Hamster suddenly stopped running on his wheel..

[HammyHamsterson]

So when I checked on my Syrian hamster this morning,I noticed that his wheel hadn't been touched. I could tell because I always put a small pink willow ball in there but when I checked, the willow ball was still on his wheel which means he never ran on it.

I also noticed the past two days, sometimes he would get poop stuck on his butt which he won't clean off until I would pick it off for him. The poop looked normal though, it wasn't shapeless or diarrhea-like. It looked like the typical dark brown pellet, except just stuck to his bum.

I also noticed he starts waking up 45 minutes later than he usually does, but IDK if this counts as weird behaviour because he changed his sleeping schedule twice already within the past few months.

I put him in his play-bin this morning and he ran on his flying saucer on and off, so I don't think he has an injury, he wasn't moving slow either. I don't think it's old age, I got him in August and he was approx 3-4 months old max. But IDK why he didn't run on his wheel last night and all that other stuff.

Please help me, I've already had 2 hamsters before pass away, I'm really concerned

[Engel]

I'm going to ask some questions, sorry...
How big is the wheel?
Is he eating drinking and toileting ok?
His eyes bright and clear?
Are you able to touch his feet?
Are his nails ok? Not too long?

[cypher]

Just to add to Engel's questions what's the temperature like? If you've had some very cold nights even if the house is relatively warm he may just be wanting to stay in bed more.

[Vierville]

I've had periods where my hamsters (especially the adult ones) stop using their wheel. If the weather turns a bit colder then they definitely do get noticeably less active. If she seems ok apart from the reduction in wheel usage then I'd be inclined to say she's fine.

[HammyHamsterson]

Originally Posted by Engel

I'm going to ask some questions, sorry...
How big is the wheel?
Is he eating drinking and toileting ok?
His eyes bright and clear?
Are you able to touch his feet?
Are his nails ok? Not too long?

His wheel is 8 inches, his eating drinking and toileting seem okay, although sometimes he doesn't always finish his food from the bowl unless I move it closer to his hideout or just leave it until he finishes it before I re-fill it again. His eyes, feet and nails seem normal as well. After that night he ran on his wheel again 2 consecutive nights but last night I don't think he ran again, because this morning I found the willow ball still in the wheel.

[HammyHamsterson]

Originally Posted by cypher

Just to add to Engel's questions what's the temperature like? If you've had some very cold nights even if the house is relatively warm he may just be wanting to stay in bed more.

It has been cold lately outside because of winter but the temperature inside my house is usually 19-21 degrees Celsius. I honestly don’t know what’s causing his weird behaviour... he’s also napping more, and I noticed that he gained a 7g weight gain since I last weighed him a week ago... I tried feeling his body for lumps but couldn’t find any unless I missed

[cypher]

Sometimes it's hard to tell why they change behaviour but it's not uncommon for them to be less active in winter & gain some weight, just keep an eye on him for any other changes & check the wheel regularly to be sure it's spinning freely just in case.