Baby hamster help
My hamster has had 12 hamsters, that's fine. But one of them, the only albino one, is being left out of feeding. She/he is tiny and I'm scared she/he is going to die.
Also, how long until I can pick the Mum up, and how long until I can pick the babies up?
They were born on the last Thursday of June. They're 1 week and 3 days old/10 days old.
Please help quickly.
Answers:The mom may be ignoring the albino one because it's sickly. If there is something wrong with it, the mother will kill and eat it to save the rest of the litter. As sad as it seems, it is nature and is normal for hamsters. The hamsters at this time are a little young to be weaned, but at ten days their eyes and ears should be opened. I have had to remove babies at 14 days before and they lived healthy lives afterwards.
How do you know it's being left out of feeding? It is normal for there to be a runt of the litter, one that is smaller than the other ones. Unless you watch it all day, it is quite likely that it is being fed. You can supplement the baby's diet with tiny bits of peeled apple.
You should be able to handle the babies at 21 days, and you should be able to handle the mother now if you're interested in trying. She may still be protective and nip at you, so that's up to you. I would continue to leave mom and babies alone, and just leave bits of apple for the babies to eat. I would not recommend either broccoli or carrots for baby hamsters.
Wait until they are around two and a half weeks old to touch them. If you touch them before mom will kill the babies.When the mother starts showing signd of wanting to get out of the cage, let her out to run.
I would ask a pet store/vet to help you with (maybe)bottle feeding the little one. The babies should be weaned @ 4-6 weeks.; after that, Mom should be okay to handle. Best of luck! =)
I am not sure when you can pick the mom up, but i'm predicting its when the babies are ready to be picked up. Babies are ready when they have there eyes open and move around in the cage. As for the small hamster, I think you should feed him yourself, or get him a seperate cage. (IF it is mature enough to move around and such)
Things hamsters can eat: -Carrots (i give mine 2 pieces of carrot a day, she's pregnant so I might increase that xD)
-Special K cereal
-Brocoli and Couliflowers
-Boiled eggs which give protein for him to grow.
the way to hand rear a baby is you get a q-tip, some warm cows milk, anfd the baby and the baby will love it! I hope he survives!