Do Hamsters Bond With Many People?

While your hamster may bond with a variety of people, it takes time for him to get over his natural fear of humans. Hamsters can be shy around humans, particularly strangers, and need bonding time to grow comfortable with affection like holding. If you skimp on that bonding time, your pet can forget about your bonds, so be sure to maintain your level of interaction if you want to retain his trust.

  1. Learned Sociability

    • Because hamsters are small and relatively defenseless compared to humans, they don't necessarily feel comfortable with physical affection like holding -- not at first, anyway. A hamster will bond with anyone who spends time with him, but it takes a few days of practice to reach a point at which he is consistently comfortable. Once he recognizes and trusts the person bonding with him, he'll feel more at ease and stop resisting affection.

    Understanding Identities

    • A hamster's willingness to bond with someone depends on that person's recognizability. This doesn't mean that you should wear the same shirt or hat every time you want to bond with your pet, though -- he doesn't have eyesight keen enough to distinguish people based on looks alone. Instead, speak gently to your hamster, as he will more easily recognize you by sound. He'll also recognize people by scent, so don't mask your natural aroma with cologne or perfume. When he recognizes a person's smell and sound, he'll happily bond with her.

    How to Handle

    • To convince your hamster to bond with you or anyone else, appeal to his appetite. Offer him treats from the palm of your hand, and soon he'll associate your presence with positive experiences. Eventually he'll feel comfortable climbing into your hand and being held. This method can be applied to any number of people, so long as you're patient -- forcibly picking up and holding your hamster will only earn you a bite.

    Regular Bonding Time

    • Your pet hamster may make plenty of human friends, but he won't necessarily remember them over time. Hamsters have relatively short memories, and if you don't play with your pet every day, he's liable to revert to his human-fearing ways. To maintain your bonds, you and anyone else who wants to bond with your hamster should spend time with him outside of the cage on a daily basis.