Rodney

[Pebbles82]

Aw I love Rodney - love the photos of him out and about - he looks old and happy

[cloudy]

Originally Posted by Ria P

Rodney is as tidy as Henry was who lived in the same spot. In fact, Henry's photo is watching over Rodney, maybe he's telling him to keep his place tidy, lol.

That is a lovely thought.

[Ria P]

Hmm, not sure what's up. Rodney sleeps a lot.
That's the third night he didn't want to come out. He made a huge, cosy nest in his house and spends nearly all his time in there. I cut out the fruit and veg and give him only a little cucumber which seems to have helped his gastric problems. He eats a little soaked science selective and licks up his linseeds but ignores his hamster mix in the bowl. He pouches it when i scatter the very same mix around his house. Odd or maybe he's just running out of steam but the foraging instinct is still there.
He comes to his door for a quick hello and stroke but then goes back to bed.
Rodney behaves like a 90 year old human i know who has stopped going out. He just wants to stay in his cozy house and keep warm, sleep and watch a bit of sport.
I do their shopping and get things they enjoy. They both like to see me for a chat, seem content and don't complain.20221013_183912.jpg

[cloudy]

Is Rodneys behaviour typical of an elderly hamster? That is such a cute picture of him.

[Ria P]

Originally Posted by cloudy

Is Rodneys behaviour typical of an elderly hamster? That is such a cute picture of him.

I don't really know because the only other hamster who made it to over 2 was Robo Gordon. Gordon fell off his roof one day, run down a burrow and died.
Our Syrian Henry died at 22 months but deteriorated a lot physically and wasted away in front of our eyes.
All our dwarfs died of illnesses and two were pts. Their ages ranged from 10 - 22 months.
Unfortunately, i don't have much experience with elderly hamsters.
I'm not alarmed by Rodney's behaviour in the sense that i feel he needs a vet because he doesn't. Not at the moment anyway.
I've had him for over two years and got so used to him wanting out of cage time every night that i'm the one who needs to adjust to the fact that he is old and maybe heading for the rainbow bridge. Rodney seems to be adjusting to old age ok and accepted it but I still set up his playground in the hope that he'll use it again.
Their short lifespan is the one and only drawback of keeping hamsters as pets.

[cloudy]

I agree with you, the short lifespan is very sad and difficult for us. Rodney seems happy despite is older age. I can understand him slowing down. I hope you still have lots of time together.

[Ria P]

Originally Posted by cloudy

I agree with you, the short lifespan is very sad and difficult for us. Rodney seems happy despite is older age. I can understand him slowing down. I hope you still have lots of time together.

Thank you. I haven't seen him yet today but heard him cluttering about with his whimzee inside his house.

[cloudy]

Originally Posted by Ria P

Thank you. I haven't seen him yet today but heard him cluttering about with his whimzee inside his house.

That is a very good sign. Cute how much hamsters love their whimzees.

[Stanza]

What a lovely photo of Rodney. I can understand it must be such a worry when they are older having good days and bad days. Pleased you’ve at least heard him moving about today. Maybe he’ll pop his head out later.

[Ria P]

I checked on him before going to work in the evening and took him out to make sure there were no damp patches in his nest. He uses the toilet but on a bad day he doesn't always make it in time. Everything was dry and he chirped at me. He's complaining again which is a good sign. He was very quiet the last few days.

We have guests over the weekend and he quite likes other hamsters in the room to watch. Two dwarf hamsters are going to stop over en route to a rescue.