Diabetic hamster care

[Ria P]

I strongly suspect that my dwarf hybrid Percy is a diabetic because he seems to drink and pee significantly more than my other two hamsters.

I have fed him with diabetes in mind right from the day i adopted him a mixture of HH and Rodipet dwarf hamster food, no fruit or carrot only greens like cucumber, broccoli etc and no sugary treats adding extra protein with mealworms and a bit of egg.

I have ordered the Rodipet Hybrid mix for dwarves prone or suffering from diabetes.

He gets exercise by running in his wheel, over the bridges etc and out of cage time.

I'm waiting for the kero strips from Amazon to test his urine because i couldn't get them at a pharmacy or a vet's.

I've started keeping a record of his water consumption which was 17mls in 24hrs last night and his weight is 67g.

Percy seems fine and does his hamster stuff like wheeling, burrowing and eats normally. He's not sociable or tame but seems a bit more settled and that's fine with me.

Reason i've started this thread is that i'd like to hear from other people who have diabetic hamsters and their experiences on how they're dealing with it.

I suppose his slight hostility could be linked to a medical condition rather than personality or unpleasant historical events in his life.

[GhostsInSnow]

I breed Chinese which can be prone to diabetes despite our best attempts to breed it out, it seems to rear it's ugly head out of nowhere from time to time. We are no beginning to wonder if stress is a factor as, often at the moment, a hammy will be clear, go off to their new home and develop it very quickly.
How I tackle it depends very much on the hamster and their stage of life. I've had a very young pup test positive at 3 weeks and I've had elderly hams suddenly develop it. I increase protein, I don't pick anything out of the mix. Some hammies seem to cope with it remarkably well and I have some that cope for a little while and then really start to go downhill fast. I have found some of my diabetics become very temperamental, especially when they're nearing that downhill turn and I do often take that as a sign that they're very uncomfortable and feeling very unwell if it becomes an everyday occurrence. If they get to that point I consider having them pt at the vets but it does vary from hamster to hamster.
I know a couple of people have tried insulin but you have to do blood glucose tests daily so you need a very tolerant hamster and an open minded vet in order to go own that route.
I think the main change is checking water levels several times a day and factoring in much more frequent cleanouts as diabetic pee can quickly become mouldy. I avoid wooden toys for diabetics for this very reason and stick to easily cleaned plastic toys or disposably accessories like cardboard and paper.

[Ria P]

Thank you very much GhostinSnow for your informative reply.
It made me realize that diabetes in hamsters is more common than i had thought but can imagine that it is not always reckognized as such.
I had already decided not to go down the medicinal route and subject Percy to various vet visits, blood tests and experimental medication because it would be too stressful and risky for him.
I'll keep him in the bin cage because i can see where he sleeps and pees so can spot clean the wet substrate out without having to rummage around his home trying to find it.

I'm glad you pointed out the wood and mould issue because Percy sleeps under a bamboo table and two of the legs get mouldy. I have two identical tables and replace a damp one with a dry one but will look into a plastic replacement. Haven't figured it out as yet unless i build one to fit from Lego?! Or i'll get the Dremel out and adjust a plastic tub.....

I'm sure that Percy wasn't 100% right when i got him but all i can do now is to look after him the best way i can and let nature take its course. I won't let him suffer should the illness progress and become intolerable for him.

I'm quite sad now because i want him to have a good and happy hamster life. He hasn't even been diagnosed yet but i am pretty sure about it.

[GhostsInSnow]

Which strips have you got? A diabetic hamster won't always show ketones in their pee but they will show high glucose. I use strips that test for both.

Anything plastic would be good, something you can soak and scrub so lego would probably be a really good idea!

Don't be sad, you've asked for advice and are already doing so much to make sure he's happy and comfortable, he's a very lucky little hammy to have you as his mummy. If it helps I've had diabetics live for quite a long time after diagnosis so Percy may have quite a while with you yet The pup I mentioned that tested positive at 3 weeks lived to be 8 months old which is good going for a young diagnosis.
Percy is in good hands with you, you're doing all the right things.

[Fluffagrams]

I too have had a number of diabetic Chinese Hamsters and have seen varying effects of the disease. Some seem to have gone downhill quicker than others but that's not always the case and Cora was diabetic for nearly a year before I had her PTS in April. She had been managing fine but I think that a period of stress when her 'husband' died (Cora lived in the adjacent cage to the father of her pups) brought on a worsening of her condition. John, who I had PTS last week had also been diabetic for several months and was quite stable for quite a while. His decline was sudden rather than gradual and his struggles became quite clear. One thing I've noticed in some of my diabetics has been some swelling in the abdomen and if that appears, then I know their time has come and but other signs that they're struggling include a change in temperament

Anecdotally I've seen some evidence to suggest that stress is a factor in genetically prone individuals so I try to minimise stress on any known diabetics as much as possible.

[Ria P]

Stress seems to really affect them.

I won't be able to gage Percy's temperament because he's around 6 months old and i adopted him a month ago so i don't know what he was like when he was younger.
Any change in Percy's temperament would in fact be an improvement because he couldn't get much worse.
He's ok as long as he's left alone but i can't touch or handle him. No, not quite true. I can stroke him gently with one finger when he's drinking but that doesn't really count because he's so fixated on the bottle and grabs it when i touch him. Poor little sod.

I'll get the keto sticks tomorrow and should have a better idea then.

I'm also wondering whether to keep trying to interact/tame him or just leave him be to avoid any possible stress triggers. He went completely crazy when i cleaned his cage out but i spot clean only as much as possible.

I will have to handle him to check his abdomen now and again which no doubt he'll fiercly fight against.

Thank you for your help and concern GhostinSnow and Fluffagrams. Really appreciate it.

[AmityvilleHams]

I know stress can lead to elevated blood glucose levels in non-diabetic humans, as well as being a factor for increased blood glucose in diabetic humans. This is a great reason for hamster owners to minimize stress particular in diabetes prone species and diabetic individuals as well as those with any genetic potential for diabetes, among all the other problems stress can lead to.

Because of this, I'd personally be wanting to do multiple tests for diabetes at various points in time with any suspected diabetic hamster just to determine whether or not there are other factors involved instead of diabetes itself.

[Ria P]

I have just tested Percy and as expected he's showing highest glucose reading but no ketones.

I tried to give him a health check last night but as soon as i put my hand near him he flips over onto his back into the defence position. I don't know why he's like that. At least i got a look at his abdomen which looked normal.


I'll just have to see how it goes and make him a new plastic table.

[Fluffagrams]

I'm so sorry to hear about Percy's diabetes.

I've usually found that the swollen abdomens can be seen by just looking at the hamster and going by how they feel in your hand. It's difficult to describe but their back end can sometimes take on an unusual shape and sometimes when you hold them they seem to have a 'hefty' feeling to them. I wouldn't worry too much about trying to check his abdomen too much if he's upset by it as there's often other signs at the same time that the condition is worsening.

The fact that he's not got positive ketones at the moment is a good sign that he's not desparately ill and he could still go on for many months yet.

There's a couple of terrific articles written by one of the moderators here about diabetes in hamsters. it's written primarily with Chinese in mnd but is still worth a read:

https://vectishams.com/chinese-hamster-diabetes/

https://vectishams.com/chinese-hamst...es-management/

[Ria P]

Thank you for the links. They are very interesting and i have learned from them already.

I'll cut out the sunflower seed treats because of the fat and replace them with linseeds.

I still wonder if his contrary and aggressive behaviour is caused by the diabetes or something else but i guess i'll never find out......