Henry and Gordon

[cypher]

The cage doesn’t look bare to me Ria, I’m sure it’s fine for him.
It is a very hard time I know & I feel for you, all you can do is spoil him in whatever way he seems to want & cherish the time you have.

[LunaTheHamster1]

I agree with Cypher, it does'nt look bare. I honestly can't think of anything else for you to add. I was the same with Star's at first, I think it's because we are used to them having 2 levels.

[Engel]

It looks fine Ria!

I felt the exacted same when I had to 'tone down' Athena's cage, Liliths more so. In the end Lilith essentially had nothing in there (1 hide, 1 tunnel, wheel, water bowl, food bowl, bottle, sand bath). Everything low level. Hopefully you won't need to go that far.

(Also to think once upon a time we'd have thought that, that cage was too full to put anything else in. )

[Ria P]

Yes, i suppose we got used to the new set up.

The toilet roll is a hit. I tear a sheet up and leave it on the ground then tear another into strips but leave it on the roll. Henry hasn't got the strength to tear it off himself so i help him with it and he carries it to his coconut.
I think his eyesights gone because he takes the strips to the tunnel entrance first and then wobbles to the coconut.
The blood and spotting stopped a while ago so i'm wondering if old age is his main issue but he's not even 2 yet, not till December.

[Ria P]

I suspect that Robo Gordon has gone blind and have been wondering about this for a while now.

He lets me stroke him a couple of times and i think the true reason for that is that he can't see my hand approaching.

He used to climb onto my hand sometimes to get seeds but now he nibbles my fingers which is not something he used to do. Again i wonder if he can't see me and nibbles to check what i am.

He walks around with his nose up in the air.
Is that what hamsters do when they can't see?

He trips over his own paws sometimes and has generally slowed down a bit ( for Robo standards) but still hamsters about and does his usual hamster stuff.

Gordon is 22/23 months old now so he is almost an old man but i wonder if i'm reading this right or just imagining that he could be blind or seriously visually impaired.

His tank layout is safe and he knows his way about so there's no concern about him hurting himself.

[LunaTheHamster1]

Are his eyes cloudy Ria, they can sometimes get cataracts when they are older, so you may be right.

[Ria P]

Originally Posted by LunaTheHamster1

Are his eyes cloudy Ria, they can sometimes get cataracts when they are older, so you may be right.

No, his eyes are clear and he looks fine apart from his belly fur thinning a bit.

[Lizchewy]

Hi Ria, I'm not experienced enough to help with your hamsters ailments but just wanted to say how wonderful your hamsters homes look. They must have amazing lives with you.

[cypher]

The best way to tell is just to move your finger close to his eye, it’s an automatic instinct for all animals to flinch a bit or at least show no response, if there’s no response then it could well be that he is blind.

[Ria P]

Originally Posted by cypher

The best way to tell is just to move your finger close to his eye, it’s an automatic instinct for all animals to flinch a bit or at least show no response, if there’s no response then it could well be that he is blind.

Thanks for that suggestion.

Gordon just sat on the roof eating so i moved my fingers in front of his eyes but he kept eating.
Sometimes he tries to get into places he can't get into like between the house and tank wall or walks around what seems a bit aimlessly.

I now strongly suspect that he's gone blind. Poor little man.
I can't think of anything i could do to help him though aside from not moving or changing anything in his tank.

I guess i have to face the fact that he is getting old....