Another rescue hamster!

OliveFish05

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Some of you know that I rescued a little male, long haired Syrian hamster a while ago. He lived 6 months with us, we think it was old age that killed him. That was about… 4 months ago. We are getting another today! It’s a little female Syrian, she’s grey and white. The lady at the pet store said that she was special needs, so they were rehoming her for half the price. Chains still gotta make their money:rolleyes: Sooooooo, she is going to live in the little critter trail cage I had for the original guy. It is not big enough, I have been doing loads of research. We are going to get her a bigger tank, deep bedding, and lots of hides and toys as soon as we are able to! According to the employee, she has the hamster equivalent of Down syndrome, but not really. Idek, but apparently it is fairly common in inbred hamsters. She has a wide face, tongue, and nose and no teeth. We will be buying a pelleted feed that we can soak for her. My mom said “no new pets before Florida trip, I promised the pet sitter” so she brings home a special needs hamstero_O:wub: I will post photos as soon as I am home!
 
Some of you know that I rescued a little male, long haired Syrian hamster a while ago. He lived 6 months with us, we think it was old age that killed him. That was about… 4 months ago. We are getting another today! It’s a little female Syrian, she’s grey and white. The lady at the pet store said that she was special needs, so they were rehoming her for half the price. Chains still gotta make their money:rolleyes: Sooooooo, she is going to live in the little critter trail cage I had for the original guy. It is not big enough, I have been doing loads of research. We are going to get her a bigger tank, deep bedding, and lots of hides and toys as soon as we are able to! According to the employee, she has the hamster equivalent of Down syndrome, but not really. Idek, but apparently it is fairly common in inbred hamsters. She has a wide face, tongue, and nose and no teeth. We will be buying a pelleted feed that we can soak for her. My mom said “no new pets before Florida trip, I promised the pet sitter” so she brings home a special needs hamstero_O:wub: I will post photos as soon as I am home!
congrats!
 
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I want to name her Beatrice, Matilda, or Ramona, my sister wants to name her Penelope. My parakeets name is Penelope though!
 
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I want to name her Beatrice, Matilda, or Ramona, my sister wants to name her Penelope. My parakeets name is Penelope though!
Omgosh she's sooo ADORBLE <33
out of your names she just screams Ramona

Ohhh
so she's brachy/hydo?
Heres some info:
It's not hamster Down syndrome.
if she's bracky she has genetic disorder, from what i know. so she was, like, the runt of the litter.
If she's hydro that means she has extra water in her brain/skull/head area.


Eathier way she'll need vet check ups once every 3-5ish months.
If you scruff her neck and check her front teeth, chances are that they're broken/missing/frail.
because of this she's only able to eat soft food, like baby food.

this video has a lot of good info:
you can skip to around 11:17 which is when she starts making their food.

<3
 
Soooo adorable!! Thanks for saving this little cuttie!! I really like the name Matilda!
 
Omgosh she's sooo ADORBLE <33
out of your names she just screams Ramona

Ohhh
so she's brachy/hydo?
Heres some info:
It's not hamster Down syndrome.
if she's bracky she has genetic disorder, from what i know. so she was, like, the runt of the litter.
If she's hydro that means she has extra water in her brain/skull/head area.


Eathier way she'll need vet check ups once every 3-5ish months.
If you scruff her neck and check her front teeth, chances are that they're broken/missing/frail.
because of this she's only able to eat soft food, like baby food.

this video has a lot of good info:
you can skip to around 11:17 which is when she starts making their food.

<3
I know right, my sister doesn't like the name though, she likes Penelope. I told her "My parakeet is Penelope!" and she goes "I thought it was Penny?!" "Yeah, short for Penelope!" :rofl: . That's what I figured out, hamsters aren't capable of having down syndrome, although it sounds like thats what a lot of pet stores call it for some reason... uneducated peeps ig. lol. We know enough to do some of our own own research, so felt comfortable taking her. We are on a first name basis with our local Petco's manager, we chat every time we go in the store, so when he saw us there he was like "Hey, I know y'all are looking for a hamster. We have this little girl. She has the hamster equivalent of downs syndrome. She's definitely special needs, but I know y'all know what you're doing with your animals. If you want her, you can have her for what we payed for her. If you don' want her I'm keepin her myself" So obviously... we did some research and took her. We bought a complete nutrition pellet that we break into pieces then soak for her each day. That way all of it gets soaky and she can't pick and choose what she eats. We are looking into some soft veggie options for her. Her tongue is rather large, so her mouth is open a little bit and she has a single little snaggled tooth up front. Her face is also broader than a typical syrian's would be. Is there any way to tell which she is? Through my own research, it sounds like a genetic issue/runt thing going on is more likely and somewhat common?
 
. That way all of it gets soaky and she can't pick and choose what she eats. We are looking into some soft veggie options for her. Her tongue is rather large, so her mouth is open a little bit and she has a single little snaggled tooth up front. Her face is also broader than a typical syrian's would be. Is there any way to tell which she is? Through my own research, it sounds like a genetic issue/runt thing going on is more likely and somewhat common?
Yup :D
With brachys you can tell by just looking at them and they usually breath harder and are more likely to get URIs. You can only tell if they're hydro if you get an x-ray. so she's a brachy if you cans see a visible difference ;)
 
Hi, sorry I forgot to update. The moment we brought her home she was rather sluggish, she would put her head down and barely move for hours. We figured she was settling in. We made sure she found her water bottle and we got her freshly soaked and soft pellets twice a day. She lived for 5 days, each day getting more and more lethargic:sad: We think that the stress of being shipped to the store and then coming home was just too much on her little body:-(:-(
 
I'm sorry to hear about your hamster. A little pro-tip if you ever get another one is that you can DIY some large storage bins as an enclosure for them. They're cheap and you get a lot more floor space for them vs a tank.
 
Such an adorable hamster Olive! Really glad you tried to give her the best shot at life! So sorry that she didn't make it but sometimes there is nothing we can do and its out of our hands...
 
I'm sorry to hear about your previous hamster, but I'm glad you're giving a new little furry friend a loving home. It's great that you're doing your research and planning to provide her with a bigger tank and plenty of enrichment. Have you checked out thepetproperty.com? They have a lot of useful guides on hamster care, which might come in handy as you prepare for your new addition. It's also very kind of you to adopt a special needs hamster, even though your mom said no new pets before your Florida trip. I'm sure she'll understand once she meets your new hamster and sees how much joy she brings to your life.
 
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When hamsters look at you, they are so adorable... And with their nose that wiggles...
 

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