I have no idea if I'm panicking over nothing? Or if this is serious?

[LilicaRachels]

So my hamster is only a few months old. I actually just got him last month. Up until now everything has been fine and dandy. He is a Russian Hamster (that's all they told me but I'm guess he's a winter white). And he was running on his wheel fine and fast until I came over. Normally I don't just pick him up, I like to left him crawl into my hands. And he did. He came over and said hello. I set him back in his cage and now he's acting very lethargic. He's just curled up in the top corner of his cage and just laying there. He only moves and starts cleaning himself when I get close to the cage. I don't know if I'm just overly concerned. This is the first time I've seen him do this as I am normally asleep by now (since it's... You know... 2 in the morning...) And it's not as though I can just take him to a vet either. I live in a very isolated area. The nearest smal animal vet is 3/4 hours away (plus it's very early in the morning). And I work all week. Maybe I'm overreacting?

[cypher]

It's hard to say what might be wrong, is it possible something startled him or stressed him?
If he's only been like this for a short while I would just keep an eye on him, he may just pick up & go back to normal, if not give him a health check, make sure he hasn't hurt himself & see if he eats, drinks & pees normally.
Make sure he's warm enough too, if it's cold give extra substrate & lots of shredded toilet tissue for his nest.
He'll be a Russian hybrid btw, a cross between WW & Campbells, they can be prone to diabetes so be careful about his diet, no fruit or sugars or sweet treats.

[Drago]

As cypher said, it's hard to tell if something's wrong with your little one. In some hams the behavior you're describing is perfectly normal, but in others, this behavior could be a red flag. You need to assess him as you know your hamster best, and make a decision on whether you think he's "him" or seems sickly. Best wishes

[Pebbles82]

Sometimes they just fall asleep in funny places Maybe just keep an eye on him. Did he go back to normal activity later?

[LilicaRachels]

Lol. Well considering he's asleep now in his little home and not out and about, I'm going to assume that he's fine. He seems to have eaten quite a bit of his food. It's good to know that I really was just more than likely overreacting.

[cypher]

Sounds like something just spooked him then.

[Thin Lizzy]

Hope your little one is ok and that it was a one off.

[chesca_27]

Jasper does this sometimes and it's normally him just too tired to go back to bed. Hamsters are often not awake the whole night and will go and sleep at some point, so not overly concerning I would say.