--- title: Hamsters, gerbils and pet rats and mice — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Hamsters, gerbils and pet rats and mice», a lesson of the biology course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: A hamster can stuff its cheeks so full of seeds that its head looks twice as wide, because stretchy pouches run all the way back t --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Biology](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/) / Hamsters, gerbils and pet rats and mice # Hamsters, gerbils and pet rats and mice Lesson 202 of the biology course of Mova's primary school: 16 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/0/) — A hamster can stuff its cheeks so full of seeds that its head looks twice as wide, because stretchy pouches run all the way back to its shoulders, like two shopping bags. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/1/) — In the wild a hamster carries that food home to its burrow at night, so a pet hamster sleeps all day and runs on its wheel while the family sleeps. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/2/) — Gerbils come from deserts, so they dig tunnels, drink very little and thump their back feet to warn each other, while pet rats are clever enough to learn their names and even laugh when tickled. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/3/) — Cartoons show Jerry the mouse stealing cheese, but real mice prefer seeds, grain and sweet things, and every small pet needs daily care, not just a cage in a corner. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/4/) — A hamster's cheek pouches stretch back to its shoulders, and it can carry a big load of food in them, some say up to half its body weight, to store in its burrow. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/5/) — Hamsters are active at night; in the wild they run many kilometres looking for food, so a pet needs a big solid wheel that keeps its back straight. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/6/) — A hamster woken suddenly is frightened and may bite, so it is best to let it wake up and come to you in the evening. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/7/) — Syrian hamsters live alone in the wild and attack other hamsters, so they must be kept one per cage, while some dwarf hamsters can live in pairs. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/8/) — Rodent front teeth have a hard orange layer and keep growing all their life, so yellow-orange teeth are normal and healthy. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/9/) — Gerbils come from deserts where they live in tunnels, so they love a deep layer of bedding to dig in. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/10/) — Gerbils drum their back feet to warn the colony of danger or when excited, and they are social, so they should live in pairs or groups. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/11/) — Gerbils save water by making very dry droppings and very little urine (wee), so they drink little and their cages smell less than many others. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/12/) — Pet rats are clever and friendly: they learn tricks and their names, and they chirp when tickled, a kind of laugh too high for people to hear without a machine. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/13/) — Mice do not especially love cheese; they prefer seeds, grains and sweet foods, and the cheese idea may come from old times when cheese was stored where mice could reach it. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/14/) — Small pets need clean bedding, fresh water, the right food and things to do every day, and hamsters live only about two to three years. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/202-hamsters-gerbils-and-pet-rats-and-mice/15/) — Mice, rats, hamsters and gerbils all walk on four legs; hamsters have a very short tail, while mice, rats and gerbils have long ones. - ← previous: [Guinea pigs: wheeks, popcorning and vitamin C](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/201-guinea-pigs-wheeks-popcorning-and-vitamin-c/) - next →: [The fish tank: water, gills, heaters and the right neighbours](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/203-the-fish-tank-water-gills-heaters-and-the-right-neighbours/) - ↑ back to [Biology](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/)