russian dwarf hamster losing weight

[Veer]

Did you hamster continue to loose weight every winter and gaining in spring?
How was she with her food? Did she also kept hoarding every bit?
And did she go to a winter white fur?

I wonder why they feel the nees to do thia in captivity, without temperature drop. Maybe some are affected by the shorter daylight like someone told me. But i think it is natural then? Even though it is not needed to do, i think it will not harm the hamsters health?

 

[elusive]

I wonder if it’s just that she lost weight when you changed to the Getzoo food which wasn’t right for her & then when she got the Bunny food there’s a natural instinct to hoard more of that in case it becomes scarce again so she keeps hoarding & just eating the pellets.
I think if you give it some time now not changing anything so she has a continuous supply of both Bunny & pellets she may settle down into a more normal eating pattern & hoard a bit less.
Weigh her about once a week for a month or so & see how that goes.

It’s natural to worry about them, we all do & probably more so with a first hamster (I’m sure I did although it was a long time ago!) but she is healthy, she looks really well in the video so I don’t think you have anything to worry about.
I think they pick up on our stress too so if we’re anxious that can have an affect on them to so just try to relax & enjoy her now.

 

[Daisy]

Did you hamster continue to loose weight every winter and gaining in spring?
How was she with her food? Did she also kept hoarding every bit?
And did she go to a winter white fur?

I wonder why they feel the nees to do thia in captivity, without temperature drop. Maybe some are affected by the shorter daylight like someone told me. But i think it is natural then? Even though it is not needed to do, i think it will not harm the hamsters health?

No, I don't remember her losing weight during her second winter. She kept eating normally even when she was losing weight and hoarding too. During her first winter she partially changed to winter fur, and then changed back in the spring. I don't think she much if at all during her second.

 

[Veer]

Update: she was eating the Beaphar pellets for a while and maintained a good weight on it, but after a while she refused to eat it.
I then switched her back to a mix of Getzoo and Mixerema, and she ate it very well.
Now we are back to the point that she is loosing weight again. From about her normal 48gr to 41gr in a week.
In yhast 5 days i tried to switch her back to the Beaphar pellets, because it did the trivk last time. But she refuses it, even when soaked in warm water with small pieces mealworm in it.
I Just ordered a bag of science selective to try for her again, and i ordered this one:

PUUR Dwarf Hamster & Friends | Witte Molen

mealworms / sunflower seeds / elderberries / linseed / apple pure & varied gourmet muesli // special ingredients tailored to your dwarf hamster, gerbil or mouse / free from artificial preservatives, colourings and flavourings / all nutrients for a healthy & happy life // the pure pleasure of...

www.wittemolen.com

I hope she will like this. She is back on her getzoo+mixerema food until this new food arrives.
I have tried the SS for her before and she didn't like it very much, but we will see, its just a small bag.
I checked her teeth and they look fine to me, will try to take a picture or video later.

 

[Maz]

I was going to suggest trying the Science Selective Most hamsters like that. I wonder if she is being very selective about what she eats with the Getzoo and Mixerama and hence not getting everything she needs calorie wise.

There have been some people who just end up leaving a Hamster on Science Selective if they just don't like any mixes.

 

[Veer]

Is the science selective a good size for dwarf hamsters?

 

[Maz]

Yes they're good sized pieces - not too big They used to be like little heart shaped biscuits that you could break in half for dwarf hamsters, but they changed it a good few years ago now and they are quite small pellets log shaped - very good size for dwarfs.

 

[Veer]

Thank you. I am a bit worried about her.
She leaves food in the bowl, she never did before. She isn't eating the mushed Beaphar pellets.
I Also worry about her not beeing as active as she used to be. I have a camera in her tank that captures movements, and i always had about 30+ video's from from the night, and now i only have around 10 video's since a couple days.
She also isn't using her wheel as much as she used to do.
She seems bright and healthy whenever i see her awake during the day, but i still worry.
Maybe i see less activity caused by yhe layout of the tank since last week, but her wheel is in front of the camera and she only used it onve or twice last night.
I was thinking to put her in a small hospital cage (feplast duna mini) for a couple days, with her wheel and some houses and only very little bedding.
In her tank she has about 20cm deep bedding. And she does take some food, but i am not sure if she is eating or hoarding it.
also when the new food arrives i want to be sure she eats it, instead of hoarding, and i would be easier to chevk in the small cage.
In her tank i would have to take the setup apart to check for hoards....
In the small hospital cage i can keep a better eye on her. Is that a good idea?
She doesn't seem to care much for environment changes....or should i let her be in her large tank ?

