In memory of my little hamster friends.

I never know that a little friend like a pet animal can hold so much power and

influence over mankind until recently.            
            

In the last 3 years, I acquire the joy of rearing hamster as pet. Yes, I raise cute adorable little hamsters of all kinds from Roborovskis to local black, sapphire and white winter Russian one including yellow Pudding too.

I wake up each morning to a “good morning’ greeting to them and that’s how my day jumpstarts with the pleasure and the excitement of their presence.

Almost daily, I clean them up so that they become spick and span, smelling better than the night before.

With every cleaning task, I begin to understand their absolute trust and total dependence they have, with me being their owner and giant buddy.

They depend entirely on me to take care of their needs, to feed them and to fill up their food bowls and water bottles regularly.

Without me, they cannot go far and cannot live well. Hmm, that’s a huge responsibility which by now I see!

These give me a tinge of greater understanding of every parent has towards their wards, which as a trustworthy guardian will take care of all their matters concerning these helpless brood.

How well they fare, how far they go in their individual lives and how well taken care of are all fully in my total command.

Hence my little pets instil the sense of responsibility as any parent has into me.

It’s the little joy and the fun of this guardianship that keeps me on. Each time as I look at them, they just simply soften me and gladden my heart and they bring out the gentleness in me as a mother will tender her tiny babe.

My little friends are so unique and so distinctive. They are my little companions as they give me much comfort after my late mother’s death.

They accept me as I am, do not complain for all I do for them except for their annoyed bites or nervous squeals if they are displeasured.

They never once despise me or look down at me as some man or woman may , they never once question my motive or my intention, they have complete confidence in me , with the full assurance that all that I do are for their best.

They are always there for me, make me de-stress and relax when I feel frustrated and angry.

Each time I spend time with them, they make me laugh in the midst of uncertainty, they entertain me as a clown can and they bring out the tender side of me. I play with them after each dinner and they have now become my ‘after-dinner mints’.

One favorite hamster, Moonie will sleep on my tummy every afternoon when I take a nap. Another favorite one , Luki will play with a plastic ball that has an inbuilt bell, so especially in the morning during my waking up moment, she reminds me of a morning rooster that crows as my morning alarm clock.

Numerous deaths and four pregnancies remind me about the cycle of life.

Together in all, I have about 14 babies from them. The most exciting is when one yellow Pudding hamster named Dili reproduces with one black male one, Roy Roy.

Their babies are 3 grey, one male and 2 female and one black female one. These events teach me about reproduction of life and about hereditary chromosomes and whatnot, more than the theoretical biology lesson of the school.

My first encounter with their first birth came unexpectedly. Whilst cleaning one cage of Cutie one morning, I briefly saw some crawling red ‘worm like’ things. For a brief moment, I thought that they were maggots that sprouted from last night veggies which I gave to them.

Looking closely again gave me a jolt as there were five wriggling rosy worm- like tiny babies, so I shouted loud enough to catch the attention of the whole household.

With all these experiences, several neighbors soon became my fan or rather the fan of my hamsters. So over the gate of my apartment, I gave them quick biology lessons on the difference between male and female hamsters, and about the genetic lineage of the mixed parentage.

When my young neighbors had troubles with their hamsters, they would consult me to how to find their lost hamster, on how to feed when they were sick, so I rewarded them with these babies to be their pets.

One thing that these hamsters teach me is their constant fight to stay alive. If anyone put them together that have different smell or are of different type, they will fight for their own space and own territory.

When bathing one hamster once, I inadvertently almost drowned it but it would not give up its life. It turned blue, and bluer but it still would not give up. It gasped for air and more air, drawing in air, in and out with a loud hissing sound, in and out for a long time whilst I held my breath but eventually, it survived to live on again for a few more months though definitely, this episode gave me a fright but also gave me a valuable lesson on the value of each life.

All my hamsters have names such as Moonie, Minnie, Ashley, Cody, Lin Lin, Silver, Wiki, Puteh, Happy, Rusty, Randy, Dodi, Dili , Cutie, Sweetie, Luki, Roy Roy and so many other which I have forgotten by now but every name is recorded in one register notebook.

All in all, these little creatures provide me with companionship, give a listening ear when I want to voice out my secret thoughts, comfort me when I need some cheer, makes me more patient and more tolerant and give me a sense of achievement after all.

So thank you all my little hamster friends, for all the joy and pleasure and thank you for a great lasting memories of another phase of my life when they are so special and so precious as a worthy matchless treasure of mine.

Thank you, all my darling hamsters. I love you all very much. To all the memories of all these darling, I salute them all.