Worried Hamster Mommy!!

Sep 23, 2009 22:10

Well, I know I should have posted my concerns earlier, but, mehr. I'm lazy ( Read more... )

sleeping and nesting, water bottles, wheels, health, dehydration, eating and drinking habits

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melanyebaggins September 24 2009, 03:43:53 UTC
hehh I've always wondered why, if Hamsters only drink sparingly, are the water bottles that come with the CritterTrail cages so huge? lol it would take Michael months to get through a full bottle of water if I filled it completely and never changed it. As it is, I only half fill it and change it every few days...so the size seems ridiculous ^_^

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zombieroadtrip September 24 2009, 02:46:47 UTC
Hamsters are desert animals, so they've evolved to function on very little water. It is not at all uncommon for them to drink just a few drops every few hours. Actually in hamsters, drinking a -lot- of water is a sign of illness (diabetes, for instance), so her drinking very little is a good sign!

How old is she that she's stopped running in her wheel? If she's 1.5 years+ I'd say that's also fairly normal. Take her out to play more often (or put her in a hamster ball if she likes it) to try and stimulate more movement if you think she's getting overweight. But stopping exercise as she ages is common.

The falling asleep while eating thing also sounds age-related. As long as she's eating enough and appears aware of her surroundings, I'd say she's probably okay, just old. I've never heard of narcolepsy in hamsters.

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daedalsobriquet September 24 2009, 03:53:59 UTC
hi, im crashing this post to reply to your comment :p harriet is about 19 months and she doesnt go in her wheel anymore. i have been so worried about her because she has lost some weight and a lot of fur and she just sleeps all the time but your comment made it sound like that could be normal?

she does drink tho, sometimes a lot at a time, so do you know what are some signs of diabetes to look for?

thank you!

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daedalsobriquet September 24 2009, 04:07:19 UTC
oh ok thanks. she doesnt drink all the time, just comes out of her igloo at night once to drink for about a minute straight. no change in tinkle or anything else.

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