 

[Veer]

 

[Veer]

This is her tank at the moment. It is 115x45x

 

[elusive]

I wouldn’t put her in a hospital cage or go searching in the cage for hoards as I think that would be stressful for her & the stress could make things worse.
Do you alter the layout of her cage or leave it the same, it’s just when you said this is her cage at the moment I wondered if that meant you had changed things arouond?
It does seem odd that she no longer eats the pellets when she liked them before, it’s definitely worth giving the science selective a go although I’ve never had a ham that would eat them! Many do though.
Which Mixerama food are you using (sorry if you said before & I can’t remember) I’m not keen on Getzoo food but Mixerama do some good mixes, I think this is the best for Russian hams.

Zwerghamster Zwergenzauber | Futtermischung für Hamster

Hauptfutter geeignet für Zwerghamster mit Diabetes und Adipositas.

www.mixerama.de

It’s hard to say if being less active is to do with the time of year as they can sometimes be less active in winter or if maybe it is a sign of something else going on.

 

[Veer]

I changed the tank layout last friday, because there was a strong smell goming from her tank. I had to search for wet bedding but didn't find any wet or stinky spots. I took all the wooden platforms and houses out, and the smell is gone now.
She also had some soft poo in her wheel in the week before the foodchange and tankcleaning last friday what could have caused the smell, that is also gone now, and her poo is firm now.

It is strange,she has been on this foodmix for a while, and everything was fine. Because she had the smelly cage and loosing weight, and leaving food in the bowl, i changed to beaphar but she doesnt want to eat it at all.

She is on this mixerema mix: https://www.drdknaagdierwinkel.nl/en/dwarf-hamster-basic-menu.html
With this getzoo mix:

Getzoo Dwarf Hamster Food Basic Menu 500 grams

For our Getzoo Dwarf Hamster Basic Nutrition, we focused on nature's comprehensive nutrition. Only seeds and plant parts that occur in nature

www.drdknaagdierwinkel.nl

I give extra protein like mealworms or gammarus almost daily.(only 1 per time)

 

[elusive]

Did the weight loss begin again before or after you changed things in the cage?
If it was after it may be that she got a bit stressed by it.
I know you do have to spot clean & it can be hard to find where they pee sometimes but it’s best to keep any cleaning & changing anything to a minimum.
That Mixerama food is ok but I think she would do better with the other one I linked to.
I mealworm or shrimp really doesn’t amount to much protein, they are high in fat though so you’re right not to give too many.
Have you tried her with any other protein foods like chicken either freeze dried or fresh plain cooked chicken, hemp seeds are also good for protein so a few extra of those might help a bit, a tiny bit of egg white or tofu is good too & these don’t have the high fat levels like the mealworms.

 

[Maz]

It’s probably the spot cleaning and cage changes affected her routine so don’t worry. I definitely wouldn’t move her to a hospital tank but can understand your concern if you don’t see her as much. But there is no need to worry if she still comes out a few times even if less than before. They can slow down as they get older as well but are quite happy doing their own thing.

Hope she enjoys the science selective too . It’s normal for them to just hoard food and then snack from hoards. My hamster’s bowl never gets emptied.

 

[Veer]

here are some pictures taken from a video made today. I see she also has very long nails. It is hard to check her teeth, she will not hold still for a second

 

[Maz]

Her teeth don't really look that abnormal to me. I'll leave dwarf owners to comment on the nails

 

[Daisy]

It's hard to see, but the nails don't look unusually long to me.

 

[ilguy]

I have been using dried mealworms to keep my Henry's weight and muscle mass up. He also refused to eat any other protein given. The ones I have are:

6% fibre
28% fat, which is higher than animal meat
53% protein, similar to chicken and more than beef

Mealworms have also been found to be as effective as adding whey protein powder is in other foods. Right now a lot of countries are considering using mealworm powder in place of other protein supplements in human foods.

Mealworms are super rich in amino acids too, great for helping with inflammation (especially older hams). Plus they require far less processing.

 

[elusive]

That’s true about the protein in mealworms ilguy, it is a good source of protein but mealworms weigh very little so one mealworm doesn’t actually provide much of that protein.
Giving more isn’t a good option though due to the fat content & calcium phosphorus ratio so it’s good to have another source of extra protein too if the mix is low in protein.
I’m also never sure about the quality of mealworms, the nutrition they contain depends on what they are fed & there’s no way you can tell with dried ones.

 

[Veer]

See the pictures from a video i just made, trying yo check her teeth. What do you think?