Stroke?

spacebyte · 03-21-2018, 09:49 AM

Hi everyone, posting here again so soon.
Luna came out to see me at lunchtime, very wobbly and sleepy looking. She has made a nest out in the open and I was assuming she was going to pass away this time. She is 2 years 1 months old. No sneezing or screaming, she's been very peaceful.
I was sitting with her for a bit this afternoon, talking quietly to her, and she got up to pee? Very wobbly she made her way to the opposite side of her cage where she pees, then wobbly made her way back to bed. Since then she has eaten some food, including cheese and some of the hard oellet food she gets. She tried to pouch food from her bowl but struggled and has instead burried the food bowl?
This is a lot of activity from a hamster that seemed like she was passing away earlier in the day. I was wondering if she had a stroke? She has control over all her limbs, and seems to be going where she wants, but very wobbly and slow. Occasionally she has a little jump to her movement.
My usual vet is closed and I know the vet school is open but have been told they're not used to exotics. Thinking I should just keep her comfortable just now and take her to the usual vet in the morning? She seems as though she isn't in pain. What could this be? Am I right in thinking a stroke and what is the treatment for this?

souffle · 03-21-2018, 11:11 AM

I think I would monitor her and see how she does. Make sure she can reach her water and food easily and maybe offer some soft food.
I find you can tell they are winding down when they feel cold and even though they move around they can't maintain body temperature.
Our Rupert has been wobbling around for months but he is still cosy enough and he comes out for his food and a totter around every night. I think she will let you know if she has had enough. The sleeping out the nest is always a concern but she seems to have rallied again so let her rest. It's hard to tell what is going on really at this stage.
I hope she has some comfortable time left with you still x

spacebyte · 03-21-2018, 11:23 AM

I have asked my boyfriend to pick up some baby food on his way over. That would give her food and fluids yes?
She seemed warm enough earlier when I was giving her a bit of cheese to nibble. I don't want to annoy her too much as she is very much a look don't touch kind of pet- not a biter and will let you hold her and pet her a bit, but she doesn't like it. Should I be using the heat pad tonight for her?
She doesn't seem to be in pain. I just want what's best for her and if she's going to pass away I hope that it's peacefully.

souffle · 03-21-2018, 11:41 AM

Yes babyfood does give both food and water and is useful for ill hammies. I wouldn't use the heat pad personally. With a wobby hammy if they fall on the heat pad and get stuck they are unable to get away from a too warm area it's not ideal for them.
If she feels warm just give plenty bedding and keep her in a warmish room without major swings in temperature.

spacebyte · 03-21-2018, 12:00 PM

Thanks for the advice. He is on his way with the baby food we know she likes, so that will be a nice treat for her either way.
That's what I thought with regards to the heat pad, I knew after she had a operation last year the vet told me to be careful with it if there was the possibility she couldn't move off it. I have turned the radiator on in the room she's in and will give her some extra bedding. Her new nest is on top of the old one- she's in the same spot but above ground instead of below, hopefully she can cuddle up in the bedding and keep warm.

spacebyte · 03-21-2018, 02:13 PM

Luna has eaten some baby food which I heated a bit to try and keep her warm. She has now burried herself under the the substrate, more where she usually nests. I think this is a positive sign. Will keep you up to date.

Applewood Hamstery · 03-22-2018, 12:19 AM

I agree 100% with souffle. I hope for positive updates soon, two years is an impressive age so far, well done. She must be an incredibly happy hamster.

What temperature was your home sitting at when this happened? What you're describing could be symptoms of torpor that she had awakened from. Hamsters recover from this normally. However, it could be a number of things too I suppose. But if she's already getting back into her normal routine, it's unlikely that it was a stroke. If your home is a little on the cool side, provide extra nesting material and a hide for her to stuff it all into. Best of luck!

spacebyte · 03-22-2018, 03:28 AM

My house was a bit cold, but it's been colder- we were snowed in a few weeks ago. She's on a new bedding so maybe it's not as warm for her? I've given her more shredded tissue. The radiator has been on all night.
She's gone back underground to her usual nest! She seemed much less wobbly just before I went to bed-managed to pouch food. She's eaten overnight. Hopefully she is doing okay in there. Not going to wake her up. I wonder what was wrong with her? It was very sudden..

spacebyte · 03-24-2018, 03:14 AM

She had another "above ground" day, she sat in the nest the whole time (that I seen). Ate baby food I offered to her.
I got back in from uni the next day and she'd disappeared. Haven't actually seen her since because I've been busy! I heat her up some more baby food, then went to eat my own dinner. When I passed through the room she's in to go do the dishes it's all been eaten. This morning I woke up and she's pouched pellet foods and dug a wider tunnel to her underground nest (which is a shoebox with a hole in the side full of tissues underneath the substrate- this is where she usually sleeps and stores food). If she can dig then I'm assuming she's doing better. Radiator still on in the room, though the temperature outside is increasing.

spacebyte · 03-30-2018, 11:39 AM

Just giving a final (hopefully) update on Luna.
She has had some good days and bad days. There were a few days where she was active for maybe half an hour around noon (usual for her - she gets up then to have a pee and a drink and a sniff around. Being home most days I've noticed this) and then would really struggle to move or open her eyes in the evening.
I've been keeping her comfortable, feeding her a lot, keeping her warm, and she's doing much better. Her eyes are bright and open again, she is responding to people and smells of cooking again. She tried her hardest to climb and stand up on her back legs but that's a struggle for her and she wobbles around - I've simplified her cage layout a bit.
She walks wobbly but a bit quicker and confident about it. She's digging A LOT. The fact she is still wobbly I think it maybe was a stroke, and she just has had some good times and bad times with walking and activity. She seems much better now but I think the wobble is here to stay.
Her wheel is still in there, I'm not sure if she's using it - I have been busy with my dissertation and not hanging out in the living room with her a often as usual. I might put a sticker on it and see if it moves in the night. Is this wise, or should she have it taken off her? I don't want to limit her unnecessarily, she was using the wheel up until she fell ill.

EDIT: here are some pics of her digging and eating today (she's still getting baby food because she's spoiled!) https://imgur.com/a/YdeUr