Male hamster making a squeaking type sound - Page 2

lorrapaw · 02-14-2013, 09:08 AM

Aw i hope he gets better soon x

Lee Van Cleef · 02-15-2013, 03:09 AM

I've managed to give him some of the baytril last night and this morning but the meloxidyl never seems to stick with him. Last night the poor thing was in an awful state from lack of sleep and the illness. Whenever I hold him he pretty much always scampers off, but last night I put him down on my chest while I laid on the bed and he just collapsed and slept there, so I covered him up a bit and just let him lie.

Vet said he should start showing improvement in 24 hours, but my worry is I'm at work overnight tonight which means I can't check up on him.

shiny · 02-15-2013, 03:28 AM

Poor baby

it can help to wrap them gently in a tea towel or similar to give meds if they are not keen (Baytril apparently tastes yuk!).

Hope he's showing improvement soon, if not then I would get back to the vets.

Best wishes,

shiny

Nush · 02-15-2013, 10:54 AM

I think, if I'm not mistaken, you can add the meloxidyl, if it's the oral liquid, to some baby food. If your hamster loves baby food and licks his bowl clean you could add the baytril to it as well although feeding it directly is better because you know it's all going in.

Good luck with all the meds. It can be a bit stressful

PerryTheHamster · 02-19-2013, 02:07 PM

My hamster Perry squeaks too! he has also been acting weird where he just stops moving. His eyes are wide open, he just sits. If i pick him up he stays still. One time, it lasted about half an hour. Even when i put a peanut in a shell in front of him he didn't move, and they are his favorite! He would be running around on my lap then he just stops...

i hope its not serious.. do you know what it is that's making him act like this? Please help, its really scary!!

Nush · 02-22-2013, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PerryTheHamster

My hamster Perry squeaks too! he has also been acting weird where he just stops moving. His eyes are wide open, he just sits. If i pick him up he stays still. One time, it lasted about half an hour. Even when i put a peanut in a shell in front of him he didn't move, and they are his favorite! He would be running around on my lap then he just stops...

i hope its not serious.. do you know what it is that's making him act like this? Please help, its really scary!!

He's freezing. It generally happens when a hamster has caught a sound (they have very sensitive hearing) and get scared. I generally stroke mine and talk in a reassuring voice. I also cup my hand and place it over him so that he feels safer. Is he a young hamster? As he feels safer, he'll freeze less and less but he might always be a bit of a scared hammy.

Lee Van Cleef · 02-23-2013, 12:56 AM

When he freezes, does he look like he's rocking slightly, or does his breathing sound a little rough? I ask because Rusty had a chest infection and every so often he would just stop in a spot and sit there and he would rock with his breathing because he was struggling with the effort.

Nush · 02-23-2013, 05:10 AM

No generally they can be alert which means they'll sit on their back legs with their ears pricked up. This is a very normal behaviour. But when a hamster freezes, they do not move at all (not even their whiskers move).
It can be quite scary the first time someone sees it. Mine froze with one paw in the air and the other on the floor and he stayed like that for minutes. His eyes glazed. It was awful. I thought he had a stroke and died!!

Lee Van Cleef, I think your hamster probably gets tired quicker because of the chest infection and he's just pausing to catch his breath. Is he getting better now?

PerryTheHamster · 02-23-2013, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nush

He's freezing. It generally happens when a hamster has caught a sound (they have very sensitive hearing) and get scared. I generally stroke mine and talk in a reassuring voice. I also cup my hand and place it over him so that he feels safer. Is he a young hamster? As he feels safer, he'll freeze less and less but he might always be a bit of a scared hammy.

He is about 1 year and about a month old. I also cup mu hands around him and stroke his head, however it last for ages, is there a way i can speed up the process of him doing it? its really sad

Nush · 02-25-2013, 05:25 AM

As far as I know there is not much you can do other then what you're already doing. Because this behaviour is fear driven you have to be very patient with the hammy and let him come round in his own time.
You can put this question in a new thread and see if anyone else has a suggestion. I'd be interested to know too.