World Hamster Day on April 12 is dedicated to these cute little rodents who
are easy to raise. All you need is a love for animals, and the dedication to
ensure all the pet’s needs are met.
It is estimated that hamsters have been around for at least
15 million years, but they were not domesticated until the 20th
century. This exciting development started when the zoologist Israel Aharoni
went on an expedition to look for Syrian hamsters in a cornfield on April 12,
1930. The 13 captured critters were then bred to produce the first domesticated
hamsters, with the entire population of pet Syrian hamsters (also known as
golden hamsters) actually descendants of this original group.
Pet hamsters quickly spread to places such as the US and UK,
although they remain in the wild in various European and Asian countries like
China, Belgium and Greece. Sadly, the wild version of the Syrian hamster is now
considered an endangered species.
These days the most popular type of household hamster is the
Syrian variant, with dwarf hamsters also very common. Like their fellow
rodents, they are widely used in laboratories as test subjects in the study of
various diseases and medical conditions such as lung cancer, gallstones and
pulmonary fibrosis.
No wonder these wonderful animals deserve a day of
celebration!
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