Rodent, mamber of the mammalian order Rodentia, the approximately species are divided on the basis of their anatomy into three well-defined groups, or suborders, and more than 30 families. They are variously adapted for running, jumping, climbing, burrowing, swimming and gliding. characterized by front teeth adapted for gnawing and cheek teeth adapted for chewing.
Rodents have enlarged, chisel-shaped upper and lower front incisors that grow throughout their lives. These have hard enamel on the front surface and soft dentine on the back surface, so that unequal wear keeps the chisel edge sharp. There is a gap between the front teeth and the cheek teeth. When the lower jaw is in a forward position, for gnawing, the upper and lower incisors are in contact but the upper and lower cheek teeth are not, wear on the cheek teeth is avoided. The cheeks are drawn in behind the incisors rhen the animal is gnawing, so that bits of hard material cannot be swallowed. When the lower jaw is pulled back into the chewing position, only the cheek teeth make contact.
Hamster are Rodents
Hamsters are rodent that belong to the third suborder momorpha, or mouselike rodents after sciuromorpha or squirrelike rodents and hystriomorpha or porpupinelike rodents. Hamsters belong to the rodent family having large incisor teeth that are continually growing necessitating gnawing to prevent the teeth from overgrowing. The word 'rodent' is derived from the latin word 'rodere' which means 'to gnaw'. Within each Genera are various species of hamster. There are many different species of hamsters throughout the world and most hamsters inhabit semi-desert areas where they live in burrows. These burrows consist of many tunnels and separate chambers including chambers where the hamster will store food and sleep. Hamsters are nocturnal, sleeping during the hot days and waking in the cooler evenings. They have very poor eyesight but a keen sense of smell and excellent hearing.Most species of hamsters have expandable cheek pouches in which they can carry food and bedding back to their burrow where they will store food. The word 'hamster' comes from the German word 'hamstern' which means 'to hoard'.Only a few hamster species are widely kept as pets but the hamster is the most popular of the smaller rodents kept as a pet in many countries today. The other the most popular rodents as a pet are gerbils, mice, rats, and guinea pigs.
