Is my Rose going to be ok?

tgsachris · 02-08-2016, 01:45 PM

I'm completely new to hamster care, I did as much research as I could but I feel like I still don't know nearly enough. Anyway A little over a year ago I got a cute little female Russian dwarf hamster, I named her Rose, idk why it just came to me. She is an energetic little bullet that runs around, climbs up and down her cage, knocking over her wheel then running in it so fast her whole cage moves. (She is in it alone) Crazy stuff like that.

Every morning when I wake up Rose would be sitting there waiting and I would call out to her "Hello Rose" Normally she would either sit up and idk how to describe it really, she would look at me like she was talking back. Or if she was particularly happy that day she would sprint to the edge of the cage and climb as high as she could right up to me.

Today when I called out to her she looked up at me and then she just dropped her head. I came a bit closer and called to her again, she sort of looked up and sluggishly walked towards the end of the cage, looked up at it and sat a paw on it like she wanted to climb it, then she dropped her head again. A little while later she just slowly stumbled over to her house and leaned against it before walking back inside.

By this point I was worried so I picked her up and noticed her eyes barely opened, she was shaking a bit and breathing heavily, and she didn't seem to want to move a lot. She wont eat and she wont drink water, the most comforting sign to me is when I call her name she still perks up a bit and opens her eyes a bit, but she quickly sits back down.

I know hamsters live an average of 1 to 2 years and everything I found on google suggests that she is dying of old age. But is that it? Is there anything I can do for my little Rose?

velma · 02-10-2016, 12:53 AM

Poor Rose. It does sound like something has happened. They can get poorly or have a stroke, something like that that could cause those symptoms. If you can, I'd really try and get her to the vet and they can advise you on the best way forward. In the meantime, without disrupting her too much, try and make her cage easy access, so her water bottle and food are close to her nest and easy to get at & there's nothing for her to climb on that she could fall from and hurt herself while she is wobbley on her feet. I hope you have good news.

cypher · 02-10-2016, 01:00 AM

Poor girl, she's obviously very unwell but if she was a baby when you got her she's really not that old so I agree getting her to the vet as soon as you can is the best option, she could have had a stroke but it may also be some kind of illness the vet will be able to treat.
If she won't drink on her own they sometimes respond if you hold the tip of the water bottle close to their mouth for them.
Good luck with her, let us know how it goes.

herbi7 · 02-10-2016, 03:36 AM

Poor rose and poor you, she sounds very poorly to me. Just a little obvious thing but have you checked nothing has gone wrong with her water bottle or anything? They can fail or get stuck sometimes. Otherwise take her to the vet. A younger animal can bounce back from things sometimes so it is worth seeing if they can find out what is wrong. See if you can find a vet who particular ly likes doing small animals as some don't take much trouble over them. I hope she is ok... X

tgsachris · 02-10-2016, 01:26 PM

Thanks for all the replies, right after I posted this I went on a google frenzy and I have moderately good news, Rose isn't dying of old age, she apparently is suffering from something called hibernation sickness. I double checked and and called around, there is no doubt that is what is wrong. I've heard of it before but I paid it no mind back then, I assumed living in Florida where we regularly have mid winter temps of 72+ F that wouldn't be an issue. I was wrong.
I have been up the last two nights holding her, stroking her to get her blood pumping, and hand feeding her water with a small syringe, and little bits of food. I also got a little heater for her. I gave her more bedding too they said that could help.
As of now she is strong enough to walk and drink water and eat on her on, she also opened her eyes some and every so often she bits the end of her hamster wheel (She used to do that right before she knocked it over) Then she runs around in circles for a bit, but that's it. No more signs of improvement. according to the instructions I got by now she should be better.

Idk what else to do
Edit: as I typed this she walked out of her house and moved her wheel around, then she went back inside and sat down again. Is there anything I can give her to give her more energy? I think thats what she needs

CMB · 02-10-2016, 01:42 PM

Warm porridge is easy to eat and helps warm her up. Scrambled egg is also easy to eat to.

Make sure the food is not too hot.

tgsachris · 02-10-2016, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMB

Warm porridge is easy to eat and helps warm her up. Scrambled egg is also easy to eat to.

Make sure the food is not too hot.

How hot would be to hot? Like hot to the touch?

**Cinnamon Bear** · 02-10-2016, 01:46 PM

With hamsters, hibernation is a condition called torpor I believe I spelled that right? Temps would have to fall extremely cold for this to occur, it's impossible to diagnose your pet without a vet. If you can it would be good for Rose to see a vet. That way the vet can properly diagnose Rose & she can get treated if needed. The sooner the better if possible

CMB · 02-10-2016, 01:47 PM

Hot to touch is too hot. I would go warm. It was along time ago I used it on a sick hamster.

herbi7 · 02-10-2016, 02:26 PM

Do it like you would for a baby,just nice and warm but not hot. it would be good if it is just torpor but she should have come out of it by now? If she still isn't better tomorrow I would still take her to the vet. Btw I like your expression Google frenzy... I often have one of those!