Poor wee thing :(.

debs · 12-12-2011, 06:50 PM

i just got giving this poor wee russian dwarf hamster hes pure white, the person didnt want him anymore as he was in a cage with a other dwarf but ended up killing him : [ hes not been handlen much so he bites when i got him his cage smells so bad his wheel was stuck so i gave him one of the ss ones, hes in a mini duna and all so hes very over weight is food bowl was over flowing with food his fat all most covers his paws

. i've cleaned out his cage and chance his food and gave him less hes on the wagg stuff =/. does anybody know what i can do too help him lose a bit weight

. i havent giving him a full health cheak as he freaks out when i go near him.

Elliriyanna · 12-12-2011, 08:05 PM

Limit his diet and of course no sugar he sounds like he may be diabetic I would test him. A healthy diet and of course exercise should really help. Try Harry Hamster food its what I feed all my dwarfs and they love it.

MismatchedMongrel · 12-12-2011, 08:13 PM

In the meanwhile. Give him about a week to settle in then start sticking him in a hamster ball at night for twenty or so minutes. Get him interested in running. Avoid sugary foods, up his fiber if you can. It'll help clear gunk out of his body and should help him start losing weight. Keep an eye on him if you can't test his blood sugar, does he eat and pee a lot? Move from there. You know how to hand-tame I'm sure. Its all small steps, honey! Good luck <3

**Hamtastic** · 12-12-2011, 08:17 PM

Aw, Debs, you're just the kindest soul with all the hamsters you've gone through!

I'd stick to a selection of whole grains (like bird mixes) with Hazel Hamster (minus corn kernels and corn flakes), maybe limit sunflower seeds to one every couple days. Some broccoli, lean proteins like tofu. I think on normal diet, he should actually normalize after a while, as he won't be getting the junk food he had before. My friend's overweight robo lost some weight shortly after she switched from junk food to a better mix.

**kyrilliondaemon** · 12-12-2011, 08:26 PM

Poor boy

Getting him a working wheel will have helped as now he can run and lose some of that weight, feeding him less will also help. When he's lost some of his weight you could also put him in a run for extra excercise, when in runs our dwarves almost never stop moving.
He's probably too unfit to do much at first, so I wouldn't worry too much if he doesn't use the wheel much yet, as he loses weight he should get fitter and start being able to do more.

If he panics when you go near I'd just keep an eye on him from a distance if possible (e.g if hes eating ok then his teeth are probably fine), its what we had to do with our rescue robos for ages and we're still not allowed to touch them so all their health checks are done from a distance. We spotted Skip's only problem quite quickly despite that (although we waited a fair while before taking him to the vet about it because it clearly wasn't bothering him or changing at all and we wanted him less terrified before a non-urgent vet visit), and in the end even the vet dealt with Skip from a distance lol

If you have any concerns about health beyond him being overweight (like worries that hes diabetic) I'd take him to a vet when you can, just warn the vet that you've only just got him and he isn't at all tame yet.

I do hate it when people let animals end up in a state like this, but he's definetly landed on his paws when being handed to someone who will care and make sure he's healthy from now on.

debs · 12-13-2011, 01:41 PM

thank you everybody as Yes i normal take them off peoples hands who can't Look after them anymore, so i take them in and make sure there heathly tame etc and try and find new homes for them yes i think im gonna have too take him too the vet as his scent glance is all blocked up.

poor wee thing he was all so getting fed take away food as well. he doesnt drink that much but when he walks out of house he'll stop hafe away then Lie down for a bit then move on again

i put him in a loo tube to osee how fat he really was put it this way he couldnt it in it =/

Gizmodo ^_^ · 12-13-2011, 01:42 PM

Debs you're such a wonderful owner
I would love too be able too take on rescue hamsters, but don't have the time! <3

debs · 12-13-2011, 01:47 PM

i would of kept him but ith holly maybe having babies i wont have the time ether i would love too see one on the forum as i could know what hes been up too. and thank you John you too and im sorry too hear about Little poppy.

**kyrilliondaemon** · 12-13-2011, 03:34 PM

Awww, poor thing

I hope he gets better soon and finds a great home somewhere with wonderful people to fuss him (once he's ready to want fuss) and keep him happy.

racinghamster · 12-14-2011, 09:51 AM

Hi debs. He sounds as though he`s been ignorantly kept poor wee soul. Was he a childs pet do you know? The main thing you want to be looking at is his diet, so complex carbohydrates (those are slow release energy foods) and no natural or added sugars. Harry Hamster and various other mixes will all have corn/flaked maize, banana pieces and lots of pea flakes. I would pick those out and replace them with things like Buckwheat, Kallo organic wholegrain puffed rice, millet/canary seed, Hemp seed, Linseed (usually found in cnary mix) and mealworms as hand-fed treats.

Your wheel is perfect (can`t beat a speedy silent spinner for excersize!) and only feed him a heaped teaspoonful daily and see if he stashes it or actually eats it within 24 hours. If he still has food left the next day, only add half again.

The Burgess Supahamster harvest is a nice dwarf mix, but needs the corn and banana chips removed. It has more grains in it though and resembles muesli without the fruit! The dwarf version is full of grass pellets/alfalfa and doesn`t have the same variety. I`m not familiar with WAGG so can`t comment on it`s quality to be honest.

Let us know how he`s doing and if he is up for remoming, I`m sure someone on here would love to have him.

....just don`t look at me as I already have two terrors!