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Old 01-13-2020, 09:43 AM   #1
Vierville
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Default Acetone urine odour

Having read a bit about diabetes in dwarf hamsters, I initially was worried about Monty, (female aged 18 months) as she tends to drink more than my other hamsters (about 24ml in ten days). Last night however I was cleaning out Norman's sand box where he pees (male, 4 months) and noticed a very strong acetone or ammonia smell. Much stronger than my other dwarf hamsters' wee smells. He has had a stronger odour about him from day one.

I know that urine that smells of acetone is a sign of diabetes but he has no other signs- he drinks only a tiny amount (about 15ml in ten days) and his nails are not thickened or yellow. He gets lots of exercise and is in good condition. He has gained weight since we got him but we got him at two months old and he is now four months old and isn't overweight, he's just grown up a bit.

Any thoughts on particularly stinky urine?

P.S. : I am in the process of trying to get Diastix or Keto-Diastix...they are not available in my country so have to be ordered from overseas which will take a week or two.
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Old 01-13-2020, 11:17 AM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

Regarding Monty 2.4ml a day doesn't sound like a lot to me really, some hams will drink more than others but I wouldn't think that was anything to worry about.
Hamster pee seems to vary in how smelly it is too, some of mine I can hardly find anything that smells of pee while others have been quite smelly but perfectly healthy.
Acetone & ammonia smell totally different, I'm not sure if you meant you can smell both? The acetone smell is really quite distinctive & different to the normal ammonia smell, if it's just the ammonia type smell & Norman is otherwise healthy then I wouldn't worry.
If you do think it's the acetone smell I wouldn't do anything until you can get the sticks to test the urine & take it from there.
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Old 01-13-2020, 12:44 PM   #3
Vierville
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

My sense of smell is not the best and my experience with acetone is minimal but it did have a very sharp smell quite unlike the others' that I do think was like acetone.
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Old 01-13-2020, 03:05 PM   #4
Ria P
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

A diabetic hamster can drink 24mls or more in 24hrs so 24mls in ten days isn't much at all.

Our Percy, who is a diabetic dwarf, does have smell about his habitat but its more sweetish. Hard to describe and he pees a lot so i have to spot clean the wet patches every few days.

There's glucose in his wee so he can't have items made from woods etc because they form a mould when wet which can grow harmful bacteria. You would have noticed the mould when cleaning their cages. It was visible on the legs of a bamboo table i had in Percy's cage before i changed all to washable plastic and ceramic.

Best not to worry just now until you can test them. I was very upset when Percy tested positive but he's not worried. So far it has not affected his daily hamster life. He drinks and pees more than the others but aside from that you'd never know he's diabetic. He's a much happier hamster now than when we first got him which could also have something to do with a better diet.
You are aware of diabetes and what not to feed a dwarf so yours have a better chance of not getting it.
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Old 01-13-2020, 03:54 PM   #5
Engel
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

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Originally Posted by Ria P View Post
A diabetic hamster can drink 24mls or more in 24hrs so 24mls in ten days isn't much at all.

Our Percy, who is a diabetic dwarf, does have smell about his habitat but its more sweetish. Hard to describe and he pees a lot so i have to spot clean the wet patches every few days.

There's glucose in his wee so he can't have items made from woods etc because they form a mould when wet which can grow harmful bacteria. You would have noticed the mould when cleaning their cages. It was visible on the legs of a bamboo table i had in Percy's cage before i changed all to washable plastic and ceramic.

Best not to worry just now until you can test them. I was very upset when Percy tested positive but he's not worried. So far it has not affected his daily hamster life. He drinks and pees more than the others but aside from that you'd never know he's diabetic. He's a much happier hamster now than when we first got him which could also have something to do with a better diet.
You are aware of diabetes and what not to feed a dwarf so yours have a better chance of not getting it.
Ok reading this thread has got me kind of worried, my one hamster (Syrian) drinks easily 20ml in less the 36 hours and pees a lot. She has a huge sand box to toilet in and within 24 hours it's all clumped together. May need to get keto-diastix to be on the safe side. If it comes back positive, Ria I'm going to need you to share all your knowledge
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Old 01-14-2020, 02:43 AM   #6
Fluffagrams
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

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Originally Posted by Engel View Post
Ok reading this thread has got me kind of worried, my one hamster (Syrian) drinks easily 20ml in less the 36 hours and pees a lot. She has a huge sand box to toilet in and within 24 hours it's all clumped together. May need to get keto-diastix to be on the safe side. If it comes back positive, Ria I'm going to need you to share all your knowledge
Syrians aren’t prone to diabetes and in fact I don’t think I’ve come across it at all but drinking and peeing excessively could be a sign of other things such as a urinary infection so it’s worth taking her to the vet to get her checked out.
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Old 01-16-2020, 05:31 AM   #7
Engel
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Default Re: Acetone urine odour

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Originally Posted by Fluffagrams View Post
Syrians aren’t prone to diabetes and in fact I don’t think I’ve come across it at all but drinking and peeing excessively could be a sign of other things such as a urinary infection so it’s worth taking her to the vet to get her checked out.
Crisis averted. The bottle had a bit of bedding by the nozzle making the water just pour out. Didn't notice it beforehand...now she's drinking on par with my other Syrians.

I understand diabetes in Syrians is very rare, but not impossible
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