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What to do with female hamster with babies who acts weird2007-11-24 22:18:04

A week ago I got a female hamster to look after. A day after her arrival she gave birth to approx. 10 little babies. On the second morning, she abandoned 5 of them throwing them out of the cage. I tried to save them and nurse them, but few hours later they all died. :( Now it's day 4 and she started to act weird. She would come out of the nest and bite the cage trying to escape (my guess). I give her more than enough food with some supplements like boiled eggs and some boiled fish. As soon as I approach the cage with food, she would rip that out of my hand and store it in the nest. As much food I put in the cage, few minutes after, its all gone. However, she still comes out quite often and bites the cage on the same place. Why is she doing that? What can I do? I'm afraid she will cannibalize them as she is nervous ALL the time. Is it still possible that she is going to eat them? When it's safe to tell that she won't do it?

Answers:

The best thing you can do is leave her alone. Just make sure she has food (a little extra protein) and water, but otherwise avoid the area. Keep things calm and quiet too. First time mothers can be nervous and abandon/kill the litter. However, the odds (of killing) go down each day...so leave her be. Good luck.

Edit: She has a plastic house or box in the cage, doesn't she? I know having a litter out in the open can be stressful too.

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She seems nervous, almost stressed. I am surprised she hasn't eaten the babies yet. Usually when a mother hamster gets stressed she kills her young. And her biting on the cage seems like she was trying to escape. Maybe she is fearful of them. Why don't you call a vet or pet store and ask them?

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Well, the biting could be her nervousness. She isn't trying to escape, she's just stressed out. You have to consider: She is now in a weird place. She has been put somewhere else, she is no longer in a familiar place. She doesn't see familiar faces. And, on top of that, she had kids now. What you have to do is make sure that she is in a nice, quiet place. Try not to go around her too much, and don't make any sudden movements when you do. Don't take her out unless you need to clean the cage and give her plenty of food. Then, just hope that she calms down and takes care of her babies. Hope this helps!