Losing weight

[Chiela]

My campbell is from around the 8th of april, but doesn't eat more than what is just necessary to keep herself going. Despite her age, she is only 27g and has lost 4g during the past week.

She is generally happy, does come out, does run in her wheel. If I put my hand into the cage she sits on it for a bit too. I cant for the life of me figure out what's wrong.

I have tried changing her diet to something more interesting. She went from burgess supa hamster to bunny dwarf hamster mix, mixed with this Dwarf hamster mix from Ratrations.com, and a few oats
To begin with she seemed more interested in the new mix, but now it's back to what it was before.

She isnt weaker than being able to climb the bars of her cage, and she even exits the door on the front if you open it and talk to her.
Sadly, as said she keeps losing weight. I took her to the vet but besides her weight she is fine and he cannot pinpoint a cause.

It makes me feel terrible that i cant help her, im really trying my best. But she is so tiny and skinny, and i fear every morning that I will wake up and find her dead, but every day i see a happy tiny hamster.
Does anyone have an idea of what I can try? I love her to bits

I have been wondering if anyone has heard about this before? can it be a cause of inbreeding?

In the end I have been wondering if it would be better to have her put down. I dont see her suffering, but in the end she is a pray animal and wouldnt show unless it was impossible not to. I really do not want her to suffer and this is the hardest piece of advice I will ever ask for, but do you guys think it would be better to say goodbye to her?

[cypher]

I'm really sorry to hear she's still losing weight in spite of all your efforts, you've tried really hard for your little girl.
It does sound as though she's doing ok other than the weight issue so I wouldn't give up on her yet.
You will know if she's unwell or suffering in any way, even though they can be good at hiding illness you would notice changes in behaviour or signs of weakness I'm sure.
You'll obviously have to watch her closely as she would probably be more vulnerable to illness being so tiny but I would just keep going as you are & see how she gets on.
Sorry I can't remember but have you tried tempting her with any soft foods like scrambled egg or porridge to see if she's eat a little of that? I wouldn't keep changing her diet now, you've tried enough! She's obviously not that food orientated but you could continue to introduce new items that might help keep her weight stable even if it doesn't increase.

[Chiela]

update: found out what's wrong with her. Type 1 diabetes. This can only be passed down genetically(?). I was advised to consult another vet, and he confirmed that this was indeed type 1 diabetes. He informed me that one the problems with type 1 diabetes, is that it greatly limits the absorption of nutrients from the food eaten. This should be caused by the lack of insulin, as insulin helps you absorb the nutrition in the first place. He also said he had seen it before and that it cannot be helped. Either she will be put down or she will starve What's worse is that she has started to make a sound of pain. She has made that sound multiple times today, so I don't think there's much to do.

I am so sad and angry. Chiela is my first hamster and I don't know that much about them. But I mean if I - an inexperienced - "hamster mum" can see there is something wrong with her from the day I got her home, then there is something wrong with the breeder, she should really be ashamed, as you can't convince me she didn't know. thankfully Cypher has been so kind to help and advice me (Thank you for all your help Cypher <3).

It really is heartbreaking to know that there's nothing that can keep my little girl going, I really hoped it wouldn't end like this. Keeping her for much longer would be really selfish too
I was really lucky to have her for this short while and I truly hope I have made her short life worth it, and that she has been happy to live with me.

[cypher]

I'm so sorry, poor little girl, this is really sad news.
I'm sure she's had the best life it was possible for her to have with you, you've tried so hard for her & she was lucky to have been given a home by someone so caring. If there's nothing else you can do try to take some comfort in that.

[racinghamster]

Hi Chiela. How did the vet/vets check for type 1 diabetes? Did they take a blood sample? Was it testing her urine only? I don`t know a lot about diabetes in hamster generally except to say it can sometimes be pulled back by diet alone, but obviously once it takes hold, it can be difficult to cure/reverse.

I did read today while looking at some other websites that sometimes if a hamster eats too many sunflower seeds or seeds and nuts in general, this can actually make a hamster lose weight, which seems a little mad, but apparently, switching them to a high carbohydrate diet can add the weight back on again just by feeding unusual things like pasta, maccaroni, brown bread, egg and such like and reducing (rather than removing) the nuts and seeds altogether, or removing them for a while from the daily diet. It also has something to do with fat burning and ketones and such, which goes over my head a bit! But I got the gist of what the article was saying.

I have a dwarf Russian hybrid and feed Burgess Supahamster, JR Farm dwarf mix from Zooplus (although I limit this to a small amount as it`s not really balanced) and he also gets Supreme Science Selective heart-shaped biscuits broken up with some millet spray as a treat and his small pieces of fresh raw veg.

Don`t feed lettuce or cabbage as these can act as diuretics. In other words, make the hamster pee more.

Lastly I would say don`t give up. If my hamster had gotten very thin, stopped eating altogether and looked as though he had no will to go on, then I might suggest a final vet visit. But if your hamster is not quite saying this yet, give her the benefit of the doubt and get those carbs on the go. Little and often to begin with. Natural sugars in her own diet are fine, just avoid anything manufactured or with `added` sugars.

Some dwarf hamsters are very prone to developing diabetes even with the best intentions, so do what you can and see if she picks up any over the next week. If she deteriorates, then you have every right to help her on her way peacefully. x

[cypher]

Do you have a link to that article RH? I know a fair bit about hight fat diets & weight loss in humans but not hamsters & I'm a bit curious to see what they say.
Generally managing diabetes in hams requires a diet high in protein & fibre with moderate levels of complex carbohydrates & fats.
If I remember things right the problem with little Chiela is that she's never had much of an appetite, maybe because she's always been unwell, changing to foods that probably smell a bit more appetising than the Burgess seemed to give her a bit of a boost for a little while but then she began eating less again so I'm not sure any dietary changes will help all that much.

[racinghamster]

I`m sure I read it on a Syrian hamster breeder`s website but I was meaning more to put on weight than the treating the diabetes itself, so apologies if I got a little confused there. Your right about the protein and fibre being the best route cypher. The carbs I mentioned were more for putting on weight if a hamster has too many nuts and seeds and still isn`t putting weight on. I will try and post an edit of what the article said if I can find it again. x

[racinghamster]

Here you go:

[cypher]

Ummm link as in click & go there?!
Or the name of the site would be helpful so I can google it.

[racinghamster]

It a website called Hammy World who specialise in breeding Syrians. x