Weight Loss

[Jennie F]

Hi everyone.

So you may remember back in May that I weighed Khali and almost had a heart attack when the scales I was using said she was 300g+. I took her to the vets for a checkup and she actually weighed 160g when she was approx 6 months.

So I picked up some new scales in Aldi the other day and I have weighed her again this evening and she is 139g. Thats a 21g LOSS in 7 weeks.

She is otherwise her little happy demonic self, she eats all her veg and has a healthy hoard which I know she eats from. Her behaviour hasnt changed and apart from the bit of fur thinning over her scent glands (that i posted about the other day) she is fine.

I alternate feeding her a tablespoon or so of fresh veg every two days with a tablespoon of hammy food in a toilet roll tube the other day. She will get a bit of a brazil nut or an apple seed ball treat maybe once a week. She has a single piece of penne pasta every couple of weeks or so when i have pasta. And some cooked chicken when i remember to defrost some.

Do hammys normally lose a bit of winter podge over the summer when its warmer or could it be something else? Should I be worried?

[cypher]

As long as she's eating well & seems fine in herself then I wouldn't worry too much, scales can vary a bit which could account for some of it & she may have lost a little over the summer, weigh her weekly now on the same scales & see how she goes, if she doesn't lose any more weight then she should be fine.

[AprilPearl]

Are you sure that both sets of scales are consistent with each other? If you still have the set of scales you weighed Khali in at 160g, could you try weighing her on them again? It is possible that there is a difference between your old and new scales. If you don't still have your old scales, you could try checking that the new ones are working properly by weighing something on them that you know should be a certain weight - for example, a 500g pack of butter.

I would weigh Khali once a week from now on, and if she continues to lose weight, take her to the vet.

As far as food goes, it is possible you aren't feeding enough. Most adult Syrians will eat a tablespoon of mix every day. So, I'd start feeding her every day, rather than every other day. You may want to cut back on the veg too, as a tablespoon every two days is quite a lot. The recommended amount is a fingernail sized piece every day. If you're feeding veg every two days, you can feed more at one time, but probably not an entire tablespoon.

As Cypher says, if she is not acting out of sorts, she is probably fine. But, keep an eye on her.

[Jennie F]

Thanks for your replies Cypher amd AP.

She was last weighed at the vets so I dont have access to those scales. I will keep weighing her every week and keep an eye on her weight.

As far as the food goes, she does get given something everyday. She will have mix one day, veg the next, then back to mix etc. Ive been advised before that the amount of veg I'm feeding her is ok? Am I harming her by giving her too much veg?

Also, I think I have been a noob about spoon sizes again (why do I keep doing this?). I dont have a tablespoon, its a dessert spoon I use, which is the next size down. So maybe that has something to do with it.

I try to vary what she eats, hence the alternating veg and mix days, as it seems strange to me having the same thing everyday. Bit if thats ehat she requites then I will do it

[AprilPearl]

A dessert spoon of veg every other day sounds better, though still works out at more than the recommended finger nail sized piece a day. A tablespoon, however, I think would be too much for sure.

The thing about feeding her veg every other day instead of mix, is that veg contains considerably less calories (and also not all the nutrients she needs, which a good mix will contain). As you are also giving her a lot of veg, she may be filling up on this too rather than eating her more energy dense mix on those days where she only gets veg. Not getting enough energy leads to weight loss. If you are only going to feed mix every other day, you should be feeding two tablespoons at a time instead of one. And I mean tablespoons, not dessert spoons! If she is only getting a desert spoon of mix every other day, that's not going to be enough. If you are worried that increasing from one dessert spoon of mix every other day, to two tablespoons every other day, perhaps you could go to two dessert spoons every other day and see how she goes. Think of the veg as an extra - an addition to, rather than instead of, her mix.

I’d also recommend that you do check the accuracy of your scale, just in case it is off.

[Rads]

Jennie,
I have Aldi electronic scales which I weight Pip on they are always fine just make sure your scales a zeroed with what ever you put Khali into first hence the massive differences.
As with AP I think you are not feeding him enough, Pip has a food bowl approx. 80mm across and 30 mm deep which I fill up and Pip then takes what she wants, I watch the levels and top up as needs be, Pip gets a small amount of fresh veggies/fruit daily and often a few lettuce shoots or clover from the garden oh and she loves fresh parsley.
I scatter some pumpkin and sunflower seeds so she forages a bit too.
Hope this helps

[cypher]

I don't have experience with syrians but I always give my dwarf hams plenty of veg & they just eat what they want without it stopping them from eating enough mix.
I would feed a tablespoon of mix daily though, if you don't have a tablespoon 1 1/2 dessert spoons would be close enough, it doesn't have to be exact & you can always adjust the amount if she eats less.
I would give smaller amounts of veg daily, give different veg each day for the variety.

[Jennie F]

Thanks everyone.

I'll keep weighing her weekly and up her hammy food mix. I'll go with the idea of putting some in a bowl for her to eat from and keep it topped up.

[Thin Lizzy]

Just like the others, Khali's weight loss being down to the hot weather. Just like humans in the heat we tend to eat lighter meals.