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Old 11-10-2020, 02:47 PM   #1
Grinewin
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Default Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

I'm trying to find out if this is something I should call a vet for. I've had my hybrid dwarf hamster Egg for about seven weeks now. For the first month or so, she was steady at 50 to 54 grams. I weighed her every week and forgot one week in late October. When I weighed her on Halloween, she was suddenly 40 grams. Now, on November 10th, she's 35 grams. I've had people tell me that she may have been a bit chubby before I adopted her, but I'm concerned at how quickly the weight loss has happened.

Other than this, she seems perfectly healthy. She's active, eats everything I give her (including hard foods -- she's chewing through a peanut husk as I type this), doesn't seem dehydrated, and I can't find anything wrong when I do a health check. No lumps, no discharge, her eyes, ears, and nose are clear...it's just that she's quickly losing weight. I'll post pictures of her body condition -- she doesn't look thin to me, honestly I probably wouldn't have noticed she was smaller if I didn't weigh her -- so you can see. The first one is right after I got her and all the others will be from the last week. Thanks in advance!
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Old 11-11-2020, 12:08 AM   #2
cypher
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

She certainly won’t have been chubby at her previous weight, that isn’t high for a hybrid, she does look fine in the photos, not thin or in poor condition so the weight loss is a bit strange, have you checked to make sure she is eating ok & not just hoarding most of her food?
I really have no ideas to suggest as to why it may be if she’s able to eat, teeth are ok etc but if she continues to lose weight I would consult a vet & see what they say.
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Old 11-11-2020, 12:09 AM   #3
Ria P
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

Do you check if she has full pouches before you weigh her?
That could make qute a difference especially in a little dwarf hamster.
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Old 11-11-2020, 11:50 AM   #4
Grinewin
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

Is there a reliable way to tell the difference between pouching and eating? She definitely eats the meal worms I give her, but it's harder to tell with seeds, especially when she's in her cage and I'm watching from above.

I mean, I've weighed her food portions before and none of them come close to explaining the almost twenty grams she's lost even if sometimes she has full pouches when I weigh her.

Last edited by Grinewin; 11-11-2020 at 12:19 PM.
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Old 11-12-2020, 05:58 AM   #5
cypher
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

The only way you can tell if she’s eating what she pouches is to check on her food stash & see how big it is.
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Old 11-12-2020, 05:55 PM   #6
Grinewin
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

I'm not quite sure where her stash is since moving her to a bigger cage. I tried to find it last week when I saw her pouch some scrambled egg because I was afraid it would go bad without any luck. But I can try again. In the meantime, I'll just keep an eye on her and call a vet if she continues to lose weight. Thanks for your help
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Old 11-20-2020, 03:56 PM   #7
Grinewin
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

Just to add an update: I finally just went ahead and called a vet. The appointment is tomorrow morning, so hopefully all goes well and it turns out there's nothing to worry about. I did find her food hoard and it was somewhat large, but I think it might just be because I was giving her so many extra bits of food in an attempt to get her weight back up. But now that I know where it is, I'll try to keep an eye on it -- I can't disturb it too much though, since she has a history of abandoning a hoard if she knows it's been messed with.
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Old 11-20-2020, 06:28 PM   #8
anjalina rosario
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

I would take them to the vet to check for any stomach/digestive system issues. Dramatic weight loss could be a big problem especially in short periods of time. Just go for a check, just to be safe. Better safe, than sorry! Good Luck!
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Old 11-21-2020, 11:03 AM   #9
Grinewin
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Default Re: Hamster Seems Perfectly Healthy -- Except for Weight Loss

We got back from the vet a few hours ago (and we both just woke up from a nap because 8 am is waaaay too early for both of us!). Egg moved her burrow without telling me, so after ten increasingly frustrating minutes of digging around her old burrow, she cheerfully popped out of the bedding on the other side of the cage and went into the carrier. The vet adored her and ultimately concluded that she's perfectly healthy, so it's likely she's just shedding some extra weight she was carrying around. So that's put my mind at ease and hopefully this is her last vet visit for a while!
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