THE most beautiful and best behaved rodents were celebrated at an annual show on Saturday.

The Southern Hamster Club, which was were founded 55 years ago, held its annual Andover show at The Coronation Hall, Clanville.

There were two sections to the show; pedigree and pet classes.

The pedigree section allowed breeders and serious exhibitors to enter their hamsters which were judged to a written standard on their colour and markings, shape and size as well as tameness and condition.

The pet classes allowed owners to enter their furry friends to be showcased against other prized companions.

Categories were also open to rabbits and rodents, including rats, guinea pigs, mice and gerbils.

In the pedigree section, the Dwarf hamster category was won by Aquila, owned by Wendy Barry, Southern Hamster Club secretary.

While the Syrian hamster section was taken by Jean Tye and David Baglin of Tristar Hamsters, and the pet category was won by a Netherland Dwarf rabbit.

Wendy said: “It was a really good show, with a steady stream of people turning up and a lot people from Andover and quite a lot of pedigree hamsters coming.”

During the day there were also stalls for pet owners, with information on how to look after the rodents, especially handling the creatures.