Breeder Article: Are Robo Hamsters Social?

Breeder Article: Are Robo Hamsters Social?

In the hamster community, it is often a very popular belief that *all* hamsters are “strictly solitary”. While this may be broadly true for some species, from the experience of breeders who work with a variety, it becomes quickly apparent that each of the different species have very different social behaviors and tendencies.

It is, in my opinion, a grave disservice to these animals to treat them as they have the exact same preferences and behaviors.

Syrians (Mesocricetus auratus), we can pretty much collectively agree that it’s not a great idea to house together. While we don’t have much information on their true behaviors in the wild, their general reaction to another individual is sufficient evidence for our ‘domestic’ population. 

From the advice of longtime breeders in Europe and observations of breeders in the US, Winter Whites (Phodopus Sungorus) tend to become aggressive towards the same sex, approaching maturity — therefore it is not advised to cohouse Winter Whites with members of the same species, unless they are a breeding pair. “Winter Whites have the least developed social structure of the three Phodopus species.  In the wild, male territories may overlap one or more female territories and opposite sex pairs may occasionally occupy the same den. While the male may be present and sit on the nest during the breeding season, he does not actively participate in raising the offspring and there is no known benefit for pup survival.” (excerpt from breeder Deborah S.)

The closely related Russian Campbell dwarfs (Phodopus campbelli), on the other hand, tend to live and breed quite harmoniously in large colonies. Male Campbells make excellent fathers, and the older litters will assist their parents in raising their younger siblings.

(Group of Robos, left to right: Velvet, Gingersnap, Manny, Stormy, Fox)

Onto Robos. Robos absolutely can live together, in fact, they typically prefer company. It’s often said that they must be littermates to stay together, but that’s not a requirement from my experience. I have longstanding colonies of female Robos that are unrelated — and it is not difficult at all to introduce new members of the colony.

Similarly to fancy mice, female Robos are typically pretty easy to keep together, and accept new members of the colony quite readily. Males, however, I’ve found can be trickier. Those who are familiar with rodent husbandry may understand that both breeders and owners heavily advise against keeping male mice (bucks) with individuals of the same sex. As they mature, mouse bucks will become heavily competitive and aggressive towards one another. 

However, that information does come with a footnote. The mouse fancy (breeding community) in the UK has had a long history, with generations of dedicated breeders who have selected their mice to be as close to their ideal as possible. For some lines/breeders, one of the traits they have sought is producing bucks that will live harmoniously with one another. According to some, bloodlines that have yielded extremely laid back males can have difficulties with fertility — and it is suggested that perhaps it is due to a decrease in testosterone (which may cause male on male aggression).

How does this relate to male Robos? In general, I would say that Robos seem much closer in behavior to mice than the other hamster species. It is perfectly achievable to have larger groups of female Robos, like female mice are typically kept (though with certain considerations in environment, like making sure the enclosure is not too large. Is that surprising? We’ll get to that later….). 

However, I do feel that the same-sex social status of male Robos is much more ambiguous. In the beginning, when scoping out whether my  retired adult males who have sired offspring could co-exist, the answer very much seemed to point to “no”. When Robos are feeling hostile towards one another, it is quite apparent.

Introduction Behaviors of Robos

When a Robo is meeting someone new in a neutral space, and doesn’t feel any need to be hostile, they will briefly meet face to face, with their faces slightly pointed upwards, like so:

On the left is “Ron @ Granted Chaos” (male), and on the right is “Milkbun Melonpan” (female).

When introducing a female to another female, or a female to a group of females, they will usually immediately resume zooming around in the neutral container after a moment. That’s a good, healthy sign. 

When introducing a male and a female, right after this moment, the male will usually begin to chase the female around, and try to get her on her back to sniff her genitals, like so:

On the left is “Milkbun Cinnamoroll” (male), and on the right is “Cannoli @ Milkbun” (female).

After a few seconds, they will resume zooming around. 

A mature male + mature male interaction will usually result in the two meeting face-to-face, squinting at one another, then raising one arm stiffly high (at ear level), and maintaining this posture while holding very still. They can also begin to chitter angrily at one another. This is a guarantee of a fight, and a fight will likely occur in the next few seconds. 

