Is my hamster sick? i can't tell.?

Question

hi. i am i first time owner of a hamster (dwarf) of three days. the first night i brought her home she was very active and searched around her new cage. but since then, she seems to be very lethargic. she hardly ever comes out of her igloo, not even at night for food or water. she just buries herself in to the bedding and what looks like she's cleaning or maybe scratching herself. she hasn't gone on the wheel since her first night either. she also seems unaware. i don't know why she is like this because she's still getting adapted to her new home or if she's sick or not. answers please!

Answer 1

She seems to be still adapting to the new surroundings, my hamster did the same to me. Try to let it keep doing what it is doing, but when it comes out...give it lots of loving by talking softly to her, or feeding her food from your hand. Soon she'll learn good things come when your around.

-Josh Luver

Answer 2

it normal for a hamster to be very energetic the first day, all three of mine where, they do this because they are terrified. they have no idea who you are and where they are. hamsters are also nocturnal, so if she doesn't come out in the day and does at night, she is fine. watch her tonight and see if she comes out. if she doesn't you might want to go to the vet. just to be sure.

Answer 3

That's normal for them. They eat very small quantities of food and are active only at at night, so you're probably asleep when she's up. Also, they aren't all crazy about the wheel AND they ARE solitary animals...she doesn't miss any companionship...So it sounds like she's perfectly normal to me.

Answer 4

their nocturnel, my guinea pig is up a lot at night, trust me i get woken up by him sometimes lol. but yea so ur hamster is sleeping during the day and comes out into the cage at night. he isnt sick its just wat dwarfs do

Answer 5

hamsters are lazy

Answer 6

They're nocturnal.

For the first three days, she would have been exploring- looking for other animals, predators etc.- and this fear/excitment would have kept her awake during the day.

But hamsters are naturally nocturnal, so she burrows herself into her igloo because she's sleeping. She probably also has a supply of food in there because hamsters stuff in in their cheeks and take it into their bedding. They also don't drink huge amounts of water and are most active when you're fast asleep; they sleep for about twenty hours a day and the four where they are awake are normally the dead of night.

None of her behaviour seems unusual, to be honest; just the reactions of a nocturnal hamster.

Answer 7

What type of dwarf hamster do you have? You need to do a bit of research, because you're getting some pretty silly and wrong information here. I'm going to give you several things to consider.

Campbell's are crepuscular, not nocturnal. You should see some activity during the day. At least one of the other dwarfs is also crepuscular - haven't had my coffee yet, but I believe that would be Winter Whites.

Also, the dwarf varieties are NOT solitary animals - that would be Syrians.

Hamsters are not lazy. Most hamsters use the wheel freqently - hamsters travel MILES at night in the wild. A wheel helps them replicate this normal and necessary behavior. A hamster that has previously used a wheel and stops doing so requires further investigation.

"Very lethargic" and "seems unaware"  is not a good sign - personally, I think you should see a vet especially if you are sure she hasn't been active at any point in a 24 hour period. Hamsters can go downhilll pretty fast, so early diagnosis and treatment is best.

A cheap (alhough not fool proof) test if you're worried about an unecessary vet trip for a hamster who may just be settling in - rearrange or clean your hamsters cage. Most hamsters will explore their "new" surroundings. If yours still shows no interest, then you probably really do need a vet.

Cleaning or scratching - if you're using pine or cedar bedding remove it - use aspen or carefresh instead. Scratching could be an allergy (likely to the bedding) or mites.

Is your cage large enough? Hamsters need LOTS of room. A too small cage, will make your hamster depressed and lethargic.

Any chance your hamster is pregnant?