I need advice about my hamster

[1wokeuplikethis]

In less than 2 weeks our hamster has gone bony, thin hair, doddery. Does this normally happen so quickly?

Also he hasn’t eaten anything since Saturday but is still managing to drink a bit. He is very slow and isn’t really opening his eyes. Ive been checking him several times a day expecting the worst but he’s still hanging in there. He was sleeping in his tube thing round the outside of his cage which is totally abnormal behaviour but shifted himself back into his house when I talked to him.

Meanwhile, he has some black mush on his belly. It’s not wet tail as there’s no diahorrea round his cage. We think it’s some carrot that’s gone mouldy and stuck to his fur. Obviously it’s hindering his mobility. We tried to get it off him but it’s really matted in his fur. We don’t handle him very much so I don’t want to stress him out by picking him up so much and I think pulling this goop off will hurt him and he doesn’t need that. We can’t afford to get him to the vet.

I just feel so bad for the little soul. He is roughly 2 years old, Syrian, so I think that’s close to the expected life span (shop bought) but is it normal for them to go from normal active to like this so quickly?

What we think is carrot, it’s blacky/orange and sticky.

Any help much appreciated. I feel very sad.

Ok let me know if that changes. All the best

Hamsters do deteriate very quickly. We had 2 that had to be put down. You need to take it to the vets. You should not have a pet if you can't afford to take it to the vets.

Would not give him a bath, as he’ll get stressed and might get a chill afterwards. Also would not use baby wipes as hamsters clean themselves and might get poisoned by the chemicals on the wipes. I’d suggest cotton wool with warm water, as little water as possible, and very gentle rubbing. Glad to hear he sounds a bit better!

But just go straight to the vet if you think the handling to clean him will stress him out. Hamsters can die of stress very easily x

This exactly describes how our 2.5 year-old Syrian was for four weeks. She died on Saturday. This is a lovely article called When a Hamster Reaches the End which I found very helpful in understanding what was going on and what I should do:

www.chahamsters.org/theend.html

Can tumours be black?

What we thought was mushy mouldy carrot is bigger today. But google is only showing images of pinkish small lumps. This is rather large.

Take it to the vets so.

@1wokeuplikethis Take it to the vets??? Stop prolonging it's suffering, honestly you shouldn't have a pet- no matter how small, if you can't take care of it.

Take him to the vets!! The vet won't do anything without telling you how much it will be.

One of our hamsters had a blackish scabby patch, he had nicked himself while grooming and it had got infected. Trip to the vet sorted it quickly, was cleaned up and treated. He was quite a young hamster though; sounds like yours could be quite poorly, what with the age and the 'doddery' description.

Hope Hammie isn't suffering too much, keep going with the cucumber if it's being well received... Try some raisins or sultanas that have been briefly soaked in warm water to soften them, too. We had a very elderly hamster who was rather fond of those !

OP just get him looked at. If it's going to cost hundreds then you can PTS but it might be a case of 20 quid for antibiotics. What you are doing is actually illegal. You can be heavily fined and in some cases sent to prison for withholding veterinary care from an animal. And of course it goes without saying that it's horrifically cruel to leave him to suffer. How old is he?

Do you have baby food? As in cow and gate jars or something? Anything chicken or veg based will be fine for him. Most hamsters can't resist it, just feed him some off your finger, as much as he wants. It might give him some strength to recover.

Please take him to the vets. I don’t know why you didn’t take him today? A check up (assuming this is best case scenario) is not going to cost more than the cost of having him PTS, which you said you can afford. Hamsters can get tumours, rumours can be black, and if he has got a tumour on his abdomen that is visibly growing then he is most likely uncomfortable and potentially in pain.

Why are you not replying to people’s posts, OP?

1wokeuplikethis hamsters can go down hill quickly. Our first hamster lived until 4 and my DD was 2 and a half and we simply found her with eyes bulging and she died within an hour. A vet trip will be very expensive unless you are pts. Hamsters aren't deemed to be 'old' until 2 and a half. So you either take the wee thing to be checked by the vet or do nothing.........

Our daughter’s beloved Syrian died at 2 1/2. It was the loveliest little thing, sought out our company. He deteriorated very quickly, took 2 days and was gone.
I was racked with guilt. Nearly 15 years later, one of our son’s guinea pigs began to show the same symptoms so we took him to the vet on the first evening. They put him on oxygen but it was already too late and there was nothing to be done, he actually went before they could euthanise him, a lung problem.
She said sadly it’s like this with rodents, they do go very quickly.

I read this thread then clicked off as I was so upset, but I've had to come back.
Your pet sounds very ill, and possibly dying.
If it was your child who was ill, and you had to find some money for treatment, you'd find it somehow, wouldn't you?
The least you can do is take it to the vet to get checked, and then if the treatment is more than you can afford and it's suffering (which from the outside seems to be the case), have the poor thing PTS.
Please don't get another pet unless you can afford healthcare for it.

he isn’t suffering any more that the eye can see

He IS suffering, and you are facilitating that suffering. He’s bald, likely has a tumour is not normally active and has eaten very little for 5 days. Which part of that do you think is remotely normal?!?!

For goodness sake take him to the vet rather than maintaining his suffering. We gave you very clear advice last night and instead of being proactive you’ve left him to suffer. And please don’t Ever get another pet

I took him to the vets and he was put to sleep. The vet thought the black mass was either a tumour or a skin infection but it was very hard to tell until after the event. She told me that hamsters are hardy little things and will continue to eat and drink when they’re very ill as it’s a survival instinct.

I wasn’t on this post last night because I was upset.

Veterinary I find your posts unnecessarily accusatory and really quite vile. I made this thread looking for advice which I received as a non hamster expert and the outcome was prompted by me seeking that advice. For the vet to say it’s hard to tell if they are poorly, I take comfort from that and I am sickened you think I would ‘facilitate’ him suffering purposely.

Anyway, to everyone else, thank you for all of your help and kindness

I’m glad he is not suffering now, you’ve done the kindest thing

FFS. You have a very sick small animal on your hands & you don't take it to the vet🤬

You should not have pets!!

Money or not you do the right thing & get the poor thing seen urgently. The fact you've left it this long is beyond cruel. Is there not an RSPCA or PDSA you can get to ?

Sorry to be offensive OP, but you really do need a wake up call

Oh I'm sorry, your update wasn't showing earlier

I'm glad to see you did the right thing OP, sorry for your families loss 💐

Awesome.

@1wokeuplikethis I gave you constructive advice nearly 2 days ago - I advised that you offer him his favourite foods to try and encourage him to eat (which you did) and advised you that you have a legal duty of care to seek veterinary treatment. So if that’s what you created the thread for then I absolutely met your needs in terms of advice.

However You ignored this advice and left him for another day and a half before seeking veterinary attention for an animal that was clearly already very sick. I find that upsetting and vile so I guess we’re square.

Well I don’t have the energy or inclination for a slinging match nor do I care what a stranger thinks of me so let’s leave that there.