Worried about hammmy

[Thams14]

Hi everyone

Hope you and your wee hampters are well.

I am worried about our own little lovely. She's been very quiet these past few days, which is unusual for her. She won't come out of where she sleeps, apart from one period yesterday when I managed to persuade her to come out. She's a sociable wee thing and always comes up to the the front of her cage whenever she hears voices. I take her out daily, mainly to give her a pet, which she loves. From what I can see, she has eaten a small bit, but not much. Same goes for drinking.

One thing I noticed when she came out was that she was shivering and her little heart was racing. This stopped when I started to pet her. I put her on the floor to have a little wander, and she does appear to be nervous (moving very slowly cautiously).

I'm wondering if it could be the heat? It's been very warm and stuff this past week. Any other suggestions as to why she's acting this way?

Thanks

 

[Maz]

Hi. I was going to say it may be the heat. Some hamsters have been lying around in the cage or lying in sand baths with the heat, rather than in their nests. Shivering doesn't quite sound like that though. How old is she?

 

[Member ID2]

Hi, it has been hot and some hamsters are more affected than others.
Maybe a silly question but is her water bottle working ok?
Is she eating her fresh food?

 

[Thams14]

Hi. I was going to say it may be the heat. Some hamsters have been lying around in the cage or lying in sand baths with the heat, rather than in their nests. Shivering doesn't quite sound like that though. How old is she?

She's about one year old. Yes, it the shivering was noticeable, but she did stop when I start stroking her back. It's a nightly routine that she loves.

 

[Thams14]

Hi, it has been hot and some hamsters are more affected than others.
Maybe a silly question but is her water bottle working ok?
Is she eating her fresh food?

She has a bowl for water. I gave her fresh lettuce, which she ate.

 

[Maz]

I suppose shivering/shaking could also be a sign of being overheated as well. Do you have any cucumber? That's hydrating and most hamsters like it. Lettuce is something that's considered only good to have quite rarely - it can affect their digestive systems.

 

[Thams14]

I suppose shivering/shaking could also be a sign of being overheated as well. Do you have any cucumber? That's hydrating and most hamsters like it. Lettuce is something that's considered only good to have quite rarely - it can affect their digestive systems.

I give her lettuce once a week. I do have cucumber. She had that earlier in the week before she went quiet.

 

[Maz]

So she's eating and drinking ok but just acting unusually. Where is she sleeping? Still in her nest or out in the open?

 

[Thams14]

So she's eating and drinking ok but just acting unusually. Where is she sleeping? Still in her nest or out in the open?

I don't actually know if she's eating the food - I place it in front of her little hideaway and she'll poke her head out and take it away. Interesting question about sleeping actually. I posted a while back about getting a bigger cage (thanks for all the excellent advice) and we got her the Savic Plaza cage and Silent Runner 12 inch wheel. Well, ever since we got that, she actually sleeps under the wheel! Previously to this, she slept in her little pineapple house. We put that house in the new cage, but she has never slept in it. I have no idea why she chose the wheel instead of the pineapple.

 

[Maz]

Sometimes if they decide a house isn't big enough they make a nest in the open. She clearly loves her wheel! If you add something like a large shoebox house she will probably move in as it'll be dark inside and large enough to have a big nest and areas for hoards etc. You just cut the base out of the shoebox and keep the lid as a lift off roof and cut a hole for a door. I find if you cut the hole at one end of the long sides, instead of in the middle, it seems to work better as the other end away from the door is dark inside. They seem to like somewhere dark to nest. If you put a bendy bridge over the door, it's even darker inside, and that makes a ramp onto the roof.

You can get some amazing wood multiroom houses now but they're not cheap and need to be supported on legs in case the hamster tunnels on them (so they don't get squashed). A shoebox house is light so doesn't need supporting underneath.

She's probably eating from her hoard, so if she's taking the food I wouldn't worry. Keep an eye on her though. Is she a Syrian I can't remember? Female syrians can get pyometra (infection of the womb) so if the shivering continues it might be best to have a vet visit.

 

[Maz]

Reading back and you saying she's a bit wobbly when walking about I think it would be a good idea to take her to the vet. That does sound like she might be unwell and not just the heat. The wobbling and shivering could mean she has an infection. Do you have a cool place for her to sit in the cage? There's a thread on helping to keep them cool here

How to keep a hamster cool

I've tried to find this, but would appreciate some advice. It's getting pretty hot where I am, and I was wondering what is an acceptable temperature for a hamster, there seems to be varying advice on this? What are the best ways to keep her cool and what signs to watch out for, that she is...

www.thehamsterforum.com

 

[Member ID2]

I can only second what Maz said.

In fact, i said to someone today that it's better to take a hamster to the vet once too many than not enough.
They can deteriorate very quickly.

 

[Thams14]

Thanks for the replies and advice (yes, she's a Syrian). Since I last posted, I managed to encourage her to come out, so she's been out for a good while. She's currently inside my boot in the hall. She's still very nervy, but not shivering.

 

[Maz]

I wonder what is making her nervy.

 

[Thams14]

I wonder what is making her nervy.

Yes, that is puzzling! She's come out of the boot for a wee pet and is now back in it