Behaviour of Hamster Roborovski

In the wild the Roborovski Hamsters are sociable living in groups. They live in a straight burrow within the sand dunes which can extend from between 50cm to 150cm in length and the entrance is usually covered in soft sand.

They sleep during the day, waking only for short periods. They are nocturnal and awake at dusk, being active at night. Their sight is poor but their sense of smell and hearing are very acute and they rely heavily on these senses to recognise each other and their environment.

In Captivity

In captivity the Roborovski Hamster is a sociable pet and is best kept with others of its own kind as to keep them singly is thought to shorten its lifespan and make them agitated. They can be kept in single sex or mixed sex pairs or groups if breeding is intended.

Due to their small size Roborovski Hamsters are able to squeeze through the bars of many commercial hamster cages.

Roborovski's hamsters are gentle and naturally docile but extremely fast! They rarely if ever bite but do wriggle - and if they escape they are difficult to catch, although repeated, gentle handling will calm them down somewhat. Since they are so wriggly, they are not generally recommended for anyone wanting a pet to "cuddle". When they are being handled, it is best to do so over a "playbox" or normal cardboard box from the supermarket. (If a Roborovski's hamster once gets loose on the floor it will be a major challenge to retrieve!) On the plus side, however, their temperament is reliably good; bites or even nips are so rare as to be effectively unheard of. As a pet to watch, busily going about its day to day existence, they are without equal.
The roborovski hamster also active and agile and therefore require a large cage with plenty of space and toys to amuse them in order to prevent behavioural problems developing.

The Roborovski Hamster is nocturnal but is often active for short periods during the day.