Phodopus sungorus (Russian dwarf hamster)

Origin: Russian dwarf hamsters come from southwest and central Siberia.
Length: 8 cm
Age: 1 to 3 years.
Russian dwarf hamsters are one of the different hamster species that are often kept in the Netherlands. They have become especially popular because of their sweet character and endearing appearance. They are not very good at climbing and jumping, but that does not matter at all. They are also super easy to care for.

Grooming
Experience: None
Food: Russian dwarf hamsters have special dwarf hamster food that is well-suited to the needs of dwarf hamsters. So this is the right basic food. Occasionally you can give something to gnaw at, such as fruit, but do not give it too often. 1x a week is enough.
Water bowl: Not required.
Water bottle: Yes.
Change water: Daily.

Food
You need a stone bowl for feeding. Make sure it is stable and cannot be quickly overturned. You must also ensure that the tray cannot be contaminated with soil cover and fertilizer.
Water: You can use a regular rodent bottle with a metal nipple for the water bottle. But if you want to opt for a stone water bowl, you must ensure that it cannot be easily knocked over and cannot be contaminated with ground cover.
Cleaning: You only have to clean the entire cage of a hamster once a week. This is because dwarf hamsters often have a fixed angle where they defecate. So if you put a bowl in this corner you can easily remove it from the loft and clean it separately. You must then clean this container every two days.
You also have the daily cleaning jobs of the food and water bowl (or bottle). This must be done every day.
Handling: The best way to handle the Russian dwarf hamster is to scoop it up with two hands folded together like a bowl. Russian dwarf hamsters are also very easy to tame, so if you hand feed the animal a few times, the animal will eventually step on your hand. Make sure that the animal does not fall off your hand. Russian dwarf hamsters have a very poor depth picture and therefore see little depth.

Housing
Minimum enclosure size for 1 hamster: 70 x 40 x 30 cm.
Temperature: 15 to 23 degrees. If the temperature drops below 15 degrees, the animal will go into a kind of hibernation.
Hours of light: 12 hours (no special heat lamp or extra light needed.)
Ground cover: Russian dwarf hamsters need a good layer of ground cover because they like to dig. They need a minimum layer of ground cover of 20 cm. This ground cover can consist of: grain residues, hemp fibers, linen residues or fine hardwood grains. If your hamster is allergic to this, you can also use Miscanthus litter.
Furnishing: There must be a food and water bowl (or a water bottle) in the loft. Furthermore, the animal must have a few sleeping houses and a small sandbox, so that the animal can roll in here and clean its coat. You can use chinchilla sand for this sand bath.
A running wheel is also handy to have. This must have a minimum diameter of 20 cm for the campbelli dwarf hamster.

Behaviour
Way of life: Russian dwarf hamsters mainly live solitary. That is why it is not recommended to keep two animals of the same sex. Couples (male and female) often go well.
Furthermore, Russian dwarf hamsters like to dig, which is why they also need a good layer of ground cover. These animals prefer not to climb, because they have a poor depth image. They will, however, use stairs and sloping tubes.

Character:
Russian dwarf hamsters are very friendly and calm by nature. They will not bite quickly and are easy to tame. This is because they are naturally a bit more scared. If they are really scared, they can lie on their back and start screaming.
They can also come across as a bit territorial if you try to pick them up in their cage.
Points of attention:
Be careful if you let your hamster walk around the room. The animals sometimes want to chew on power cables and this is very dangerous for the animals and your devices.

Cost and Purchase
Legislation: None
One-off costs: The one-off costs include the costs for the stay, the food bowl, the water bowl, shelters, toys and other fixed things in the accommodation. This can run into the hundreds of euros depending on the size and quality of the items.
Fixed costs: For fixed costs we are talking about the costs for the feed and sand for the sand bath. This can run into tens of euros per year.
Unexpected costs: Unexpected costs can also be added. This can happen if your animal gets sick and has to go to the vet.