Red eyed Russian Dwarf Hamster

Careba · 08-19-2018, 02:40 PM

Okay, so i have 3 baby hamsters. 2 girls and a boy. One of the girls, Nugget, she has red eyes and so cannot see as well as other hamsters. She sometimes sits looking at nothing for a long while.

I have read that hamsters will sometimes sit and gaze into space, but my little Nugget will sit for a good hour, rocking slowly back and forth, like she has witnessed the world end. She also tends to hold onto something when doing it, and won't respond to me.

My second girl, Vin, she does the same thing but hides behind her bed when doing it. (She only started when Nugget was hogging their bed. Despite them having 2 beds.)

My boy Pippin (he's a Robo dwarf) doesn't do it.

I was wondering if anyone else has a red eyed hamster that will do this.

The two girls are currently sitting in opposite corners, just gazing into space. It's funny seeing Pippin being the normal one, he's usually doing the weird stuff.

alpacassei · 08-20-2018, 04:38 AM

Most my Russian’s have/had red eyes! Red eyes are caused by a lack of pigment in their eyes (albinism) which affects theri vision since their eyes can not develop properly without pigment. She’ll still be able to see a bit but not near as well as the others, her eyes will also be more sensitive to light.

Blind hamsters seem to enjoy toys that give a lot of nonvisual stimulation, stuff with moving parts, interesting textures, and sounds! Natural chews with lots of dofferent elements are my favourite for blind hammies. Marchie loved this chew that was wooden balls and loofahs on natural string, he would spend ages just spinning the balls around!

If she doesnt have any toys to offer her the sensory stimulation she needs, that could be why she’s rocking if she seems otherwise healthy, but it could be worth taking her for a check up just incase its something more serious tbh. Also make sure there’s no fighting going on between the two girls as well!

These are the sorts of toys she’ll like:
http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pe...currentPage=3&

Careba · 08-20-2018, 09:39 AM

Thanks for this advice! She has plenty of toys, things to chew and climb about on. And I keep on buying her new things, it's a bit of an addiction. Also, thank you for the link, she is going to get SPOILED.

Also, don't worry, there are no fights. Only a squeak or two when Nugget kicks Vin out the bed, but if that does escalate they will be separated.

flowerfairy · 08-20-2018, 10:34 AM

I have a red eyed white hybrid hamster (Popcorn). He is very active and rarely sits still.

I had an agouti roborovski who used to sit and daydream for ages just sitting on her wheel. She was lovely.

Here is Popcorn

Hope to hear more about your three soon.

dreamtree1234 · 08-20-2018, 10:51 AM

Hi and welcome to HC! Your three hams sound wonderful and have three very different personalities. I look forward to getting to know and see them. Hope to see you around the forum, too. Have fun with you cuties; I'm sure they area getting spoiled with all of their amazing toys and all of your love.

Careba · 08-20-2018, 01:55 PM

Nugget has cheered up a lot, she is on her wheel just now. I noticed that she really perked up when I lifted her from her cage and let her wander around my room a little. I'm not too worried about her getting stuck anywhere, her sight is... Heh, it's pretty bad, and she stays near my hands.

Either way, she was much much happier when she had a little wander.

alpacassei · 08-20-2018, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Careba

Nugget has cheered up a lot, she is on her wheel just now. I noticed that she really perked up when I lifted her from her cage and let her wander around my room a little. I'm not too worried about her getting stuck anywhere, her sight is... Heh, it's pretty bad, and she stays near my hands.

Either way, she was much much happier when she had a little wander.

Hamsters love getting to explore outside their cages! I’m glad she had a lot of fun!

Hopefully she’ll learn to feel her way around using her whiskers soon (similar to how a blind person uses a white cane) and become more confident running around your room. My Mishka (also blind) is very curious and loves to explore and climb, you wouldn’t even know she had trouble seeing unless you switch her cage set up around (she doesnt use her whiskers as much inside her cage so she walks into things a lot if i move them).

Careba · 08-20-2018, 04:03 PM

Funny enough, my Robo dwarf dislikes exploring. He would much rather stay in his cage, hiding and burrowing. It just showed how different each hamster is, they are such characters.

And I did notice that when I move things, Nugget will walk right on into them. I'm just glad shes such a quick learner, within a few seconds she can adapt to the new items. I would also like to mention, that instead of climbing down her ladder, she slides. I think this is pretty cute, and made sure to pad the bottom with plenty of sawdust.

Sasha04 · 08-21-2018, 03:26 PM

Like alpacassei said red eyes are caused by a lack of pigmentation. It really dosen’t effect their seeing as they don’t have very good sight in the first place. They use their nose, whiskers, and ears to navigate. This is a video explaining more about red eyed hamsters.
https://youtu.be/byNiBamNkHk

When you say sawdust do you mean wood shavings? Sawdust tends to be very dusty. When Hamster are breathing in dust constantly it can cause respiratory system infections. If you prefer to use wood shavings aspen wood shavings are safe. Cedar and Pine wood shavings are unsafe do to the toxic fenals and acids. Paper based bedding such as Carefresh and Kaytee Clean and Cozy are safe. Carefresh in my experience tends to be a bit dusty and collapses quite a bit. I personally love Kaytee Clean and Cozy. It’s not very dusty though my resent bag was a bit dusty. It also holds up borrows very well. If you have any questions or concerns feel free to ask!

alpacassei · 08-21-2018, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sasha04

Like alpacassei said red eyes are caused by a lack of pigmentation. It really dosen’t effect their seeing as they don’t have very good sight in the first place. They use their nose, whiskers, and ears to navigate. This is a video explaining more about red eyed hamsters.
https://youtu.be/byNiBamNkHk

Actually eyes can’t develop properly without pigment, same with albinism in humans (like me!) so their vision will always be affected at least slightly but like you said, hamster vision is pretty bad to begin with so its usually not noticeable unless your hamster’s vision severely affected.