Teacher with a hamster

[ShaylaG]

Hi! I’ve decided to adopt a hamster and have him as a class pet for my 1st grade classroom.
I’ve had him for a week so far at home. He only comes out at night and isn’t quite ready for human interaction.
I plan to take him to school with me.
Would it be super stressful for him to have two homes? Ideally I take him home on the weekends. I’d love to take him home every night because I really want him to love me!

Here’s Gus! How do I determine how old he is? He’s so small.

 

[Maz]

Hello. Gus is adorable All I can say is - please don't! It's really not fair on hamsters to be classroom pets. They are supposed to be asleep during the day and awake at night and some get very stressed by all the handling and interaction and noise. Even traumatised. I don't know if there is another type of pet that would be suitable for a classroom, but hamsters aren't suitable as classroom pets.

And yes, also, they get stressed by change. They need to have one environment they live in. Even moving their cage to a different room can cause a lot of stress. Or cleaning them out too often, or changing things in the cage too often. They seem to need stability. They are a prey species and also quite sensitive. I know it's hard when they are adorably cute. But it would be better if he just lived with you. And I'm sure he will love you and bond with you.

 

[Lovelyness]

I agree with @Maz. He is lovely, and will be a wonderful pet for you at home...but not at school.

 

[Socks' Mum]

Yes, hamsters are prone to problem behaviours and don't cope with change tho their home territory well at all. An over stimulated hamster could start biting and develop stereotypical behaviour such as constant bar biting and bar climbimg. Syrians can be quite difficult pets to satisfy and can be very restless and stressy. They generally like people but need time to sleep and privacy in their nest. They are still quite wild in nature. Fish could make good classroom pets perhaps. Congratulations on your little one, he is so sweet. Socks looked just like him as a baby. He is probably only about eight weeks old ❤

 

[Socks' Mum]

I think the issue with classroom pets is that you could get a watch only pet, like fish for instance, but getting a pet who will enjoy being handled could be tricky. I think the most sociable small furries are probably pet rats, but even they would need quite strict boundaries around handling. Rabbits and guinea pigs can get to the stage where they enjoy having their heads gently scratched or even having their backs stroked, but being picked up is an issue as they are so fragile, and also often they are quite resistant to being taken hold of and lifted up. Being dropped even from a low height can be fatal. They also need time and space to graze intensively and are quite high maintenance pets with potentially big vet bills and need quite a lot of cleaning. Long haired bunnies and piggies need a bit of coat maintenance every day. It depends on what the children expect and need from a pet. If the kids are happy to just watch most of the time with perhaps a very short, gentle interaction, furries might work. Male Syrians will stay in their burrows asleep all day though and very rarely enjoy being stroked. Their eyes are designed for night vision and they can't really see well in the daytime. I hope you stay on the forum and we see more of cute little Gus ❤

 

[Maz]

Fish is a good idea