That’s not to say that it is “never” possible, though, or even uncommon to have males that live well together. I have spoken to breeders in Europe that will keep groups of brothers (and usually their father as well), and they have been totally fine for a long time. I’ve also vhad an experience where I experimented with keeping six littermates together (of mixed sex, but majority male) well into adulthood, and they were the happiest group of hamsters I’ve ever seen. Zero squabbling like normal, always together, and interestingly — never bred. 

I also have an adult male and younger male paired, that accepted one another very readily. They sleep together, groom, and just get along splendidly. By contrast, the younger male’s littermate brother exhibited aggression towards his male siblings at a slightly younger age.

In conclusion, most likely, males in groups—especially littermates or those introduced together from a young age—tend to get along. However, mature males who have sired a litter are likely to view other males as competitors once they’ve experienced breeding, making it harder for them to coexist peacefully.

On the left is “Dracon” (male), and on the right is “Lapis” (female).

One of the great things about Roborovskis is that, in your first meeting, you can often tell right away how well they’ll get along with each other. Unlike gerbils, which sometimes ‘declan’ or fall out after living peacefully for a long time (often due to exposure to a foreign scent), Robos generally don’t seem to have this issue.  

In my experience, I’ve never seen this happen with Robos. I handle each of my groups freely, without worrying about transferring scents between them, and they never seem bothered. Once a group is established, they rarely fall out or become unsettled with each other.  My Robos are happy and thriving in their pairs and groups, and I don’t have to worry about sudden conflicts. 

This stability is something people who are new to cohousing or those who haven’t tried it may not expect. In the next section, we’ll go over some important considerations when cohousing Robos and why it can sometimes be challenging for beginners.

Considerations when Cohousing Robos

 

From my experience of 10+ years with Robos, both keeping them as pets and as a breeder, two factors can greatly affect cohousing success:

1) Environment 

2) Genetic temperament

In the hamster community, you will often hear the phrase: “When you want to cohouse, double the space and have two of everything”. Unfortunately, this advice is not correct, and should not be taken when cohousing.

Robos are much more sensitive to space and environment changes than many other species of hamster. While Syrians, Campbells, and Winter Whites may not usually mind if their enclosure suddenly increases in size or may not seem to even notice, it can drastically alter the behavior of Robos. While their typical demeanor when first taken into captivity was noted to be usual of especially tiny prey rodents with intense “flight” drive, their temperaments are fully capable of improving through selective breeding. However, too large of an enclosure can revert them back to their predator-conscious instincts.

I have experimented with different cage sizes while keeping Robos. In one notable instance, I had an established trio of female Robos — one older and two younger. As mentioned previously, my Robos do not fight. I work from home, in the same room as my hamstery, so if something goes on, I can hear it very clearly. 

The trio had been living quite happily in their bin, when one day I happened across a spare cage I had in storage. This cage was probably about double the size of their original bin. Curious to see how they might like it, I added the trio into this large cage. Now, this trio (Cannoli, Carrie, and Nana) had been living quite happily for several months. They were some of my MOST outgoing hamsters, with Cannoli being a very important part of my breeding program, as she consistently produced amazing temperaments.

They were fine for the first few days in the larger cage, but suddenly they stopped coming out of the den to greet me. I began to hear squeaking (which is not a good sign, Robos tend to be silent when play-fighting or good natured wrestling) and saw chasing. When I would try to pick them up like usual, they would run away quite frantically. Worried that this may escalate, I moved the three back into their original bin. The switch was immediate. Pretty much overnight, they were friendly towards me again, and there was no more abnormal behavior. They lived together happily after that. (Until the younger girls went to their new home, and then I added the older girl to my colony of retired females, where she still lives today).

I have experienced the same with my single males. After being separated from their mates (reasons being either to retire a female, or because there was a different male I was interested in pairing her with instead), my males tended to become quite withdrawn, scarce, and lose weight. 

If they get along in their cage, I would heavily avoid upgrading. If you upgrade and they begin to fight, they usually go back to normal in their original cage size. 

In terms of genetic temperament, there are some Robos that may come from bloodlines that can be more aggressive or dominant. I have not found this to be especially common, cage size seems to be the cause of people having issues with pairs most of the time, but like all animals, they can have individual temperaments.

 

Robos tend to be more content and happy when being with their own! If you have a pair/or more of Robos at the moment, and they’re doing well, I would advise against drastic size changes. They do so well together, choosing to sleep in a pile, grooming time, etc.