I never see Rupert - Page 2

racinghamster · 03-05-2015, 03:38 AM

It`s a tricky one and I tend to leave my Russian hybrid`s routine up to him, but like you barley, it means I rarely see him unless he`s out for a pee or a bite of food before he scoots back to his cosy bed! Lucky ham!!

He plays during the night and if I`m not up early enough, by just after 7:00am in the morning, he`s gone back to bed. x

Thin Lizzy · 03-05-2015, 05:29 AM

Creamed Porridge, baby cauliflower cheese and the rice pudding. Archie gets this more than twinkle.
Archie was really ill and even though he's fully recovered, I still give him some.

barley · 03-05-2015, 11:27 AM

Thanks guys, I give him a piece of fruit/veg/chicken/pasta/nut/dog biscuit or whatever every evening so I'll start doing this at a set time everyday and see if I can get into a better routine with him. I'd love to see more of him.

He's not here tonight and I already miss him like crazy. I'm away from very early tomorrow until Monday so my work colleagues are looking after him for me. Feels odd without him in the flat now!

Thin Lizzy · 03-05-2015, 08:17 PM

I thought it was last weekend you were away!
Look he's in good hands. Enjoy the Crufts!

barley · 05-24-2015, 04:27 AM

I just wanted to give a bit of an update on this really. It's been nearly three months since I first posted about never really seeing Rupert, and things aren't any better!

I try to coax him out his bed around 9pm with something tasty, but he'll either scurry out and eat it then go back to bed, or he pokes his head out, decides he can't be bothered and leaves it.

Last night I stayed up to watch Eurovision so it was getting close to 1am when I went to bed and he still wasn't up, and when I got up for work at 6.30 this morning, he was back in bed!

When he IS awake, I know he's ok as the food/treats get eaten, I can see hes been on his wheel, his sand box has been dug in etc - but I'm just concerned over whether it's normal for a young (he's about 8mths) to sleep this much? I mean, yesterday he couldn't have been awake for more than 5 hours in a 24 hour period.

If this is normal and just his natural routine, then fine, I have no problems with that and will resign myself to being happy with the little glimpses I see of him, but I'm just a little concerned really.

He HATES being woken up to be handled (which I understand) so I can only really handle him when he wakes up naturally, by which time I miss him all together as I'm already asleep, or I only get a few minutes with him because I have to get to bed.

Joey is the total opposite - he's up around 7/8pm and is still awake when I leave for work the next morning!

cypher · 05-24-2015, 05:10 AM

I don't think it's abnormal so much as unusual barley, it might even be quite normal for a ham if they didn't learn to respond to us interacting with them! I think some are basically just a bit lazy & so long as their basic needs are met, enough good food, a bit of exercise & a nice dig or roll in the sand when they feel like it they will just sleep the rest of the time.
I know it can be a bit frustrating & disappointing to have a pet you love yet rarely see but if you can live with it I don't think you need worry about anything.
My hybrid Flynt is very much the same, loves a cuddle first thing in the morning, clearly eats his food, uses his wheel & saucer & kicks sand everywhere at some point in the night but I rarely get to see it & he sleeps all day after a short interaction first thing!
I think that's how I ended up with 3 hams instead of one lol!

barley · 05-24-2015, 05:17 AM

As long as he is happy and healthy (which I am sure he is), I'm quite happy to leave him to it! I was just worried about the lenght of time he sleeps for, but I think you're right, he's just lazy!

racinghamster · 05-24-2015, 07:13 AM

My Syrian Boris (RIP) was like this barley, so it`s not unusual. Your wee robo will probably be more `in and out` during the day but even they only come out for a drink, a quick scoff and go back to their nest! I never wake mine up to play with them and if you the sort of person who misses that interaction, I would say get gerbils!!!!

Hamsters are nocturnal creatures and we humans often make them dance to our tune and if the hamster is more inclined to be active at certain times of the day, that`s fine. But some like a routine and make up their own little minds! x