with some chopped peanuts as well.

Merry Christmas One And All.

2009-12-24T14:35:00.006Z

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

We all hope you have a fantastic Christmas and enjoy it as much as my gorgeous Audi intends to.

He is very well organised and has all he needs to make the most of this festive season.

"Its not Terrys its mine"

Tescos were kind enough to make Audi sized mince pies this year. Mmmmmm yum :)

Osmosis..the best ever Duprasi.

2009-12-07T17:01:00.001Z

Osmosis.

I was given this glorious little boy because his previous owners said he bit people so they were going to put him to sleep.

A real lover of meal worms and wax worms but a hater of sand baths.

Osmo was a real super star.

I loved him to bits but very sadly he left us on the 7th of December, I miss him loads.

The Pygmy Mice get a delux new house.

2009-11-10T15:21:00.002Z

I was lucky enough to find a fantastic huge tank.....

.......and they love it.

Theyre wonderful little creatures, the water bottle may be huge but it doesnt stop them.

African Pygmy Dormice...too cute.

2009-10-24T17:24:00.005+01:00

I have to admit I am now totally addicted to Exotic Rodents.

The pygmy mice are amazing........ then Andrew gave me Ozmo, the Duprasi, who was a total one off......

.....then Claire gave me Fandango the locust eating monster Spiney Mouse.

Then I was given the opportunity to buy these cuties

......is it me or are they too cute :)

Since writing this post one of the Dormice has escaped and is living in my cellar.

I want them back home....wish me luck.

Fandango the Spiney Mouse.

2009-10-17T14:57:00.001+01:00

This is my wonderful Spiney mouse.

We called her Fandango.

Unfortunately her sisters bullied her and bit her very badly around the neck. She had to be separated from them and now she lives with me.

She is really great fun and loves to chase and eat locusts.

Both her ears were badly bitten by her sisters.

.....but now she has her own place she is really happy.

Modern art.

2009-09-12T15:48:00.003+01:00

This piece has been created by one of my new mums.... Tabasheer.

Not only is she a wonderful mother she is also a hopeful entrant for next years Turner Prize .

This piece is as yet untitled but is depicting the need for us all to recycle.

Tabasheer is very creative.

Recycle loo roll middles ... its environmentally friendly and such fun.

Campbells Dwarf Hamsters.

2009-08-12T16:03:00.001+01:00

I wanted to post these photos to show that Campbells Dwarf hamsters don't all bite.

I bred this little girl. She is as yet unnamed but is the daughter of The Pythoness and Zorro.

This is a male Campbell I bought in. As you can see he is really sweet.

Another of my new Campbells, this time a very pretty Argente platinum mottled. Again showing how easy they are to handle.

The Pythoness and Zorro

2009-07-07T16:34:00.001+01:00

My first breeding pair of Campbells.

Zorro (left) and The Pythoness.

They both love mealworms....yummy.

A very pregnant Pye just a few days before she had her babies.

Pye is a beautiful Mottled Agouti. This photo shows her amazing ruby eyes.

Pye having a drink.

Zorro is Black and White Mottled. His markings looked just like a mask so that's how he got his name.

Zoz has a wash.

Pye and her babies.

I just cant get the staff.

2009-05-06T18:33:00.003+01:00

I'm so sorry for the recent lack of postings.

I have been setting up new pairs and working really hard to make sure the hamsters aren't affected by the credit crunch.

My P.A Audacio (pictured here ) hasn't yet come to terms with Windows Vista so we have had a communication black out. Normal blogging should resume very soon.

Thanks for your patience. Lydia

Chiaroscuro...A Tale Of Two Ears....Part 1.

2009-02-01T18:30:00.014Z

Chiaroscuro and Mistletoe.

This a tragic love story.

Luckily neither the hero or heroine die...but they might have done.

I'm posting this to show all the people who want to keep more than one Winter White together what can happen when it goes wrong.

I have to stress that this, although distressing, was a mild attack.

He absolutely adored her... kisses all around.....all the time..
I paired them on the 5th of December, I hoped that they would be a lovely new Pearl pairing for 2009....and be together for life, as most Winters mate for lifer.
She is a beautiful, almost white Pearl and Chiri has the stunning markings of his father Avalanche.

