Australia is home to different animal species with its vast landscape and beautiful ecosystem. Like hopping kangaroos, reptiles, and even different families of frogs, the bushland in Australia is always full of life no matter where you are. Noting this, you might want to bring home one and have them as pets hamsters; however, not all can be domesticated and kept at home as a friendly pet hamster you can cuddle when you just want some good loving.
Perhaps, dogs and cats might be your best choice. They are usually found in homes all over the world, and can even be trained to behave. Yet, when you want to downsize your pets to something that’s just so little where you can bring it with you, you might want a pet hamster as a best mate; fitting right on the palm of your hands with fingertips smaller than a grain of rice, hamsters are just too cute not to be considered as a house pet you want to have at home.
However, Hamsters are not popularly known in Australia. Though they look like squirrels that just run and climb in your backyard all day long, they are quite uncommon for Australia’s ecosystem. They might have been brought to the country centuries ago, but the population of hamsters in the Aussie landscape is less than 1/4th of the Kangaroos, and are deemed as not native to the country’s habitat. Hence, when you live in Australia, hamsters can be thought of as an invasive species, that may even be a threat to the ecosystem.
Are Hamsters Pets or Pests?
Surprisingly, hamsters are not welcome in the Australian landscape. Though they may look harmless, hamsters are considered pests as you may liken them to rats. Consequently, these illegal pets are similar to other uncommon animals in Australia, where they can wreak havoc inside the country – nonetheless, it is restricted to import such animals, as to preserve the welfare and the environment.
Why are Hamsters a Threat in Australia?
As per the 1999 Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, non-native animals should be banned from entering Australia. This is backed by the fact that all imported animals to Australia before have posed a breath threat to the biodiversity and native species, where they compete for food and habitat with native animals to cause extinction, and all the more poses a problem with plant conservation as they can overly consume them once they overpopulate the landscape without proper regulation. Hence, animals, crops, and agriculture will be greatly affected, as hamsters can prey on them once they compete for food. Therefore, these rodents are prolific breeders, and it will eventually be a problem to the Australian ecosystem in the long run.
Alternative Pets to Hamsters in Australia
Hamsters may be an invasive animal, but guinea pigs can be your alternative to hamsters. Guinea Pigs aren’t considered invasive in Australia, and they can be as cute and affectionate as hamsters. Guinea pigs are as cute as hamsters, and they’re legal to be owned and kept as home pets.
More so, you may also keep rabbits as a pet. Though they can be bigger in size, yet they can also behave well and be cuddly without posing a great threat to the Australian environment.
