How long do hamsters hibernate for?

If you are going to adopt a hamster you need to know a few facts about them and some questions like :

For all these answers you need to read this article, and this information is going to help you to take good care of your hamster. And definitely you can deal with your hamster in a better way.

So if you wanna ask, do hamsters hibernate…? The answer is yes and when it comes to your question what month do hamsters hibernate? Well if you are talking about the wild one they hibernate in cold weathers but I think for a pet hamster owner hibernation is not a very good idea.

You might have experienced the fierce feeling and strange times. When your healthy and happy hamster pet suddenly turned into a lazy brat sleeping more and playing less. Well you certainly get worried and continuous but at the end you came to know that they were actually hibernating or it can be torpor too.

The reasons can be several, either your hamster had been living in some unfavourable conditions and that caused this health condition. So before getting a new hamster in your life as a pet make sure that you get aware about hibernation and torpor conditions so you can understand and help your hamster well.

Hibernation is a mode or period of lazy and inactive period that can occur in different animals for a long period. Hibernation is actually nature’s support for the animals and that mode is activated in such conditions when the animal is not getting the required resources to survive. In such conditions the metabolic system gets extremely slow and resources are consumed to their minimum. And still the animal can survive the tough times.As the body is trying to consume minimum energy and utilize them for only vital organs so the animal can survive. So mostly hibernation is common within animals that live in areas where winters are truly harsh.

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It’s a condition where the animals do not practically sleep for months. But due to low temperature and tough survival conditions, they sleep and get inactive for several hours. This condition is very much like hibernation and you can say it hibernates but in scientific and professional terms it’s called torpor. So if your pet is actually experiencing long term sleep and lazy periods especially in winter. So yes your hamster is hibernating in winters, because Torpor and Hibernation are all the same.

You might be amazed to know that all hamsters don’t have the similar hibernation behaviour. You might be wondering that my hamster is in hibernation and he has opened his eyes. Or I have read it several times that people ask do hamsters hibernate with open eyes? Or What exact time of the year hamsters hibernate.

So here I will like to make it clear that the hibernation behaviour and timings of hamsters vary from species to species. For instance if you have a European Hamster as a pet they are real hibernators. And they may spend most of the winters in hibernation.

But when it comes to dwarf hamsters they are not very much fond of hibernation and seldom go under this situation. When it comes to Syrian hamsters or teddy bear hamsters they are kind of hybrid. Mostly they hibernate under particular conditions and for those conditions it doesn’t matter whether it is summers or winters. Whenever they find the environment for their survival they can switch to hibernation mode to reduce the energy consumption and secure their survival as much as possible.

Moreover the sex of your hamster and the breed of your hamster can truly help you in determing  and understanding their hibernation periods and timings. Or even the circumstances which cause them to hibernate.

The main component that contributes in causing Hibernation of hamsters or torpor condition is their temperature and environment. Mostly when they find the temperature too cold. Like up to nearly 65 to 75 degrees fahrenheit is the best temperature you can provide to your hamster. But if the temperature goes down and your hamster feels cold it’s very much possible that he and others are in hibernation mode or torpor mode.

To avoid hibernation mode you need to provide them a cosy nice warm environment. But the chances are low that they go into hibernation mode. But if you are placing them near those, sure that it doesn’t get too hot because they can not survive in extreme hot weather as well. Moreover, also try that the bedding remains comfortable and dry. If their cage is well ventilated Windows where they get cold, or you have placed them near your air conditioning units.

If the temperature gets low for them, they might move to hibernation mode. Beside environment and temperature the other factor that can trigger the hibernation mode of your hamster is: low food supply and irregular patterns of light and dark different studies performed on hamsters have proven that whenever they get a poor supply of food and cannot fulfill his body needs they  switch to hibernation mode to survive for longer period of time. Moreover continuous and balanced food supply and those who kept the hamsters hot and comfortable they seldom went into torpor or the experience short torpor periods. If your hamster has already gone into a torpor mode. You can help him by making his environmental conditions better and as per his body demands to bring him out of it.