....they spent two weeks making a wonderful home together,
17 days later....thing would be very different.....

....Chiaroscuro,

....my beautiful boy.
One of the models for my blog.......the last photograph I have of him as he was.

Mistletoe attacked Chiri two weeks and 3 days after they were paired.
She bit his back, abdomen and ripped both his ears, nearly removing his right ear. If I hadn't been at home to hear him screaming she may have killed him or caused him such serious wounds that he would die as a result or have to be put to sleep.

One of my boys, Rubellus, died from bite wounds, it was horrible and very upsetting. I didn't realize he was being attacked because he didn't make a sound when she bit him so,when I found him, it was too late. There was not a single mark on the female.

A very distressing photograph of Chiri as he was recuperating.
Taken three days after the attack when I knew he was going to be OK.
He had to have antibiotics from the vet which I had to administer daily.

Another three days on and the wounds are healing well.

Chiri is a strong and resilient boy.

He is very brave, friendly and also doesn't mind the attention he has to have to administer the medication he needs.

Another 3 days and he is doing really well.

Here, being held by my mum, he is showing what a lovely temperament he has.

You can still see how sore and injured his right ear is.

Chiaroscuro...A Tale Of Two Ears.....Part Two.

2009-02-01T18:22:00.006Z

Chiaroscuro's ears are mending really well, as you can see in this photograph taken on the 3rd of January.

Mistletoe was pregnant.

This may have been why she attacked him.....his babies were born on the 5th of January, a week and a day after she attacked him.

The babies are gorgeous.
One grey, one sapphire and five pearls. One very dark and one very pale.

Sleeping peacefully.

Mistletoe is a brilliant mum, although she wasn't so kind to Chiri, she has raised the most wonderful seven babies.

All grown up....the magnificent seven are so beautiful.

It's hard sometimes to spot the babies from the bedding, thy're so pale.

They are still only 4 weeks old today.... they're huge for their age.

Chiaroscuro was given a clean bill of health by my amazing vet. His ear is still mending but still really tender. He may well have nerve damage.

Poor Chiri has had a horrible experience but has got through it mostly intact. I have lost hamsters from biting wounds. This is why I won't sell two hamsters together when all someone wants is a pet.

Do you believe it would be worth risking any of this?

Screamers and "Swearers"..Are they Monsters? ..NO.. Not at all!

2009-01-23T20:06:00.056Z

Look at this little man, he is gorgeous, but he's a Screamer or "Swearer" (as I call them).
His language would make EMINEM blush.... :)

He is beautiful and calm and sweet and would make anyone a fantastic and loving pet.

Winter White Dwarf hamsters can sometimes be very vocal. I have talked about it on my website so I thought it might help people to show what "screaming" or " swearing" looks like.

This is the same little boy with his litter mates, he was quite wary of me looking them but he wasn't worried when I started photographing them.

Then, when I moved some bedding to take better photos he started to Scream or "Swear", you can see his open mouth showing his teeth and see how he raises his hands....

...this time, bearing his teeth again, he is giving his father Hiro a real ear-bending.......

..."Dad I don't like her taking photos of us".

When they scream they raise their front legs and often go up onto their back legs or sometimes they go right over and lie on their backs.

"I hate it"............a typical Swearer, mouth wide open looking very aggressive...but not really and not going to harm anyone. They are as sweet and as kind as the other Winters...but they are just more vocal more and opinionated.............

..."oh no its her again, stop photographing me"...

....."I mean it...leave me alone".....

Just after taking the photos of him swearing I put down the camera, picked him up ant took this photo and the one at the top of this posting. He didn't make a sound when I picked him up and, as you can see, he is a lovely, calm sweet little boy.

I hope to keep this wonderful boy to breed from...his personality is delightful ..his language...well maybe it isn't so sweet.....I love him anyway ...watch this space!

Little Dots New Years detox.

2009-01-21T19:12:00.029Z

After the excesses of her New Year, Little Dot has decided..........like all the other celebs..........to DETOX.

She starts her rigid regime with a sand bath...............

.....this should remove all the traces of Verve Cliq.......

.....then there is the exercise part of the regime.........

