Hamsters, Gerbils, Guinea pigs

[reptilegirl07]

Does anyone breed any of these?

I have someone who really needs guinea pigs so I'm thinking of breeding those guy as well as hamsters and gerbils. Can they be racked the same way as rats? What size mesh should I use for the hamsters and gerbils?

Any photos of your setup?

Advice for successful breedings

[jasbus]

I breed about everything...
You don't want to breed guinea pigs, it's a pain. they take months to birth instead of weeks. They drink 32oz of water, and pee out 3 gallons. Constant maintenance. I actually stopped breeding them "again" this year.
As for hamsters, they are all a bit different, depends on what species. I don't rack any hamsters, as they need more light than rats/mice to breed. I find it easier to breed them in lab cages. Dwarf species are total light breeders, need to be set up on a 12-14 hour light cycle to breed. Syrians, you have to keep the males seperate from the males, and can be challenging... females are little b!tch@s. They love to eat the males.
Gerbils, well, they're gerbils. They chew like ASF's, but overall they are pretty decent once you get them going. Sometimes they can take a while to get going. Very clean animals, one of my favorite.

[reptilegirl07]

Thanks for the info. I have about 200 or so lab cages I could use. Do they eat rodent block?
I'm assuming the dwarfs are better breeders?

I'm trying to figure out where to get stock.

Can you give me a little more info about the pains in the arses (guinea pigs). I have someone who wants large quantities and think I want to try.

I'm also breeding rabbits if you have any tips on that. I have almost all the caging done being built and have about 50 rabbits.

[jasbus]

If you have time, guinea pigs aren't too bad, they are just time consuming. They always need cleaning. I've stopped breeding them time and time again, then, I'll start up again, and can't wait to stop! I use rabbit food and Vitamin C preservative mixed in the water. Works out cheaper than guinea pig food... And, I give them timothy hay too, and what's left over from the greens I cut up for my herps...
As for hamsters, I use Mazuri 6F for them, and I also use sweet feed for horses, a 50/50 mix, has grain/corn/oats, covered in molasses. Kind of rounds out their diet...and it's cheap. I use probably 75% blocks, and 25% sweet feed....

[reptilegirl07]

Okay cool. I guess, last question (I think). How many breeding groups would I need to have 200 hamsters and gerbils weaned each month and 20 guinea pigs?

Also, sent u a pm

[tomfromtheshade]

Is there any reason why you are picking the worst rodent species for breeders?

Mice, rats and rabbits are the most popular rodent feeders for a reason. They are easy to house, easy to breed, and they are highly productive.

Guinea pigs usually have less than 6 babies, they're pregnant for about 9 weeks, and they're just not a great choice. If you have a reptile that east guinea pig size prey I would suggest that you breed rabbits instead. They're a much better choice.

[reptilegirl07]

I breed rats, mice, asf rats and rabbits. I have someone who wants to buy hundreds of rats, mice, asf's, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, and any other small mammal I can handle breeding. They offered me a good price per animal, monthly orders, etc and I want to try to make the orders.

That's why I want to breed them. =-)

[jasbus]

What kind of hamsters?
Syrians are like ball pythons, you have to know which ones to breed with which ones in order to get your colors...
Dwarfs, I like winter whites, they don't bite like the DJ's...

On average, your dwarfs put out about 4-10 per 21-24 day cycle.
Syrians, up to 15-16 per 21 day cycle, but you have to introduce the male to the female, unlike the dwarfs, which can stay in together.

[reptilegirl07]

I think, to make things easier, i'd go with dwarfs but i'll ask my contact which types he need.

[jasbus]

Everyone wants the evil teddy bears...