Register FAQ Calendar Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read
Navigation
Front Page
Forum
Gallery
Wiki

Ads by Google


Go Back   Hamster Central > Hamster Central Forum Topics > Feeding/Nutrition

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 02-01-2018, 06:00 AM   #1
Hammy992
Adult Hamster
 
Hammy992's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: London, England
Posts: 294
Default Hamster refusing dry food?

So on Monday my hamster had an operation to remove a tumor on his back. Everything went really well and he was eating and drinking fine afterwards.
He has been prescribed baytril and metacam for a few days and the only thing he will take them in is baby food. He refused juice, ribena, and putting it on foods but loved his meds in sweet squash chicken baby food. He was actually waiting for me to give him his morning dose!

And herein lies the problem. Having been presented with such tasty offerings he is now shunning his dry mix. I am worried that he is not eating enough of the dry mix and is waiting for the baby food (1 tsp divided over 3 doses).
He will still take veg from me but I don't want to upset his tummy with too much wet food.

If he gets hungry enough will he eat it? He still ran to his food bowl when he heard me filling it but then kind of sniffed it and walked away. He is taking meds until Saturday.
__________________


Over the Rainbow Bridge - Custard 2 years and 8 months. Rest peacefully little one; forever loved xx
Hammy992 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 07:12 AM   #2
Drago
The Hamtologist
 
Drago's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Southern United States
Posts: 2,855
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Keep offering the dry mix, eventually, he'll eat it. A bit of tough love might be best for him in this situation. Since he'll only take his meds in the baby food, maybe just try to reduce the total daily amount you're offering as much as you can. Chances are, he probably still is eating some dry food, just not as much as before. You can also try getting him to eat it from things like porridge, just to get a bit of variety out of the wet food you're offering. Hoping for a speedy recovery for your little guy. Best wishes
__________________
Syrian hamster care guide
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...it?usp=sharing
Drago is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 08:39 AM   #3
cypher
Dwarf whisperer
 
cypher's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Wales UK
Posts: 24,789
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

I really wouldn't worry tbh, it's only for a few more days & he probably will be eating some of his dry mix when his hungry, it won't do any harm to have more baby food than dry mix for just a little longer.
__________________
Slave to Zak.
Always loved, never forgotten, forever in my heart
T'ycor, Ziggy, Zephyr, Flynt, Mickle, Little Whisp, Zen, Zeki, Tinwë, Zylvan, Míriel, Calyanwë, Gusto & Meri
❤️
cypher is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 12:47 PM   #4
Hammy992
Adult Hamster
 
Hammy992's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: London, England
Posts: 294
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

He did actually have an aftercare appointment this evening which unfortunately I couldn't go to as I was working, but my housemate took him. He has another aftercare next Friday as well (all FOC thank goodness!)
The vet says his incision is healing fine, so has advised to stop the metacam on Saturday, but she wants to continue his antibiotic for another week as a precautionary measure since he is being so active - she wishes he would rest more! She also gave a disinfectant to dab on every couple of days to keep things clean. She did weigh him and he is still a little puddin and hasn't lost weight so he must be eating enough.
Hopefully the extra week of baytril won't upset his digestion too much
__________________


Over the Rainbow Bridge - Custard 2 years and 8 months. Rest peacefully little one; forever loved xx
Hammy992 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 12:50 PM   #5
CMB
PM Fluffy for custom title
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Hertfordshire - UK
Posts: 3,190
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Hope he gets better soon.
CMB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 12:54 PM   #6
Hammy992
Adult Hamster
 
Hammy992's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: London, England
Posts: 294
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Drago View Post
Keep offering the dry mix, eventually, he'll eat it. A bit of tough love might be best for him in this situation. Since he'll only take his meds in the baby food, maybe just try to reduce the total daily amount you're offering as much as you can. Chances are, he probably still is eating some dry food, just not as much as before. You can also try getting him to eat it from things like porridge, just to get a bit of variety out of the wet food you're offering. Hoping for a speedy recovery for your little guy. Best wishes
Thanks Drago Hard to take the tough love approach when he's so darn cute haha. He makes me feel like I should be spoiling him! He already conned me out of his basic cage plans by ransacking everything in sight, teeth chattering and bar climbing til I caved and put his platform access back in. No wheel though. He doesn't really care about going up there he just wants to know that he can lol
__________________


Over the Rainbow Bridge - Custard 2 years and 8 months. Rest peacefully little one; forever loved xx
Hammy992 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 01:00 PM   #7
cypher
Dwarf whisperer
 
cypher's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Wales UK
Posts: 24,789
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Good to hear he's healing well, being active may not be the best thing but it's a good indication of how well he's come through the op!
Have you considered using a probiotic to help his system cope with the antibiotics?
You can get Pro C from P@H or other pet shops & it's very easy to use, you need to give it a few hours apart from the antibiotic, it is quite palatable so you can just sprinkle it on food, I don't recommend putting it in water as the instructions on the container suggest though as you can't monitor intake & it means a thorough clean of water bottles or bowls daily.
__________________
Slave to Zak.
Always loved, never forgotten, forever in my heart
T'ycor, Ziggy, Zephyr, Flynt, Mickle, Little Whisp, Zen, Zeki, Tinwë, Zylvan, Míriel, Calyanwë, Gusto & Meri
❤️
cypher is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 01:51 PM   #8
Hammy992
Adult Hamster
 
Hammy992's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: London, England
Posts: 294
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Quote:
Originally Posted by cypher View Post
Good to hear he's healing well, being active may not be the best thing but it's a good indication of how well he's come through the op!
Have you considered using a probiotic to help his system cope with the antibiotics?
You can get Pro C from P@H or other pet shops & it's very easy to use, you need to give it a few hours apart from the antibiotic, it is quite palatable so you can just sprinkle it on food, I don't recommend putting it in water as the instructions on the container suggest though as you can't monitor intake & it means a thorough clean of water bottles or bowls daily.
That's a good idea, I think I might have to do that. Initially the vet said his system should handle it fine and I could just monitor for signs of constipation or runny poops, but since he needs to take it for another week now it's probably best to start him on a probiotic.
He does love his veggies so I could sprinkle some on a piece of cucumber or something
__________________


Over the Rainbow Bridge - Custard 2 years and 8 months. Rest peacefully little one; forever loved xx
Hammy992 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 01:53 PM   #9
Hammy992
Adult Hamster
 
Hammy992's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: London, England
Posts: 294
Default Re: Hamster refusing dry food?

Quote:
Originally Posted by CMB View Post
Hope he gets better soon.
Thanks CMB. His oncology report should come back next week so fingers crossed for good news.
__________________


Over the Rainbow Bridge - Custard 2 years and 8 months. Rest peacefully little one; forever loved xx
Hammy992 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
food, dry, baby, eating, meds, mix, waiting, hamster, doses, shunning, offerings, worried, tsp, divided, upset, filling, heard, bowl, kind, sniffed, saturday, taking, walked, ran, eat

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Optimisation provided by DragonByte SEO v2.0.43 (Pro) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.
Copyright © 2003-2022, Hobby Solutions
All times are GMT -7. The time now is 04:07 PM.