......lifting and chewing of the loo roll inner is incredibly good for the upper arms, abs and teeth ....................

.....then from the exercise its onto the aprez exercise meal .....................................................................

......eat more healthily..........or in Dots case........... EAT MORE!

My New Year starlet.............Micro Mini.

2009-01-14T19:02:00.001Z

This is the tiny star Micro Mini.

She is the daughter of Hastati and Hiroshige and was born in August and yet she is still so tiny, the photos don't really give an idea of how small she really is.

I didn't let her go with her litter mates because she was so small, so I kept her..... she never grew in stature but she grew enormously in personality.

She is utterly gorgeous and is a most treasured pet....she is also a "Super model" and poses at every opportunity ...so expect to be seeing her again.

I took these photos of her in a carrier whilst I cleaned out her house, she had her loo roll inner to play and hide in.

Some photos of my tiny Pygmy Mice.

2009-01-12T20:43:00.000Z

This is Lady Efe.

She is the founding mother of my colony of African Pygmy Mice.

Like all mice, these tiny versions are very adventurous and great fun to watch. They are so small its very difficult to describe to someone who hasn't seen one. There are photos of Lady Efe and her daughters in a house on the side of my blog to refer to for size which is TINY WEENY:) My friends mostly comment on their titchy little feet.

Lady Efe was really keen on getting into all the photos.

Like all mice the Pygmy's are very clean and tidy. As they are so small they make very little smell, even a group of boys are almost odorless

Ballista's new years excercises.

2009-01-10T19:47:00.000Z

Ballista is taking her New Years resolution of more exercises very seriously. She really didn't appreciate me disturbing her!

Many thanks to everybody who has contacted Cheshire Hamsters about hamsters over the festive season and into the new year.

We have been very busy so I'm sorry that the blog hasn't been updated yet. There are lots of lovely new photos of our gorgeous new year arrivals and our fabulous new pairs to be added very soon.

Little Dot celebrates 2009. HAPPY NEW YEAR

2009-01-01T17:41:00.000Z

Little Dot is so grown up now.

She is still petite in stature but is throwing herself into celebrating New Year with her new friends Verve and Moet.....she was too young to introduce her to Stella and Newkie Brown ;)

She is a champagne girl! Verve Cliq is this party girls favourite...

...HAPPY NEW YEAR...Its 2009 :)

...but eventually its time for bed.

Its 2009 lets enjoy it :)

Happy Christmas from Mae and all of us :)

2008-12-25T13:48:00.001Z

At last......

photos of the illusive and wonderful Maelstrom.

Mae allowed me to take some photos, but being a top model is exhausting!

Maelstrom proves he is the most beautiful boy...but the glitter balls are not really doing his street cred much good.

This is what most of the photos I take of Mae look like.....but without the tinsel. He is the best photo evading hamster ever.

The night before Christmas....

2008-12-24T09:18:00.002Z

....and Tia D is secretively checking her list.
Dear Santa,
This year Ive been a very good girl, I even put up with my mum putting me in this tinsel and taking loads of photos of me! Here is my Christmas list :-

1. More Millet.
2. More food (especially the Millet)
3. More penuts.
4. More loo roll middles.
5. More sunflower seeds.
6. did I mention the Millet.

Thanks so much Santa,
lots of love,
Tia D x

PS. we don't have a chimney, does that matter.

My stunning girl looked wonderful in the tinsel, she is a natural model.

Pyros Grotto.

2008-12-23T13:20:00.003Z

Another of my shining stars, darling Pyro, now retired he spends his time enjoying the single life and having a wheel to himself. For once in this photo you can see his gorgeous ruby eyes, the colour of the port I'm looking forward to tucking into on boxing day :)

In his star grotto he looks so sweet but quite unimpressed. He got bored very quickly and ran off.... tinsel just wasnt his thing and I think he heard about the glitter balls!

Blizzard is a star.

2008-12-22T18:47:00.004Z

With four days to go before Christmas we thought it was time to get festive.

Its time for the tinsel and glitter balls to come out.

Blizzard was so good while I took the photos but, as you can see from his expression, the star on his head did not impress him..... however he heard one of the boys was modelling with glitter balls and decided the star was getting off lightly!

