Have I ruined her trust?

Stephlet87 · 03-16-2017, 12:45 PM

My Russian dwarf is around 5 months old. I have had her since she was 8 weeks. She was really confident and trusting and would happily let me pick her up and come out to see my partner and I when we talked to her.

That has all changed the past month or so and I'm worried it's because I've damaged her trust or she has become scared of me.

She will not come out of her bed anymore when I talk to her or even lightly tap her house or move the substrate. No treat tempts her out. The only way is if I open up her bed, wait for her to come out and then remove bed so she cannot hide in it (which isn't really nice for her). But even when I do this, she tries to hide under any of toys and of none available, she will frantically dig to hide under bedding. You can tell she is panicked.

It's not even a case that I can just enjoy observing her because she will not come out when I'm there. I dropped her from like 3 inches off my hand onto her soft bedding a week or so ago so feel I've traumatised her. Either that or where I live is noisy with the washing machine making whole flat shake. Something I've done has scared her. Is it too late to gain her trust again and if so how do I go about it when she will not come out with me there.

chesca_27 · 03-17-2017, 04:19 PM

I think you can always salvage a bond, but you may need to start from square one again.

Just leave her be for a few days to settle in again as she has been spooked by something. Leave the bedding and house until she feels more confident again. Don't open her nest as this will freak her out even more.

Try moving her cage to the quietest place in your flat away from the washing machine.

You can still tame her. Just start from the beginning again and work from there.

Start by leaving treats in the cage to associate you with good things.

Drago · 03-17-2017, 05:02 PM

I agree with chesca, there's really no way to ruin a hamster's trust lucky for you! Hamsters don't hold grudges against us though they can become fearful, but fear can be helped

I would recommend more "confidence taming" which is simply offering treats and simply being present so your hamster doesn't fear you being near her. I'd also try leaving your hand in the cage, and reward her for sitting on it or crawling over it. Eventually, she should learn you're no threat to her and that you bring good things. Have you made any changes in schedules or routines as of late? Have any predator type animals come into the house like ferrets, cats, or dogs? You yourself may not have done anything to scare her so just keep in mind that she may be fearful for outside reasons that you can't control! Good luck with her and if you need any other tips or advice, make sure to ask!

cypher · 03-17-2017, 10:43 PM

Noisy things like washing machines can scare them a bit but when it's a regular thing they usually get used to it, a fall on to soft substrate shouldn't have scared her that much really, when a previously tame & confident hamster begins to hide all the time my first thought would be to do a good health check & make sure nothing is wrong, check she eats & drinks normally as hiding is often a sign of illness.
If she does seem healthy then you should be able to tame her again, as the others have said just go back to the beginning, it can be hard when they hide from you all the time, to start with just spend lots of time talking to her again (even when she's hiding) & maybe do the tissue trick again too, with time & patience she should come round.

Thin Lizzy · 03-18-2017, 06:28 AM

You haven't ruined your trust, this can be sorted by going back to the beginning. I had to do this with Twinkle and I did the tissue trick, talking quietly, praising her and going at her pace. And over time it worked. You can do it!

Jennie F · 03-18-2017, 11:54 AM

Awww dont give up hope, as long as she is ok physically she will come around. My little one fell about 6 inches off the end of the sofa onto laminate a couple of days ago and then I had to catch her by kind of shoving her into her ball. But she forgave me eventually. If you have already bonded with each other she will come around. Maybe she is just being moody. My girl is also scared of the washing machine, so I only use it when she is asleep during the day so I can move her cage into another room away from it. Good luck hun x

**Cinnamon Bear** · 03-18-2017, 12:03 PM

I dropped my robo about 8in into a plastic taming bin when she was 6 weeks old. I thought you could handle her by letting them walk hand to hand. My Russian would let me do this but not a robo. At the pet store I was handling her that way and she seemed to enjoy climbing around my arms.

After she fell it took me months to get her trust back. About 8 mo but I kept trying. She's 2 years now almost and she lets me go hand to hand just above the bedding. She just started letting me do this. It's very strange.

I hope she's not getting ready to die and this is her way of telling me that she loves me or something, as she does have a large tumor on her back.

Stephlet87 · 03-18-2017, 05:48 PM

Thank you all for your replies! She seems to be trusting me more now. I have gone slow and talked with her lots and haven't tried to pick her up for a couple days. Instead I have been hand feeding her a few treats. She still seems skittish and quick to run back in her bed, but she now is coming out on her own when I talk to her and accepting food from my hand. So slowly does it! Thank you all again!