Problem with back leg

[Robo2017]

My hamster seems to be holding up one of his back legs when walking however puts it on the ground to balance when eating or sitting. He also happily still runs on his wheel however it's hard to see if he runs with this back leg as it's just a big blur he goes so fast haha!

He is a robo hamster and is estimated to be about 4-6 months old however when I adopted him from pets at home they did not have any information on him so it was all just guess work. I noticed when they were boxing him up that his leg looked abit strange (slightly smaller than his other one, a little red and with less fur) however the lady assured me that he had been moving around fine in his cage. When I got him home his leg didn't seem too bad however it was hard to tell as he ran away quite a lot. I have only had him for about a month and he is still pretty scared so I can't handle him to give him a proper check and think taking him to the vet would be impossible at this stage as he would be terrified and chances are they wouldn't get to look him over any way 😕

I am wondering if his injury could be old and just not healed properly (the pet shop did suggest that he may have been returned due to fighting within a group) therefore giving him limited mobility rather than it being something that is causing him pain? I have tried taking his wheel out to let him rest but I always have to put it back as he panics without it and basically leaps into it as I'm lowering it back into the cage because he's missed it so much 😅

Sorry that's a super long message 😬 It's my first post so will need to work on condensing what I am trying to say!! I'm also doing this at 1 in the morning so apologies if it doesn't make sense 😂

[racinghamster]

Hi Robo2017. If he`s looking for his wheel and using the leg, he can`t have a lot wrong with it. Saying that, it could be something he`s learned to `live with` or it`s as a result of fighting with other robos as they can fall out when sold in pairs/trios and the owner returns one back to Pets At Home.

Don`t allow him ladders or anything he can fall from. Roborovski hamsters are diggers and ground dwellers and love their wheel. So they don`t require height in their environment. Just to be on the safe side.

How is he now?

[Pebbles82]

It does sound like an old injury. The fighting must have been bad, poor little guy. I would suggest having an open wheel rather than one with holes in, or too deep a lip, so he can't trip going in and out of the wheel, and injure himself. Also have the wheel low to the substrate level so he can hop in and out easily. You might want to look at whether his cage set up is safe from trip areas as well. Which wheel does he have?

A general checkover at the vets could be an idea too. If you can find an exotic vet in your area - they know more about hamsters. They can give a diagnosis then and see if it is an old injury that has healed badly, or if it is something they can treat to help his leg heal properly.

[Robo2017]

Thank you for replying ☺️ I ended up taking him to the vet to put my mind at ease. Wasn't the best experience for the poor little guy though as the vet managed to drop him from quite a hight! He was shocked but thankfully didn't have any injuries! After that I made sure I was the one to hold him �� They think exactly what you both suggested, that it is just an old injury that perhaps hasn't healed very well and he is now used to holding his leg up. They did find a little scabby bit between his toes however this looked like it was healing and didn't cause him any bother when they touched it. He seems to be using it a bit more today and is happily running on his wheel just now

I already have an open wheel so that's good. Have always been too worried to use the other ones incase he got stuck �� I have a deep layer of bedding in his cage however he never seems to dig... anything you can suggest to encourage this or do some hamsters just not bother? All he cares about are his tunnels and his wheel haha!

[racinghamster]

You wrote: though as the vet managed to drop him from quite a hight!

It`s a shame vets can`t take the time to hold hamsters over a cage base or an open box when examining them as many are dropped and this alone could cause another injury or worse. Glad to hear your wee guy was okay afterwards.

Robos don`t always dig, but I suppose it comes down to the individual hamster and watching their antics! If they do a lot of scratching about then allow an extra layer of substrate, but a few inches is usually fine for robos. They tend to dig around inside their nest/bed mainly where it`s good to have a cardboard box upside down with space inside and doors cut into it like an entrance/exit to their burrow!

Let him enjoy himself, that`s the main thing.

[Pebbles82]

That sounds awful! Maybe go to a different vet another time. He maybe doesn't dig because of his leg, so I wouldn't worry too much about having the substrate particularly deep and just give him lots of floor toys, as you have Personally I would think carefully about everything in his cage and make sure there is nothing he could get stuck or trapped in if his leg plays up, or that he can't overbalance and fall from a height anywhere - although sounds like you are well aware of that!

Our Robo does dig tunnels - and if the substrate isn't deep enough where he wants one, he piles the substrate up in that area and then digs one So I think if your hammy wanted to dig more you would know about it! He does like sitting "under things" though and I have some pieces of cork log propped up against each other and he likes to sit in the large crevices between them

[Hammy992]

Originally Posted by Robo2017

Wasn't the best experience for the poor little guy though as the vet managed to drop him from quite a hight

Recently I took my ham to the vets as well to examine a tumor and she dropped him as well! She tried to pick him up between 2 fingers and thumb and he jumped out of her hands onto the metal table from high up!
I ended up taking him elsewhere for the operation where luckily the second vet was excellent with him. I don't know why vets insist on seeing hamsters when they don't know how/try to handle them properly :/

Anyway, it's great to hear that he still enjoys his wheel and the leg hasn't stopped him. He sounds like a sweet little guy. As long as he seems happy pottering around his cage that's the main thing. My syrian does the same as Serendipity's Robo, he piles substrate where his wants to dig

[Robo2017]

I know it’s such shame they can’t be more careful. It’s already such a stressful experience for them without getting dropped! I’m just glad he wasn’t injured and didn’t try to run away or I might not have got him back. Will have to find another vet if I ever need one again. Normally this vet is so good, I have been going to them for years but obviously they just don’t have the experience with hamsters like they told me they did. I hope your hamster is ok now Hammy992 after his traumatic vet visit? Thankfully the trust I have been building up with him wasn’t broken. He still happily lets me hand feed him some treats or his food at night Hoping that one day he will be comfortable enough to let me hold him for short periods of time just incase I need to check him over or take him to the vet again.

The cardboard box idea sounds great, will have to try that once his leg feels better

I have taken out his climbing toys for now Serendipity and am going to leave them out for a while until he is better and then might add one or two in and see how he gets on. If it starts hurting again then I will just stick with the toys he has now as he seems to enjoy them. How sweet that yours and Hammy992’s hamsters both make little mountains to dig in Hamsters are so smart for being such little animals!

[Pebbles82]

When I had to take all the levels out of our Syrian's cage when he was old, I just set it up all on one level and added a couple of extra toys to make up for losing his levels and hanging toys A couple of extra tunnels. One thing I got was a cork log tunnel and he liked that. It was something to climb over with a texture, but still at ground level, plus a nice big dark tunnel as well. So he couldn't hurt himself. It was this one

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cork-Tunnel...s=rodipet+cork

I also got him the trio of balls. I only used the hyacinth one though - found the wicker one had some sharp bits. The sisal one I kept to use for sisal string which is always useful to have! Safe for tying things to the cage etc.

The hyacinth one I would stick pumpkin seeds under the folds once a week or so so it kept him occupied at ground level getting the seeds out

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rosewood-Bo...=trio+of+balls

I now use the cork tunnel instead of a ladder up to a shelf - just kind of part under the shelf so it makes a ramp - so it could still be used when the levels are back in maybe.

[Robo2017]

Thank you for the ideas I'v actually had the balls saved in my amazon basket for the past week and have been waiting till I need to order something else since it's an add on. I'd never thought of using them to hide seeds though, will have to give that a go when I get them

I can't hang things from the top sadly as its a pretty deep tank so don't think he would be able to actually play with them. I have thought of sticking the hanging toys to the sides of the tank with suction cups but not sure how safe that would be if he tried to nibble on them...