Yes, hamsters can indeed exhibit the behavior of eating their young, a phenomenon known as "cannibalism of offspring." This behavior is primarily caused by the following factors:
Environmental Stress and Fright
If a hamster is disturbed by noise or frequent interruptions (such as humans touching the pups or moving the cage) during childbirth or lactation, it may harm its young due to stress. The mother hamster might misjudge the environment as dangerous and "eliminate the threat" by eating her offspring.
Key Measures: Provide a quiet, hidden environment for rearing the young. Avoid direct contact with the pups—use chopsticks if you need to move them.
Nutritional Deficiency
When food is insufficient during pregnancy or lactation, the mother hamster may consume her young as a source of nutrients. A lack of protein and energy can trigger this behavior.
Solution: Increase high-protein foods (such as mealworms, boiled egg whites) and ensure an adequate supply of staple food to keep the mother in good health.
Offspring Defects and Natural Selection
Mother hamsters instinctively eliminate weak, deformed, or underdeveloped pups to concentrate resources on nurturing healthy offspring. This is a common survival strategy in the animal kingdom.
Note: Human intervention should be cautious. Forcibly keeping weak pups may reduce the overall survival rate.
Inexperience and Scent Confusion
First-time mother hamsters may accidentally harm their young due to unfamiliarity with the rearing process. Additionally, if human scent the pups, the mother may attack them because she fails to recognize them.
Recommendation: Choose experienced mother hamsters for breeding. During the rearing period, use gloves or tools to minimize scent interference.
Other Factors
Male Hamster Threat: Unseparated male hamsters may attack the pups to compete for mating rights, so strict isolation is necessary.
Space Stress: A too-small cage or high-temperature environment can make the mother hamster irritable, increasing the risk of cannibalism.
By optimizing breeding conditions—such as maintaining a stable environment, providing sufficient nutrition, and reducing disturbances—the occurrence of such behavior can be significantly reduced.