Hamsters For Dummies E-Book

Sarah Montague

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 118

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

The fun and easy way to care for a cute, cuddly hamster

Hamsters are the most popular rodents kept as pets. Hamsters For Dummies helps those owners who have little or no experience caring for this small mammal. This book covers selecting a healthy hamster, health care and nutrition, and housing and supplies. Readers will also find information on training and playing with hamsters.

Leseprobe

Hamsters For Dummies

by Sarah Montague

Hamsters For Dummies®

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc.111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2007 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax [phone]. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, 317-572-3447, fax [phone], e-mail: [email protected].

Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

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Library of Congress Control Number: available from publisher

ISBN: 978-0-470-12163-4

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

1B/RV/QT/QX/IN

Publisher’s Acknowledgements

Project Editor: Joan Friedman

Acquisitions Editor: Stacy Kennedy

Technical Editor: Michael Callaghan

Composition Services: Indianapolis Composition Services Department

Cover Photo: © COK/Vikki Hart/Getty Images

Cartoon: Rich Tennant, www.the5thwave.com

About the Author

Sarah Montague is a writer and producer for print and public radio. She has covered the Westminster Kennel Club dog show for WNYC and National Public Radio for the past four years and has written for such publications as Animal Times and Eventing. She is the coauthor of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Horses and the author of the forthcoming (from M. Evans) Riding in Primetime. She has also contributed cultural and animal-related features to nationally distributed programs such as Morning Edition, On the Media, and Studio 360. She lives with a cozy menagerie of dogs, cats, and rodents in upstate New York.

Dedication

To The Cowgirl Hall of Fame, where much of this book was written in good company, and to Emily and Charlotte, who taught me that big hearts come in small packages.

Contents

Title

Chapter 1: Hankering for a Hamster

How to Use This Book

What Is a Hamster?

Where Hamsters Come From: A Brief History

The Hamster Five: Meet the Species

Sizing Them Up: The Anatomy of a Hamster

Chapter 2: Is a Hamster Your Perfect Pet?

A Hamster in the House (or Apartment)

Sleepy Heads

Hammy, I Hardly Knew Ye: Lifespan

Small, Not Free

Chapter 3: Selecting a Hamster

Hamster Hunting: The Best Places to Look and Shop

Deciding on the Right Hamster for You

Shopping Like a Pro

Chapter 4: C’mon In: Setting Up Your Hamster’s Home and Getting Him There Safely

Home, Sweet Hamster

Temperature Control

Playtime

Well, You Wanted To Be a Parent: Hamster Housekeeping

Hamster-proofing Your House

Hamster on Board

Mi Casa, Su Casa: Welcoming Hamster Home

Chapter 5: Noshes, Nibbles, and Nuzzles: Caring for Your Hamster

Filling Those Pouches: Nutrition and Feeding

How Hamsters Eat

Sons of the Desert Need Water Too

Heart Like a Wheel

Bad Hair Days: Grooming Your Hamster

Hamster on the Loose

Chapter 6: Baby, What’s Your Sign? Getting to Know Your Hamster

A Twitch is Worth a Thousand Words

Boys Will Be Boys

Hamster Uglies: Dealing with Problem Behavior

A Handful of Hamster

Sex and the Single Hamster

Chapter 7: In the Pink: Hamster Health and Breeding Issues

The Healthy Hamster

Sneezes, Wheezes, and Other Hamster Health Problems

Aging Gracefully

Goodnight, Sweet Hamlet

Becoming a Hamster Grandparent

The Hams Are Out There: Ten Interesting Hamster Web Sites

Condensed Hamsters: Ten Common Questions

: Further Reading

Chapter 1

Hankering for a Hamster