It was 1946. Albert Marsh lived in Mobile, Alabama. He had just won a bet.  

    His prize? A strange creature. It had fur, dark eyes, and large teeth. And it could fit in his hand.

    Marsh had won a Syrian hamster. He was fascinated by his new pet. It had a curious personality. It had adorable cheeks. A few of these animals had arrived in the U.S. just eight years earlier. They came from Syria, a country in Southwest Asia.

    The hamsters were brought to the U.S. for use in medical research. Marsh believed they could be great pets. He faced challenges selling them, though. Few Americans knew about them. And the hamster is closely related to the rat, a loathed pest. No one wanted rats crawling around their bedrooms!

    How could Marsh make Americans fall in love with hamsters?

    It was 1946. Albert Marsh of Mobile, Alabama, had just won a bet. 

    His prize? A strange creature with soft fur, dark eyes, and large teeth. It was so tiny it could fit in his hand.

    Marsh had just become the owner of a Syrian hamster. He found his new pet fascinating. It had a curious personality and adorable cheek pouches. A small number of these unusual animals had arrived in the U.S. just eight years earlier from Syria, a country in Southwest Asia.

    The hamsters were brought to the U.S. for use in medical research, but Marsh believed they could be amazing pets. He faced challenges in selling them, though, because few Americans knew about hamsters. In addition, the hamster is closely related to the rat, which was a loathed pest and not the kind of animal anyone wanted crawling around their bedroom.

    So how could Marsh make Americans fall in love with hamsters?

    Marsh believed the answer was yes. He got more hamsters. Then he bred them. Soon he had a large supply. Marsh asked a local store to put 12 of his hamsters in a window. They all sold in less than a day. The store wanted more. 

    Marsh quit his job. He focused on his new venture. His wife was scared. She thought he would lose all their money. But he didn’t. They got very rich.

    Marsh put ads for his hamsters in newspapers and magazines. He sold them to families. If you bought one, your hamster arrived by mail in a coffee can. The can had a potato inside. The hamster could nibble on it during the journey. 

    Marsh may have made as much as $4,000 a week. (That’s about $36,000 today!) Clearly, he had started a hamster craze. And it’s not surprising. Hamsters make great pets. They are energetic, clean, gentle, and cute. Soon, stores across America were selling them.

    Marsh believed the answer was yes. He got more hamsters, likely from a nearby research lab. Then he bred them and soon had a large supply. Marsh asked a local store to put 12 of his hamsters in a window, and in less than a day, every one of them had been sold. The store asked for more. 

    Eventually, Marsh quit his job to focus on his new venture. His wife was scared, sure that he would lose all their money. But they actually got very rich.

    Marsh advertised his hamsters in newspapers and magazines. He sold them to families looking for easy pets. If you bought one, your hamster would arrive by mail in a coffee can. It had a potato inside for the hamster to nibble on during its journey. 

    Many people believed that Marsh made as much as $4,000 a week. (That’s about $36,000 today!) Clearly, he had started a hamster craze. And it’s not surprising. Hamsters are energetic, clean, gentle, and cute, and they make great pets. Soon, stores across America were selling them.

    But by the early 1950s, Marsh’s business was in trouble. Many pet stores had started buying their hamsters from cheap backyard breeders. Then hamsters suffered an outbreak of a deadly disease called “wet tail.” With so many hamsters dying, it was harder to sell them. People moved on to other pets. Marsh’s business failed.

    The story of hamsters in America would not end there though. In 1971, an American scientist traveled to Syria. He caught new wild hamsters for research. He brought back about a dozen. Americans became interested in hamsters again. 

    Today hamsters are still a favorite pet in American homes and classrooms. And it’s all thanks to Albert Marsh. He knew hamsters had what it takes to make kids happy.     

    But by the early 1950s, Marsh’s business was in trouble. Many pet stores were buying their hamsters from cheap backyard breeders. Then a deadly disease called “wet tail” spread among hamsters. Many hamsters died. That made it harder to sell them. People chose other pets. Marsh’s business failed.

    But this was not the end of hamsters in America. In 1971, an American scientist went to Syria. He caught new wild hamsters for research. He brought back about a dozen. Americans became interested in hamsters once again. 

    Today, hamsters are still a favorite pet in America. And it’s thanks to Albert Marsh. He knew hamsters would make kids happy. 

    However, by the early 1950s, Marsh’s business was in trouble. Many pet stores had started buying their hamsters from cheap backyard breeders. Then hamsters suffered an outbreak of a deadly disease called “wet tail.” With so many hamsters dying, it became harder to sell them. People moved on to other pets, and Marsh’s business failed.

    The story of hamsters in America would not end there though. In 1971, an American scientist traveled to Syria and caught new wild hamsters for research. He brought back about a dozen. Americans became interested in hamsters again. 

    Today hamsters are still a favorite pet in American homes and classrooms, and it’s all thanks to Albert Marsh. He knew hamsters had what it takes to make kids happy.