Vince Carey, age 8, of Baltimore, Md., for his question:

HOW MANY BABIES DOES A HAMSTER HAVE?

Hamsters are rodents. The two best known kinds are the common,.

or European hamster, and the golden, or Syrian hamster. The golden hamster makes a good pet.

The female golden hamster breeds when it is seven to eight weeks old. A litter of six or seven young is born about 16 days after mating.

The common hamster grows to be about one foot long while the golden hamster only reaches a length of about five inches. The golden hamster has a very short tail, golden brown soft fur and weighs in at about four to five ounces.

The golden hamster is clean, gentle, lively and easy to care for. That's probably why it is often selected as a pet.

Hamsters eat grain, lettuce leaves, dog biscuits and other kinds of food. They cram their food into the cheek pouches until their faces look very fat. In the wilds, they are considered to be pests because they often damage crops.

Pet hamsters live for two to three years.