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Illness
Signs of illness include:
- Poor coat condition, posture
- Sudden weight loss
- Squeaky, laboured or otherwise noisy breathing.
- Lethargic and cool to the touch
- Lack of interest in food or water
- Diarrhoea or constipation
- Excessive scratching
Abscesses
Abscesses are fluid-filled lumps that are usually caused by fights or injuries. They will need vet attention to be drained, and a course of antibiotics prescribed to prevent infection.
Allergies
Excess scratching, sneezing, runny or swollen eyes are signs that your hamster may have an allergy. It is worth switching their bedding and substrate to see if this can solve the problem, although if you see no improvement after a few days then it will require a vet visit. If your hamsters has a wet tail or bottom however this requires urgent attention - see Wet Tail below for details.
Diabetes
Campbells Russian Dwarf Hamster are prone to this and care must be taken with their diet to remove excess sugar. Signs of diabetes in hamsters include excess thirst and frequent urination.
Glaucoma
This can be found in Winter White Hamsters. Sadly there is currently no cure, but your vet can prescribe eye drops.
Tyzzer's Disease
This is a highly contagious and often fatal disease. It can occur in hamsters without developing any symptoms, although others will show lethargy, ill-kept coat and diarrhoea. Tyzzer's Disease is caused by stress and unclean environments so can be mostly prevented with good hygiene practices.
Wet Tail
Wet Tail is a form of watery diarrhoea that is extremely serious in hamsters, if left untreated your hamster will die of dehydration. Wet tail can be caused by poor or stressful conditions, and is sadly quite common in hamsters bought from pet shops or unethical breeders.
Wet tail is mostly seen in Syrian Hamsters. Any hamster with suspected Wet tail must be isolated as it can be highly contagious. Immediate vet treatment is needed.
Unexpected Pregnancy
Hamsters are often incorrectly sexed by pet shops or separated by sex too late to avoid pregnancy. Siblings and other relations can and will breed together. Hamsters do not always show signs of pregnancy until the very last few days of their gestation. It is vital to separate out the male if you have an unexpected litter, as otherwise they can mate within hours of giving birth.
Do ask for help from an ethical rescue or breeder, as they can support you.
Hamster mums are high-risk for cannibalising their litters, so it is vital to leave the pups and mum alone. Do not clean out the cage for the first 14 days, you can carefully spot-clean wet areas if they are a risk but do not touch the nest. Make sure that mum has clean bedding material available for her nest and is kept undisturbed.
Your hamster will need extra protein whilst she is feeding, small amounts of hard-boiled egg, bits of cooked chicken and cheese can be good additions.
Remove any items from the cage that could be dangerous for a wandering pup or mum, such as moving a water bowl to a platform where mum can access it but pups cannot fall in. It is a good idea to remove the wheel during pregnancy and litter-raising.
If you must move a pup due to it being at risk, then do so using a spoon to avoid getting your scent on the baby. You can warm this up in a towel before doing so to avoid chill. Most hamster mums will gather up any pups that have strayed from the nest, so you shouldn't need to intervene in this case. Sadly, if a pup has been moved out the nest by mum - this is often a sign that she knows something is wrong and this one will not survive. Many litters have a noticably smaller pup, known as the 'runt'. Runts can survive and live full lives, but they are higher risk than the others.
Keep food and water changes calm and quiet to avoid stressing out mum. Do not handle or disturb mum during this time, even a calm and friendly pet will be protective of her young and she may charge towards your hand or be aggressive towards you.
Make sure you have checked the litter maturity rates of your species of hamster and separate them at the right age to prevent breeding.
Hybrid Hamsters Overview
Although Campbells and Winter Whites are different genetically they can interbreed; resulting offspring are predominately infertile.
Hybrids are often produced due to the mislabelling of hamsters - predominately due to pet shops. This leads to a rise in the main health problems the species have, such as diabetes in the Winter White Hamsters and glaucoma in the Campbells Russian Dwarf Hamster. It can also cause problems for the mother due to the size of the hybrid pups.
The two separate species have very different behaviours and physical appearance, so mixing the two risks losing the traits that make these species unique. Hybrid hamsters sadly have a reduced life span, they are prone to health problems such as neurological issues. They may develop head-tilts, or behaviours such as spinning round in circles, or backflipping. These behaviours are not playful or fun, but a result of a neurological disorder that causes an unhealthy compulsion.
Hybrid hamsters are very hard to identify as they can come in a wide range of appearances. Some signs include a more triangular head-shape, smaller eyes, pointed ears and a shorter distance between the eyes. Some hybrids are easy to identify due to having the body shape of one species, but the colouration of another. For example, a mandarin White White has the body of a Winter White but the orange colouration of an argente Campbells hamster.
Once a line has a hybrid in, it cannot revert to pure again so if this became widespread, it could lead to the end of these species in the pet trade since the remaining hybrids would have too low a fertility rate. In some European countries, a dwarf is considered pure if it has 6 generations or more that are proven true. However in the UK, a hybrid is classified as such if any genes from a different species have ever occurred.
What type is my hamster?
Unless you have obtained your pet from an ethical breeder, the chances are extremely high your hamster is a hybrid. As a general rule:
- Campbells dorsal stripe is thinner and lighter.
- Winter Whites have a rounder body than Campbells.
- Winter Whites will change colour and lighten as winter approaches. It is possible for hybrids to also do this if they have inherited a specific set of genes.
- Campbells have a cream colour on their sides, between the dark upper body and their white belly. The colour difference is more pronounced in Winter Whites.