Bad Mother hammie woes.

[Punkygirl0101]

I haven't posted pictures lately cause some problems have arose. One of the black babies kept getting skinny, and skinny...and I was going to get some KMR and feed him myself, but I look in the cage today and hes gone..Must have died, and momma ate him :(.

Now my problem is, the babies are FILTHY. She is not doing a good job cleaning them at all! They are all covered in urin and feces..they are healthy and fat...but they are very dirty, and they are not liking that at all! Should I clean them up? Warm water and a cotton ball? They are very, very dirty! Its like she doesn't clean them at all! She is very interested in them, and is feeding them well except the little runt that died...but she doesn't know how to clean them.

Edit* This is a picture of the baby that died taken yesterday:

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b235/Punkygirl0101/PicturesfromBirthday634.jpg
Thats how dirty the others are as well. I have given her new nesting material, and taken the old out..but shes still not quite getting it.

[lilangel1518]

Hmm I never had that problem with my pregnant syrians. I'm wondering if it has anything to do with you handling them while they were so young, but then again she is feeding them so its odd. How long have they been dirty? Is it just because you cant clean the cage yet and its where they are laying? The cotton ball thing doesnt sound like a bad idea. If i were you i would rub my hands in the bedding first before picking them up. Good Luck

[Punkygirl0101]

She goes to the bathroom in the nest, shes using it as a nest and a toilet..and the babies are rolling around in it. I switched out the bedding, and I switched out the nest box because it was completely soaked in urine.

I already do run my hands in the bedding, and I rub my hands all over her as well before handling the babies.

[lilangel1518]

Hmm well hamsters generally do use their nest area as a bathroom as well but i can't believe that pic. maybe thats why the lil one died because she left him in such an unsanitary situation. i think after seeing that pic i would def try to take a cotton ball w/ warm water and clean them b/c that can't be healthy. poor mommy maybe she will learn after u clean them.

[Punkygirl0101]

I am definitely going to clean those babies! I also gave her a larger next box, so one side can be for the babies, and the other side can be her bathroom.

[Moosley]

That baby looked positively ill. Was definately a runty wee thing :( I doubt it was anything more than the fact that its siblings were stronger and not letting it suckle.

I would put a huge pile of torn up tissue in a different corner and make a sort of hole in the middle, sprinkle a tiny bit of bedding from the old nest area into it and carefully move the babies but use a spoon to move them instead of handling them, see if it makes a difference. Put mum in next to the new nest so she can see her babies and watch what she does.

[PetLuver21257]

I would definitely use a cotton ball with warm water! That's disgusting! I hope they all turn out okay!

[Ky86]

Stop handling the babies on her. This is why you aren't suppose to touch the babies.

[Punkygirl0101]

I have been handling the babies without a problem..she is just going to the bathroom, and they are rolling around in it. I doubt shes using the bathroom on them on purpose because I touch them. She honestly does NOT mind at all that I handle them. Trust me, I know my hamster...she has been handled by me since birth, and she trusts me.

I cleaned them up with a cottonball and some lukewarm water..and when I put her back in there with them, she started to clean them. Their bodies are pretty clean, but their paws and tail still have a bit of feces on them.

[halfwaynowhere]

isn't she a young mom? I would think she just doesn't know how to take care of them yet, which is why she's not bathing them. i doubt she would just stop bathing them, but continue to feed them, if your scent was bothering her. Of course, I have no knowledge of hamsters, but this just seems like a no-brainer. if the scent was bothering her, she would completely ignore the babies. and if she started bathing them after you cleaned them up, maybe she just needed a bit of nudging. good luck, i hope everything goes well from now on.

[Chaos]

I'm sorry about the little black guy, but its pretty common to have at least one not make it. Chances are he just had something wrong, and either mom could sense it, or he was too weak and like Moosley said, wasn't able to feed. I'd put the dirtyness down to the young mom thing too, she's probably so overwhelmed being a baby herself. I don't see a problem cleaning them off, but just make sure they don't get cold, and rub them in the cage bedding after (I know, that kinda defeats the purpose of cleaning them, but you don't want to change their scent too much).

I highly doubt its the handling thing, I handled Smudge's babies from day one as well, and she, like your girl, was extremely trusting of me, and I never had a problem. The only one that didn't make it was a runt, very similar to yours.

I hope the others will be just fine!