Hiding in house - stunted growth?

afishcalledwanda · 03-10-2005, 05:47 PM

As some of you may know (from PWS), Kahlua is quite the quiet girl. I hardly ever see or hear her. She stays in that darn igloo and if I don't disturb her before I go off to bed at night (which is rarely before midnight) I wouldn't know if she was dead or alive!

She's always fine. She was young when I got her back in December. Young enough to still get along with the others but she really hasn't gotten much bigger.

Is it at all possible that her growth could be stunted from staying inside that stupid igloo day and night? I would think so as a confined space would stunt any other animals growth.

I also know that pet shop hamsters have the chance to be 'indescriminatly' bred so lineage and all that good stuff isn't paid too much attention to.

**babyboos** · 03-11-2005, 02:19 AM

Does she seem to be eating and drinking okay? Are you finding a wet corner or her potty if she has one being used?

If she is happy and healthy in herself I really think you probably have nothing to worry about. I would only be concerned if she NEVER left the igloo - you can mark her wheel and water bottles etc to ensure they are being used.

afishcalledwanda · 03-11-2005, 05:49 AM

Everything is fine with her. I'm not worried about her health in any way, she seems to be healthy and happy. She just is a quiet hamster that loves that stupid igloo. If I wake her up and actually take her out and let her run about and play with us, she's happy to do that, she doesn't fuss or show signs of upset.

She's also potty trained and will come out for a treat if I make an issue of it, which I do just to get her out of there!

I just was thinking since she looked like she might have grown up to a larger size, that the self containment she practices may have kept her size small.

**babyboos** · 03-11-2005, 06:11 AM

Some Syrians are just small, in fact I believe they are now artificially large due to selective breeding practices. Originally hamsters were much smaller than they are today, and some colours even seem to have a propensity to be larger than others, someone with a great knowledge of genetics may know the reason why...

but it is more than likely just down to selective breeding again. Successive inbreeding does tend to produce smaller Syrians, which is something I actively discourage

Some of my "show" hamsters are huge

as big as a small guinea pig, and I have others, especially those obtained from petshops, rescues etc. that are almost half their size and look like they are permanently 10 weeks old

As long as she is happy and healthy then I would not worry - but if it bugs you a lot then remove the igloo and give her some large cardboard boxes, toilet roll tubes etc to hide in as she is obviously a private hamster

I know a few people do prefer not to use these plastic type houses due to condensation and a hamster will happily sleep in just a pile of shredded toilet tissue. We should respect our little one's privacy though and if they prefer to hide away in somewhere they obviously like, for whatever reason (maybe safety or security - who knows - some are less social than others), then it is fairest to provide them some hidey-holes still.

Ultimately it all comes down to breeding and socialisation. Have you considered light levels in your room

Maybe she likes the dark for her daytime slumber

These wierd habits are all part of the fun of hamster ownership, or ownedship

they like to make us worry

afishcalledwanda · 03-11-2005, 06:20 AM

I was just asking out of curiosity/science. I would never take her igloo out on her as she loves it so much. She's happy and healthy so why upset her? Like you say, she is just a private hamster. I accept her for what/who she is.

I don't wake her up at any odd hours either. I remember hamsters when I was a kid and they were 'topped out' at about this size too. I saw some at shows like your described show hamsters that were so large it actually looked odd. Unfortunatly, showing hamsters seem to be going the way of any other animal breedings--serious showers/breeders are going for larger and larger and changing the whole structure of the animal, like greyhounds for example.

Show greyhounds have blockier heads and bulging eyes and race greyhounds have the longer slimmer face and 'normal'eyes. Any race greyhound would never place in todays dog shows. Siamese cats are like this too. Now the 'old style' of Siamese cat are called 'apple heads' and the new ones are the ones that will be put into shows.

I was asking you in particular because you breed and maybe have actually run across this in 'person'.

**babyboos** · 03-11-2005, 06:27 AM

I am sure she will really appreciate her igloo being left there

I understand it is concerning though when our little ones hide away - we have to be careful to be extra vigilent for any unusual goings on as often it is harder to catch any illness quickly when they are not in open view.

Coco1 · 03-11-2005, 09:31 AM

I don't think I have anything else to add that you've probably not thought of yet but what temperature is the room her cage is in? Is it cool in there? Just wondering if she likes the warmth of her igloo so much that when she comes out she gets cold?

The only other thing I can think of is providing lots of toys and things to do - I know that sometimes a hamster who's cage doesn't have that much in the way of toys, tubes, chew things etc has nothing to come out for. I'm sure you've already provided all this however....

She probably just loves the peace and quite (hmmm, kinda like me...

)

**babyboos** · 03-11-2005, 10:06 AM

I would certainly work on socialising her a lot as patience and perseverence should hopefully make her more curious and come to her name even in time. Do you change the bedding frequently and find it soggy/damp?

afishcalledwanda · 03-11-2005, 12:21 PM

She comes to her name when called.

The whole house is kept at a constant 70 degrees and that room is cozy. I have 9 dwarves in there too.

No soggy bedding as she is potty trained.

She is hand tamed from the day I got her.

Nothing out of the ordinary, she is just quiet. That's her personality and I respect it.

She never tries to escape.

She never chews up stuff.

She has tons of toys, and I swap items in the cage every week just to keep her on her toes.

I use natural lighting with the exception of the winter time when I use artificial lighting for a few hours at night due to the shorter days.

**babyboos** · 03-11-2005, 01:18 PM

I also have those igloos and potty trained hamsters but I do find the hamsters who spend a lot of time in them tend to get condensation on their roofs so I need to change the bedding every couple of days or the stash gets a bit damp! I think they need a chimney hole so I drilled a couple with a small plastic bit!