How to keep a Hamster

My hamster was given to me about two years ago. And thanks to him, experience, and research I've discovered this:

Hamsters are quite solitary mammals. They need to chew on stuff constantly to stop their teeth from growing and suffocating them. If they don't have anything to chew on they will chew on metal bars, plastic, fingers or whatever comes close.

They have a very short lifespan, from two to two and a half years. They don't like living in pairs, sometimes they can hurt each other or even kill each other.

Their menu is composed mainly by seeds, fruit and vegetables, although they shouldn't eat anything acid like orange or kiwi. If their food is varied and their health is good they can live up to three or four years (but this is rare). Having babies will shorten their lifespan. But if they do, the babies should be removed as soon as they are independent or otherwise they will start fighting for the same territory.

This is a very very short video of my hamster eating lettuce.