Baby Robs.

2008-12-22T16:41:00.005Z

Limonene and Apollos babies. Lim (far right) is on the wheel with some of her older babies. She has six teens and six toddlers, her and Apollo are amazing parents.

This teenaged litter of baby robs will be ready to leave home on boxing day. The litter includes both normal and white faced babies.

Hiroshiges watchful eye.

2008-12-20T09:41:00.003Z

Hiroshige is a loving and protective dad.

Hiro holds his babies close. He and Hastati have another much loved litter.
Under the constant watchful eye of a caring mum and dad the babies are thriving.

Like all the Winter white parents, they both take it in turn to care for their little ones. Here its Hiros turn while Hasti gets a well earned rest.

The watchful eye of Hiro.
.

Sangria and Saint Bernards' great news.

2008-12-19T19:33:00.005Z

Sangria and Saint Bernard's' first litter are doing really well and are so sweet, Sangria is a brilliant mum and Bernard is a very attentive and loving dad. I'm so proud of them.

They have had six babies, four of which can be seen here snoozing away.

Saint Bernard is very special because he has actually changed colour from a pale Sapphire to the nearly white you can see in this photo.

Ruby and Spots babies. More professional snoozers!..

2008-12-18T19:49:00.003Z

Sleeping is the favourite pass time of all baby hamsters.

Here five of Ruby and Spots kids laze the day away.....I admit to being very envious sometimes...especially when I have to go to Tescos to do the shopping!

The Black Spot is a brilliant dad, he has wonderful parents. With Phoenix and The Leviathan as his parents he learned really well.

This litter of seven is thriving under the loving attention of their parents.

Bobs still building!

2008-12-18T19:07:00.006Z

Bob is building again!

He will never stop trying to provide the best home for his family. He is "an artist" and will not stop until he is happy with his work.!

He adores a loo roll middle, especially with one sheet of tissue left on it. His family and a new loo roll are his inspiration!

He has five babies in this time and, as always, he is a diligent and adoring dad.

Car and Bobs babies remain blissfully unaware of all the construction surrounding them and snooze away.

Sweet Dreams :)

Stones very active babies.

2008-12-17T18:29:00.000Z

Stone has had a litter of fabulous Orange babies, they are all like her and their dad, Fire, having bright red eyes.

Stone and Fire have now separated ( due to irreconcilable differences...she got the house!) but will both be having new partners very soon.

The babies are very active and are already starting to play with Stone on their wheel.

Epona and Avalanches' babies.

2008-12-16T19:14:00.002Z

Avalanche is a brilliant dad.

I thought that he and Epona had retired so this litter of lovelies was a wonderful surprise.

They have had eight babies, mostly Pearls but also a Sapphire and Grey babies.

Here you can see some of their litter. They are gorgeous kids soon they will have their eyes open all the time, they are already wandering around sometimes. they are really cute.

Firebird and Kissins' first litter.

2008-12-15T18:51:00.000Z

This is Firebird (drinking from the bottle) and Kissins' ( seen bottom of the photos) first litter.

Firebird is Fire Sprites sister so I was thrilled when she had the babies.

They have four babies in total, a Grey (left), possibly a Mandarin Pearl (middle), a mandarin (left) and a Pearl.

Ive never had a Mandarin Pearl before so I'm not sure yet if this little boy is a Mandarin Pearl or a very pale mandarin.

All the babies have a wonderful temperament and are very advanced for their age.

Onager and her babies.

2008-12-14T18:03:00.001Z

Onager and Godfreys babies just before leaving home.

The babies left home today as Onager was heavily pregnant again and needed her space.

The babies are incredibly forward for their age because they have been reared so well by Ona and Godfrey.

Three beautiful babies, two Greys (left) and one Mandarin

They are gorgeous, really inquisitive and interactive like both their mum and dad.

Three little friends.

2008-12-13T18:00:00.000Z

Little Dot has moved in with two new little friends. She can be seen here snoozing on top of her mandarin friend.

All three little lovelies are from three different litters and were all introduced to each other and as you can see it went really well.
Dot is the only girl and seems to get her own way most of the time.

