Baby dwarf hamsters which arrived as surprise litter are struggling to find their forever homes

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In March, an accidental litter of hamsters was surrendered to the Collective Animal Rescue team after a male and female hamster were sold as a pair from a pet shop to an unsuspecting family.

The hamster mum arrived into the care along with four babies which were just four weeks old - but much to the volunteers’ surprise, she had another litter on the way.

A volunteer from Collective Animal Rescue wrote on their Instagram: “This is sadly not an uncommon story. Pet shops across the country sell mis-sexed animals every day leaving inexperienced owners and rescues to pick up the pieces.

“The family who surrendered her to us separated her within a day of noticing she had given birth, but in that time she had already become pregnant again.

“We knew her being pregnant was a possibility, but being faced with another litter of babies was still quite a shock. We have a lot of hamster homes to find over the next few weeks and months.”

Now, the team are struggling to find homes for the adorable baby hamsters, which are described as ‘young, friendly, tame, and confident’ and are handled daily by the volunteers.

Currently, they are looking for homes for two six-week-old girl robo hamsters, three six-week-old boys, one nine-week-old boy named Wizz and the mum hamster who is around eight months old.

The minimum cage size to meet welfare standards for dwarf hamsters is 80cm x 50cm and 100cm x 50cm for larger breeds, such as the Syrian.

A volunteer added: “It's sadly common to see cages being sold branded as 'large' when really they are actually below the bare minimum for a hamster to have a decent life.

“People unknowingly do not provide what their hamster needs as they just see a 'large' cage and assume it must be great for them; they're quite shocked when we let them know it's below what is needed for the hamsters welfare.

“As with all cages for pet animals, the bigger the better. Don't assume as it says 'large' on the packaging, that it actually is!

“It makes us sad to think of how many hamsters large pet stores have 'sold' over the past few weeks whilst we have these lovely hammies waiting. They're young, friendly and confident and deserve the best forever homes.”

If you would like more information on adopting any of the hamsters, visit the Collective Animal Welfare website or email [email protected].

The group can also be followed on Facebook or Instagram, and anyone wishing to donate a one off amount or become a monthly donor can do so through the website.

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