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Old 09-01-2015, 05:58 AM   #1
tidy's mummy
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Question Elderly chinese hamster.

Hi all sorry it's been so long but I need some advice on my little man tidy, he is getting very old now he is 3 years and 4 months and I'm not sure how much longer he is going to be with me.
In the last 4 months he has been loosing a lot of fur on his head back and tummy, the skin is not red or inflamed so I'm guessing that it is due to age rather than mites, also in the last few weeks he doesn't seem to be eating his hamster mix, I though maybe it was too hard for him so have been giving him fresh veg and fruit, but I'm worried because I know Chinese are prone to diabetes. I don't know what to do for the best, he is sleeping a lot more now, although when he is awake he is still very active, any advice would be welcome many thanks xx
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Old 09-01-2015, 06:13 AM   #2
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Default Re: Elderly chinese hamster.

What a great age, Tidy is doing amazingly well!
At his age you will need to keep a close eye on his teeth in case he has any problems with them now, I would feed him some soft foods if he's beginning to struggle with his mix.
Porridge, savoury (not sweet) baby food (no onion garlic or salt), hamster mix or pellet food soaked in warm water & mashed, some mashed cooked veg & scrambled egg should all go down well.
You could try something like this, just a little drop on his food a day, to help with his coat & skin condition.
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Old 09-01-2015, 06:19 AM   #3
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Default Re: Elderly chinese hamster.

What food is he on tidy`s mummy? cypher is right about checking his teeth length and preparing his food by breaking up any larger extruded biscuits using either a pestle & mortar or a hammer and a freezer bag. I often promote the food Supreme Science Selective hamster for older animals as it`s a good whole biscuit shaped food that can be fed on it`s own, broken up, or mashed into a tasty meal with other things like crushed nuts and seeds. That way he`s also eating a hamster diet and not solely relying on human foods, so could enjoy a bit of both.

He will sleep more so don`t worry about that. He`s a wonderful age so you must be doing something right! x
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Old 09-01-2015, 06:31 AM   #4
tidy's mummy
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Default Re: Elderly chinese hamster.

Thank you both he still seems very happy, I'm just a worried mummy, he is on a special dwarf hamster mix I can't remember the name of it but it is all tiny little bits of seeds and hamster musli. Does his had loss sound normal for his age??
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Old 09-01-2015, 06:35 AM   #5
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Default Re: Elderly chinese hamster.

I think the hair loss is normal for a ham of that age, probably nothing to worry about.
You may mean the Burgess dwarf hamster mix, that might not mash up well but you could still soak it to soften it. Science selective does seem to be about the only readily available all in one food here so it might be worth trying him with some of that, broken up & or soaked in warm water.
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Old 09-01-2015, 06:44 AM   #6
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Default Re: Elderly chinese hamster.

I was never keen on pelleted or biscuited foods in the past but Science Selective changed my mind. I`m not advocating it as the best food out there, but it comes in really handy for purposes like yours where you need a hamster food to add to what you already feed. Something you can break up or soften/mash knowing he is eating a hamster food that is complete. I think the main reason I bought a bag was for his reason, even though my own Russian hamster eats fine at the moment, he gets one biscuit broken up and added to his main food daily, or every other day.

It`s fine to be worried, it means your focussing on him more. x
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