Urgent!!!!

[Elizabethnixole]

I have severe depression and I had a really bad week last week where I wasn’t taking as good of care for Gus (my hamster) as I should have. I thought he had water but he didn’t and he is extremely skinny. I just now noticed something was wrong when I went to pick him up to clean his cage and I could feel his backbone. He’s still active and when I filled up his water bottle and food, he ate and drank. Should I be worried? I feel awful. I’m crying while writing this. Is he going to die? What do I do to fatten him up? I’m scared.

[Ria P]

I am so sorry that you are feeling so low and hope that you will get help and support for yourself.

As for Gus, he should be ok. You need to make sure that he has two sources of water like two bottles and keep them both topped up. Always make sure that he has a nibble stick as well and feed him plenty of his regular food mix so he can keep hoards.

Is Gus a Syrian hamster?

[Elizabethnixole]

Yes ma’am! I’m going to the store today to get vitamin drops for his water and a few different high fat foods. I’ll definitely pick up another water bottle or bowl then as well. I appreciate your comment and advice. Gus is a Syrian hamster, orange in color, and he’s a little over a year old. He survived the night and he’s a little less active than normal but I don’t think I should be too worried about it. I’ve also had a few people suggest sub-q fluids but I don’t know how much that’s going to cost and I’m a little tight on money.

Thank you again for your help. I appreciate it!!

[Lilafernim]

Every hamster I’ve owned has always loved some porridge, I think it’s safe for all breeds of hamster so you could try this. Hope both you and your hammie are okay x

[Petite]

First of all, welcome to the forum.

Secondly, please don't beat yourself up about this. Sometimes life gets in the way of what we mean to do, and things can get overlooked. I too suffer from depression and anxiety, and know just how incredibly tough it can be.

Gus has eaten and drunk now, so just be generous with his food and, as Ria says, make sure he has another water source.

Please be kind to yourself as well as Gus, and try to make sure you have some support.

[Pebbles82]

It is such a worry if you find there's no water, but he didn't die So he was getting fluid from somewhere (veg maybe) or it had only just run out.

As the others say, don't beat yourself up over having had a bad week. These things happen. How old is Gus? They often start to feel quite bony when they get older, however much they eat - they lose muscle tone.

One thing I do when they get older and seem a bit thin, is give high calorie extras. I did some research on it a few years back and some of the highest calorie foods are pecan nuts and hemp seeds. The pecan nuts in moderation of course. I used to give a shelled half of one once a week. But the hemp seeds I'd put out a pinch every day on a separate little dish - they just lick them up and seem to like them. They also contain all vitamins and nutrients needed so are a good "tonic".

Porridge, as mentioned also, is a nice extra treat - a bit on a teaspoon. But if you're struggling with depression than that can feel like an extra burden, thinking of making up porridge etc. And extra things to do. So perhaps getting some hemp seeds and pecan nuts would be easier. You just put them out when you put the food out daily.

I also think it's a good idea to have two water bottles in case one stops working properly. I always used to have two but now instead I just check and change the water daily. That can be a good habit - if you change the water every day, you don't forget - whereas if you do it every 2 or 3 days it's easy to lose track or forget to check!

I am so sorry you're having a hard time and hope you're getting some help with the depression. Everything can feel like a huge effort - but routine can help sometimes as well. So maybe set a routine of changing the water every day - just the one little task. And also putting the food out once a day at the same time. They tend not to eat it all but I find that they only take new food and even if there's plenty in their bowl they leave the older stuff! So I top it up each day for two or three days, then throw away anything remaining and just put the usual amount out, top it up for two or three days again etc.

Assume you give Gus a bit of fresh veg daily? They really love that and do get some liquid from that as well.

If you're struggling to manage though, maybe you need some help looking after Gus - is there anyone you can ask to help feed and do his water bottle for a while? So you can then enjoy doing things with him on a good day while knowing he is getting what he needs in between.

[AmityvilleHams]

If you could manage to portion out daily amounts of food into small containers for the whole week at once, that might also be helpful on bad days where you may not have as much energy for measuring everything out and such. You could also portion the shelf stable extras within each serving(hemp seed, flax seed, pecan, etc) so you wouldn't have to deal with that as often either.