They will be able to stay together for about two weeks and then Dot will either have to move out or choose a boyfriend!

The little Mandarin is from Hast and Hiros' last litter and the Brown is Scorpio and Lis'.

I'm keeping all three with the hope to breed from them but they will stay as pets if they choose the single life.

The boys haven't got names yet so watch this space....

Godfreys babies in the linelight again!

2008-12-12T19:52:00.013Z

Godfrey's babies are starting to find the attention from the paparazzi too much!

He has three gorgeous babies in this litter and he is a fantastic dad. He spends so much time with them...its so lovely to watch.

They are now two weeks old and very forward for their age.

This litter of three is two beautiful Greys and one Mandarin.

Onager and Godfrey take really good care of their babies, they are very good caring parents and I am enormously proud of them :)

Share and share alike.

2008-12-11T20:38:00.006Z

Rearing babies is thirsty work!

Hastati stops for a well earned drink, under her watch full eye is of one of her babies.

Hiro shares his drink with his baby.

Its share and share alike in this family, Hast, Hiro and their baby all sharing drink.

Winters make wonderful parents and teach the kids so much. Before they're weaned they all know how to use a bottle, forage for food and, most importantly.....how to use a wheel!

Babies Galore!

2008-12-10T18:49:00.006Z

Godfrey and Onas' babies are enjoying a taste of freedom, they have their own place away from mum and dad watchful eyes...

....this means loads of take aways :)

Carmina and Bobs' kids are very happy settling in with their new friends who used to live next door, Scorpio and Lis' kids.

Before leaving home..... Scorpios brood, two gorgeous Mushrooms (2nd left and far right), a lovely Mandarin ( far left) and a ruby eyed Brown.

Bob can build it!

2008-12-09T20:02:00.016Z

Bob is building even more for Carmina and his six growing teens.

How ever hard she tries, Car can't get away from the building work!

A family this needs extra space... until the teens leave home :)

And get the kids do help.......

......but its thirsty work.

Little Dots Story.

2008-12-08T18:59:00.016Z

This is Little Dot, she is three weeks old tomorrow....
and is GORGEOUS!

This is her story...so far.

She used to be shy but not anymore!

She is helping her mum Blood Ruby to raise her new brothers and sisters born sunday

She plays on the wheel with her dad The Black Spot.

In this photo, with Spot, she was just one week old

Dot was born on the 18.11.08 and was the only child in that litter for Ruby and Spot. She grew up with her two older brothers, one of whom can be seen lounging in this photo! I have never seen a pair of Winter Whites raise two litters at once before....they're brilliant parents and Little Dot is a star!

Godfreys babies are growing fast.

2008-12-07T16:36:00.004Z

Just one week old last friday Godfrey and Onas' babies are doing really well. There are three, two little greys and a mandarin which is really brightly coloured.

Its fantastic watching them grow and Godfrey is very kindly letting me take the photos but I still only get about a minute before he covers them to keep them warm.

Ona is a great mum but once the cage lids off she is trying to climb out at every opportunity!

Hastati and Hiroshiges' beautiful family.

2008-12-06T16:19:00.014Z

Hastati and Hiro have eight gorgeous babies.

In these photos you can see all four of their Mandarin ( orange coloured) babies, both of their Grey or Agouti ( black and brown striped) and one of their Sapphires... the other was camera shy!

The babies are two weeks old on monday and full of beans. At three weeks they will be totally self sufficient individuals and Hastati may have her next litter if she is pregnant again.

This is her third litter and she has done a fantastic job, she is really perky....she climbed up the chair and into my sleeve while I was taking the photos!

Both her and Hiro are incredibly friendly, inquisitive and bright and ... their kids take after them.

Dont look its Witchetty Grubs again!

2008-12-05T19:20:00.000Z

Now David has left the jungle the hammies are watching I'm A Celebrity again..

Poppy is trying to protect Astacius from the horrors of the latest Bush Tucker Trial!

Staying where its nice and warm.

2008-12-05T19:04:00.002Z

Sangria has decided its far too cold and that she's going to stay in bed. She is a very pretty ruby eyed brown but the flash has washed all the colour out.

Saint Bernard ventures from their warm nest.

