Help!! Brand new hamster owner with pregnant hamster - Page 3

Pebbles82 · 05-07-2016, 11:32 PM

Or she could be about to give birth, but maybe try and ring the vet anyway.

josiah416 · 05-08-2016, 12:18 AM

I called pet emergency and they were super helpful. They suggested adding fruit juice to her water to coax her to drink. They also recommended a warm compress around her rectum to help with bowel movement.

She did come out of her nest again when I clicked to her. I tried giving her water with fruit juice from a bowl, and then from a bottle, and she wasn't interested. But while I was trying that, the poop did come out. I also saw her urinate, so maybe she is getting water somehow, maybe from celery she hoarded or something.

I'm going to let her rest. I left the bowl of water/juice as well as a piece of apple slice. I will be checking on her cage again in the morning. I know that she needs space, but I also need to know she's taking care of herself. I am seeing such mixed signals from this little hamster, it's really hard to know what to do.

Pebbles82 · 05-08-2016, 12:48 AM

Sounds like you're doing well

Glad you got some advice from the vets. It sounds like helping her a bit now is fine, if she is coming out to you. I think it's mainly after she's given birth it's best to avoid handling her, or your scent could affect her with her care of the babies. Hoping all goes well. It's good that she comes out when you click as it means you can see she's ok, but once she's had the babies and is popping in and out best to keep a bit of a distance from the cage. If it's anything like humans, that poop is a sign that they are on their way. Try not to worry - with most unexpected pregnancies, hammies have babies without people even knowing it's happened until the notice they hamster looks thinner!

josiah416 · 05-08-2016, 12:56 AM

Hey thanks serendipity. Now that I have spoken with a vet I'm feeling much more assured. If tonight is the night, I'll be sure to leave her alone once things get underway.

Pebbles82 · 05-08-2016, 12:58 AM

I'm sure she'll feel much better once the pups are born. So glad you got some help with it - fingers crossed. Wow what a mental shift from having a boy hamster to having a girl hamster that's about to have babies!

josiah416 · 05-08-2016, 01:07 AM

Yes it is definitely a shift! I was convinced earlier that I was going to lose her-- everything is just so different than it was a week ago!

I just saw her come out on her own a minute ago, all the way up to the top level to her water bottle (though I didn't see her actually drink). That's the first time I've seen her come out on her own in days... very interesting.

Well I will keep you posted on any changes. Fingers crossed

Pebbles82 · 05-08-2016, 01:10 AM

Do you have another water bottle? If not maybe you could put it at the lower level so she can access it easily - she might have been struggling to get up there? If it's difficult to fix the bottle lower down, then leave it there and put a little dish of water out lower down maybe

You could also have her food dish on the substrate too, so she doesn't have to go far from the nest to get food and water. I'm sure she'd appreciate it. Maybe pop a bit of cucumber on top of her food as well - that helps with hydration too - like about 1cm cubed size.

josiah416 · 05-08-2016, 01:17 AM

I actually bought a second water bottle and put it where the first one was, so she has water on both levels but went up top for some reason. I also put her food bowls on the lower level, and her sandbox works nicely to make them easy for her to get to. I read somewhere to take the sandbox out too but I'm not sure why.

Pebbles82 · 05-08-2016, 01:22 AM

All sorted then - good thinking! I don't know why you'd need to remove the sandbox either, but it wouldn't do any harm - it could be to prevent infection if the sand sticks to her and she has bled a bit after giving birth.

josiah416 · 05-08-2016, 01:32 AM

Yeah, that would make sense. I did end up taking the wheel out by the way, it was no problem at all and Sophie doesn't seem to mind.

I am hearing quite a bit of shifting around from the cage. Tonight may be the night. It's the middle of the night here so I'm going to sign off for now.

Thank you so much for talking me through this-- there is a ton of common sense stuff on this forum and from this conversation that I would not have thought of on my own as a stressed new owner haha. I really appreciate it

And as you said, fingers crossed