Species: Syrian

Gender: Female

Age/DOB: 13 April 2023

Likes: Running in her wheel, hanging her head off the edge of her wheel, burrowing, walnuts, hiding in plain sight

Dislikes: Grabby hands, asparagus, mealworms

Fosterer’s Instagram: @peppersfosterhome

Don’t let her small size fool you. Lyra may fit perfectly on your palm, but she will be one of the most dramatic hamsters you have ever met.

This dark-haired cutie recently became old enough to live away from her mother and siblings and sometimes screams like a panicked monkey when she is afraid, especially when strange hands suddenly approach her even if it is to give her some food. Otherwise, she will pull a panicked or disgusted face if you hold your hand near her before scampering off. She is slowly learning that the world isn’t as dangerous and as scary as it seems.

This cutie has fur that reminds her foster mum of the vast galaxy speckled with stars, planets, and constellations. Hence the name Lyra which is also the name of a constellation.

Being one of the fattest of her litter (this doesn’t mean much because everybody is tiny), she is inherently greedy and loves food. Of course, as a foodie, she also has some foods that she doesn’t like. It is up to her new family to give her the opportunity to discover which foods she loves and hates.

Lyra is a healthy girl and runs nightly in her wheel. Even though she is very small, she is able to run on a lightweight 22cm wheel, perhaps through sheer determination and willpower. She occasionally hangs out in her wheel, just staring out at nothing or literally hangs her head out of her wheel for fun like laundry on a bamboo pole.

Other times, she will be found sleeping while buried under copious amounts of soft paper bedding or behind her wheel where it is dark and quiet and nobody can find her.

Requirements

Cage: 90x50cm (4500cm²) or bigger

Wheel: As per HSS requirements but preferably one that’s lightweight as she is very small

Bedding: As per HSS requirements

Food: As per HSS requirements

Enrichment: As per HSS requirements