Dianna Malone, age 13, of Brownsville, Tex., for her question:

WHERE DOES THE WILD HAMSTER LIVE?

Hamsters are rodents, like rats and mice. The two best known kinds are the common or European hamster and the golden or Syrian hamster.

Wild hamsters make their homes in deep and complex tunnels. They come out at night to look for grain and vegetables to eat. They cram food into large internal cheek pouches and carry it back to their tunnels. They live wild in Europe and western Asia where they are considered to be pests because they damage crops.

The golden hamster, which grows to be about five inches long, makes a clean, gentle, lively and easy to care for pet. Living with humans, he eats grain, lettuce leaves, dog biscuits and many other kinds of food.