Hamsters all have different personalities and some are more vocal than others. Some chatter and chirrup a lot - some are silent! He may have been trying to tell you something but who knows? Our Robo used to communicate with hard looks. Eg he would sit and look hard at you - then look at his shelf, then back at you then back at the shelf. Clever ! It alerted me that his ladder had fallen down and he couldn’t get up to the shelf.
Chirruping can also be if they are happy (or just had a nice treat) or angry even. They can do this kind of vibrating thing and no-one knows what that means. You just need to observe the circumstances at the time. Our Syrian did it once after I dropped him (not very far). Others havd said it’s when they’re happy. But it’s a kind of communication. Usually if something is right or wrong!
Can you remember the circumstances when he was chirruping.
Robos are supposed to live longer than other species though - 3 to 5 years. But any hamster can get sick for unknown reasons. I had also expected our Robo to live longer but he was an accidental litter from a sibling mating so maybe didn’t have the best genetic make up.
The National Hamster council lists all
The northern official breeders
. There aren’t that many and it is probably quite quiet right now with Covid. In normal times the best way to get one from a breeder is to go to one of the many hamster shows around the country where breeders can sell hamsters they have bred but are not keeping for show stock or breeding. Yes there are hamster shows! Great isn’t it?
Another way is to adopt a hamster from a rescue - Austins Hamster Haven in Doncaster is a hamster rescue. They have a Facebook page. They often have litters of babies as well as adult hamsters. But with this pandemic nothing is working as it should.
I completely understand the concerns during pregnancy- Better safe than sorry. I think it is very low risk with a hamster but completely under the worry. I saw a similar concern from a pregnant guinea pig owner but she was overwhelmingly reassured that many guinea pig owners have had umpteen pregnancies and no issues. The real risk is from wild mice etc. If you don’t get mice then your hamster won’t get it. Good point that testing isn’t possible for hamsters - but from what I’ve read of a hamster gets it they would be very sick with multiple symptoms so you would know about it.
Syrians are generally very healthy throughout. There is the odd sad case of a young death but they to live into old age abd are resilient. Their only risk is wet tail either from excessive stress or from a diseased pet shop.
But although it is very low risk your concern is natural and technically it could be transmitted in a pet store. But I have never known of any hamster getting LCMV in the five years I have been on here x
When is the baby due? Yes a new pet at the same time could be a handful but then hamsters are fairly easy once they have the right cage set up.
I really struggled with the grief after our first Syrian died - abd I had a bad experience at the vets. But found some help. I’ll link it. The Blue cross do a Brilliant pet bereavement counselling service by email and the article in the link is very good too. Explains all your feelings right now x
Pet loss - where to find help, tips and comfort on the loss of a pet.