Urgent! Mummy Hamster neglecting 1 baby...it's dying slowly.
!oshioyi
Although i didn't disturb them at all, the mummy ate 4 babies the next day.
So there were 3 left.
2 seem to be growing and nursing ok. Except one that is about 1/2 the size
of the other two now. It seems to be competing to suckle the mum's teats.
And the mum doesn't seem to be bothered. It seems to be wandering around,
while the other 2 are in the nesting area. And the mummy doesnt bring it
back to the nesting area.
What's happening to this tiny neglected one... it does seem weaker by the
day. Is there anyway to seperate it from the family and hand feed it? Why
didn't the mum eat it, like the other 4, if she thinks it isn't going to
survive?
Pls HEELLPP. I can't bear to see it suffer die off slowly....
Lennyanddiane
>My hamster gave birth to 7 babies last sunday.
Since the baby is a week old, it should be able to nibble at some bits of
scrambled egg, plain lowfat yogurt or cottage cheese, wheat germ, rolled oats,
shredded carrots, babyfood, cooked and cooled noodles or rice, or bread soaked
in skim milk, goat's milk, or kitten milk replacer( powder mixed with water).
A jar lid will allow the baby to reach it easily.
> Is there anyway to seperate it from the family and hand feed it?
I would leave such a young baby with 'Mummy' as long as she is not trying to
harm it. At this age, it needs the warmth and stimulation to survive.
> Why
>didn't the mum eat it, like the other 4, if she thinks it isn't going to
>survive?
It's hard to say...maybe she knows something that we don't. It just may have
an 'iron will'.
Hope this helps you and the tiny one until you hear from some of the experts in
this newsgroup.
Take care,
Diane
Boop_The_Norn
my hammy had 6 babies and they kept dying and she wasn't nursing them so i
took the remaining two and put them in a box with a heating pad wrapped in a
towel in it, bits of solid food and bottle fed them kitten formula....the
littlest of the two wasn't looking so good and died just a few minutes ago
in fact but the last little baby is doing good in the box....
Ghislaine Chan
uncommon for litters to have a runt in them... Even though the baby looks
much smaller than the others, it is still managing and surviving. It may
seem like the mother is ignoring the baby, but I bet that when she realizes
it, she will pick up the wandered baby back into her nest.
If you find that the other baby has wandered for a long time and seems lost,
you can pick up the baby with a spoon and return him/her to the nest with
the other two baby. Please resist the urge of separating the baby from its
mother. I do not think that the baby will be able to survive if you separate
him/her from the mother at a age of younger than 10 days of age (or before
their eyes open).
And since there are only 3 babies now, there should be less competition for
the runt now and he/she will likely catch up with his brothers and sisters
in no time.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out.
Ghislaine
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Ghislaine Chan
http://sillyhammy.i85.net/
http://www.geocities.com/gizzypooh.geo/hammies
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