He and Sangria have been together since September. He got his name because his mother is The Scream and his father is Blizzard so if you combined the two you might get a Saint Bernard... if you were lucky :)

He has actually changed colour from pale sapphire to almost white. He is the first winter white who I have seen do this.

I'm A Hamster Get Me Out Of Here!

2008-12-04T14:35:00.010Z

Hastati and Hiro can't stand it for one second longer!

They can no longer bear to watch "I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!" because David is driving them to their nuts!

His fly swat and hair really really frightens them!

Hastati and Hiroshiges' babies.

2008-12-03T17:43:00.019Z

Hastati (black eyes) and Hiroshige (red eyes ) had their babies on the 24th of November.

The photos at the bottom show the babies at a few days old and Hastati nursing them.

Hiro has been a very involved father, he loves his kids and nurses them a great deal of the time so Hastati can have a break as she is rearing eight babies...that's a lot of kids!

In the more recent photos( immediately below) the babies are just one week old. Their colouring is showing and they are fully covered in fur. They will open their eyes soon and I will take some more photos.

Carmina Burana and Bob The Builder

2008-12-02T19:28:00.009Z

Carmina and Bob are fantastic parents, they are now rearing their third litter of six gorgeous little Sapphire babies. The babies are three weeks old tomorrow and are already weaned.

Carmina (left on wheel ) is named after the oratorio because as a baby and teen she would scream or swear at anything. When I first put them together if Bob went near her she'd swear at him and I was worried they weren't happy together, that was until I saw her swear at him then run after him when he walked off!

Bob is a nest builder extraordinaire, I have never seen his like before! In the first two days with Car he demolished a loo roll inner a day to provide a vast nest. I had always intended to give him a fanciful name (like all my other hamsters have) but he got nick named Bob and it stuck. He rarely ceases from his quest for the perfect nest, in the centre photo you can see him reaching for sawdust to throw back into the nest,unfortunately poor Car got it in the face!

The Scream and Blizzard.

2008-12-01T19:06:00.007Z

Today, as the weather worstens, and we get closer to Christmas I thought it would be an opportune time to introduce The Scream (left) and Blizzard. They are one of my retired couples and still very happy together.

Scream got her name because, as a teen, she would scream and swear whenever I picked her up. She never meant it (she never bit me) just swore A LOT!

Blizzard is a babe and takes after his father Zephyrus both in very good looks and his lovely attitude.

They are both camera strap nibblers as you can see :)

It's snowing...meet my snow couple!

2008-12-01T11:00:00.001Z

Epona and Avalanche have decided to stay in bed. Its winter and these two look like the snow we've got.They are a lovely pair of Pearl winters and are Chirosciro's parents. It looks as though they have retired now but they are still really happy together...they're very sweet and very pretty. Epona used to have big litters of mostly pearl babies which were like little cotton wool balls.

Godfrey proudly presents his new babies.

2008-11-30T18:14:00.003Z

Yesterday Godfrey and Onager had their second litter of three lovelly little pinks. They are both such friendly animals they let me take some pictures, although I was only allowed a minuit before Godfrey covered them back up.

Onager was distracted by chewing the camera strap!

Sunday lunch was large!

2008-11-30T16:15:00.003Z

Godfrey and Onager have over indulged in their lunch. Now the teens have left home there is more for them and they're making the most of it.

Eating jumpers!

2008-11-29T14:01:00.005Z

Scorpio tried her best to chew bits out of my jumper to make into her nest.

Shes a real nibbler and will try and pull anything into her nest including my camera strap.

She is a pale apricot coloured mandarin not white as she appears here.

Scorpio sends the sand flying!

2008-11-29T11:06:00.000Z

Scorpio and Licentiosas have their sand changed, as soon as they have new sand they climb straight in.

Winter whites LOVE their sand baths. It keeeps their fur clean and they really enjoy it as you can see from Scorpio here as she sends the sand flying!

Scorpio has four babies at the moment...Ive been trying to get photos of them but they're so fast :)

Wheel hammock.

2008-11-28T18:45:00.002Z

Three of Pheonix and The Leviathans' babies dozing in the wheel.

