Hamsters have a lot of different behaviors that can seem really odd to us owners.
One of those behaviors that can look kinda odd is when they start to vibrate. So why do hamsters vibrate?
Hamsters vibrate to express different feelings like happiness or nervousness and they can also vibrate when they start to feel cold as well.
So as their owners it’s important that we know what they’re trying to communicate when they start to vibrate.
That way we can take care of them better and even try to make their lives a little bit easier.
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Reasons Why A Hamster Will Vibrate
Have you ever noticed that your hamster will sometimes seem to vibrate a lot?
Well, there are four main reasons why a hamster would vibrate and they are:
- When your hamster is happy.
- When they’re nervous.
- When your hamster is scared.
- If they’re feeling cold.
When a hamster is trying to express some form of happiness sometimes they may start to vibrate.
You can usually see this when you are petting them or just playing with them in general.
If they’re vibrating out of happiness then you’ll notice that they won’t seem so scared around you and they might even willingly climb on you and play with you.
A hamster can also vibrate when they’re nervous about something. This can happen even when a hamster is used to you because they can be nervous and still trust you at the same time.
When a hamster starts vibrating sometimes that can mean that they’re scared too.
That can usually happen when you first bring them home after you’ve adopted them and they’re not fully used to you or their new environment yet.
If that’s the case, then you’ll have to take some steps to try to help get your hamster to keep calm.
Sometimes hamsters vibrate when they’re just cold as well. Hamsters are small animals and they can lose their body heat really fast, so they can get cold very quickly especially when the room that they’re in is cold.
Is It Common For A Hamster To Vibrate?
Hamsters have a few odd behaviors that they’ll show every now and then, and vibrating is one of them.
It can be hard for them to verbally communicate so it’s actually really common for a hamster to vibrate so that they can show how they’re feeling at the time.
So when your hamster is vibrating sometimes you might be able to see them doing it when you look into their cage.
If your hamster is comfortable enough with you to let you hold them, then you may be able to even feel them doing it as well.
Sometimes a hamster can seem like they’re vibrating and it’s not for a reason like when they’re happy or scared of something too.
Because of their small bodies, hamsters can have a fast heartbeat and if you look closely at them that can make it seem like they are vibrating.
It’s also common to see them look like they’re vibrating when they’re breathing fast as well.
It’s normal to see this happen after they’re done running around and playing or after they’re done exercising too much on their running wheel.
Should You Be Worried That Your Scared Hamster Is Vibrating?
Because hamsters vibrating can seem like odd behavior, it’s natural to wonder if there should be any reason to be concerned when they do this.
However, in most cases, it’s usually really nothing to worry too much about though.
Hamsters are considered prey animals, and prey animals can spend a decent amount of time on high alert.
When a hamster is on high alert sometimes what they’re mainly doing is trying to assess the environment around them that they are currently in.
That way they can figure out what they should do next, like if they need to run away and hide or if it’s okay for them to stay where they’re at.
You may even notice that your hamster will start to vibrate or shake as they’re frozen in place if they’re really scared of something.
So if they’re vibrating but not trying to run away and hide from you and they still come up to you, then at least you’ll know that you shouldn’t be worried that they’re scared of you at the time.
Because they wouldn’t vibrate and keep coming up to you if they’re scared of something.
Will A Hamster Always Vibrate?
So if it’s normal for a hamster to vibrate, does that mean that they will always display this type of behavior?
When it comes to hamsters, generally this is something that they’ll consistently do.
So what you’ll see is them vibrate every now and then as their lives go on. The reason why is that there are so many factors that can make a hamster start to vibrate.
As I said before hamsters will usually look like they’re vibrating when their heart rate goes up after they’re done playing or exercising.
They will run around and play throughout their lives so for that reason, that vibrating behavior will never really go away.
On the other hand, the vibrating behavior can end up slightly going away after a while if they were doing it because they were nervous.
Most of the time if your hamster is vibrating because they are nervous or scared of something, that can go away over time as they start to get used to you and the environment that they are in.
So if your hamster does vibrate a lot, it’s usually nothing to worry about even when they do it throughout their lives.
It’s completely normal behavior for them that you’ll see after they’ve been really active or when they’re trying to express their feelings.