They had six babies in this litter and the whole family would try and fit in the wheel it was so funny. I will post more of those photos soon. Its looking like Phe has decided one lot of babies is enough but they are both still very happy together. These are some of Fire Sprites' brothers and sisters.

Fire Sprite loves millett.

2008-11-27T18:00:00.001Z

This is the exquisite Fire Sprite.

Sprite is a red eyed Mandarin and very unusual, she looks very much like her grandfather Howitzer. The flash washes out her colour in the photos but her eyes are that red!

Sprite and Hokusai (right) get on really really well ,they are so sweet together. They have had one litter so far which included Kuniyoshi, I hope there will be more to follow as Kuni is a real little star. I'm really hoping he and Rubyfly will have other red eyed Mandarin babies.

The Teens move out.

2008-11-27T16:55:00.005Z

Godfrey and Onagers kids have now moved out.

They seem to have settled with another pair of teens who needed to leave home because their mum, Blood Ruby ( Captain Bloods daughter) is raising a tiny baby and she needed the space.
Winters mix reasonably well when they're this young but start to get bolshy by five weeks when they can start to squabble and have to be split into boys and girls to avoid accidents!

Godfreys and Onagers' teens.

2008-11-27T12:53:00.000Z

Godfrey's kids are now just over three weeks old, totally self sufficient and lively teens.

Onager is heavily pregnant and now she has weaned them she is ready for them to leave home. Most of the winter white mums get a bit grumpy with their teens as they get more heavily pregnant so I will be taking these out today before she gets too irritated by them.

Its understandable not wanting four teenagers rampaging around when you are the equivalent to eight months pregnant!

Godfrey wants a break.

2008-11-26T18:05:00.000Z

Godfrey just wanted some time to himself on the wheel....its a refuge for most of my dad hamsters, but Onager had something to say about having to cope with four teenaged kids by herself.

Godfrey the proud father.

2008-11-25T19:56:00.001Z

Godfrey Service is a wonderful dad as you can see from this photo of him with his kids. He has four lovely babies with his girlfriend Onager.
The babies are about two weeks old in this photo. I have decided to keep one of the orange coloured "Mandarins" to hopefully have a family of their own.

Meet the "Cover Boys".

2008-11-24T20:40:00.002Z

Introducing my cover models.... Tortuga and De Muerta.

They were babies in the "cover" photo, now (in this pic) they're one and a half months old and still living together which is unusually friendly for boys of this age.
Their father Maelstrom is one of my oldest and most gorgeous boys....and, even though he is totally gorgeous, he won't pose for a photo! I will keep trying :)

They are Tia Dalma and Astacius' younger brothers.
This line of hammies is named after "Pirates of the Caribbean" . There will be photos of more of the family soon.

My newest couple.

2008-11-23T18:07:00.000Z

This is Rubyfly (left) and Kuniyoshi.

They are my newest couple, I paired them on Friday and they seem to really like each other. He has a particularly friendly temperament and is a gorgeous colour. They are both Orange but his colour is stronger. I love Orange Winters' because of their amazing red eyes. The colour they appear in the photo is not due to flash they really are that red! Sadly Ruby's dad passed away after only having fathered one litter so she is extra special.

Kuni is a superb nest builder and is really impressing Ruby by building her the most extravagant nest. It seems to have worked as she follows him everywhere.

Pyro playing in his bedding.

2008-11-22T15:26:00.000Z

Pyrotechnic.

Pyro is one of my retired boys, he is really lovely lad, he reared his last litter alone when his girlfriend got very tired. She needed time alone to recuperate after the babies were weaned so the babies stayed with Pyro and he reared them, he was fantastic with them. He is now enjoying the single lifestyle again.

He is a beautiful ruby-eyed mandarin. The photo doesn't show the colour of his lovelly apricot coloured mandarin coat or his eyes, they are a very dark red wine colour and look black unless the light catches them.

Snoozing

2008-11-19T18:10:00.002Z

In my blog I would like to introduce you to some of my gorgeous hamsters.

Today it is one of my families of winter white dwarf hamsters.

This is Poppykettle (on the left), her man Astacius (on the right) with two of their kids from their first litter.

As you can see from the photo of Astacius at the bottom of my blog it can be very hard work being a dad!