[Broken13]

Hi, I had two lovely dwarf hamsters until this morning. When we woke up we found both dead and one had eaten the other. They where both fine and running around last night before we went to bed, Can anybody let us now what happened?

[Alty]

There's really no way to know what happened. It sounds like an illness, because they both died, but which illness, we can only guess, and there are so many to choose from.

If you plan on getting more hamsters make sure you thoroughly disinfect the cage. Use bleach and hot water, and then I'd wait at least 2 weeks before putting any living thing in that cage.

So sorry for your loss.

[Broken13]

Hi again,
Thanks for the reply. I had been thinking along the illness lines myself as it seemed the only aspect that made any sense.
I think it will be some time before we look into getting some more but after what we found in the cage yesterday morning I think we will stick to one next time. No fighting or eating then :-(.
Thank you for the cleaning tips... I wasn't too sure how long to keep the cage empty for. Will probably be a month or more before we get another one but it's good to have this information regardless.
Again thanks so much. :-)

[Alty]

No problem.

One hamster is definitely recommended. Russian dwarfs can live together (I'm assuming that that's what you had, because you did post that they were dwarfs) but they can still fight. They're very aggressive hamsters, not easily trained, and more prone to bite.

I don't blame you for being weary of getting more right away. To wake up and find both your hamster dead, and one eaten, is very traumatic. Again, I'm so sorry for your loss.

One pet to consider, if you like rodents, is mice. I know most people don't consider them to be pets, but there are some very pretty mice out there, and believe it or not, mice are very easy to tame, much easier then hamsters. They're very smart little animals, and can become great pets.

Just something to think about. :)

[Broken13]

Thanks for that, I've seen some nice mice too in the past but I have to admit the tails kind of freak me out Lol. I get all "ahhh look at them, they're sooo cute..." then I see the tail and run a mile lol

Doesn't bode well for cage cleaning time :-)
I think we will stick to the dwarf hamsters. At least that way all the children in the family (nieces & nephews) won't torment it when they see it, as it won't be so new :-) Less stress for the animal.

Oh and yes, It was two Russian Dwarf's (Cookies & Cream) that we lost. Sister's (or so we were told) but the strange thing was they never fought! They were near inseparable for the whole 13 months we had them... in fact I think the only other living thing they bit was me lol :-)

Thanks for all the great advice, And I must add this is a great site! Am so happy to have found it. :-)

[Alty]

LOL! I totally understand the aversion to mice and their tails. Although, when you have an infestation, sometimes those long tails come in handy when trapping. ;)

Have you considered a different breed of hamster? Since you said you wanted to get a lone hamster next time, a syrian would probably be better suited to you. They're just as cute as Russian dwarfs, and although you did have a great experience with your two, most Russian dwarfs are more aggressive then their syrian cousins. Just something to think about.

I'm so glad I was able to help. I wish I could tell you more about why they may have passed on, but without having a look there really would be no way to pinpoint what happened. Rest assured that I'm very sure that the one wasn't eaten until after she died. I doubt very much that she was killed by the other one. Hamsters are prey animals. When one of their family die it's best to dispose of the body as soon as possible, to avoid the smell attracting predators. That's most likely why your other hamster started to eat the other.

I've had hamsters, and found them to be wonderful little pets. It's amazing how attached you get to such a little ball of fluff. Our one hamster lived to be almost 4 years old. The others died shortly after their first birthday, and much like yours, they were fine one minute, then dead the next.

It's so nice to meet someone that cares deeply for her pets, no matter how small they are. :)

[Broken13]

If it's at all possible, I don't think I realized how much I loved them until it got so silent around here with no spinning wheel interfering with my TV viewing lol Normally I just gave out at them pooping on my keyboard! Lol :-)

I am looking into the different breeds, Although I am a sucker for small unusual kinds that I won't find in everyone's homes. Frankly, I like to look into the pet before committing and it also helps avoid the drones of "know it all's" telling you what's best for your pet :-)

I will be looking into Serians but any advice you would have would be greatly appreciated in the meantime, Like I said it will be sometime before we are ready for something new, but I will be doing a lot of research first, so every little helps :-)

As for the actual death... I had thought that maybe one must have died shortly after us going to bed... And this would answer the 2nd ones subsequent death (the body was left there) whatever illness was in the first I can only assume killed the other.

Anyway ty AGAIN lol... I will try get a pic up soon, just so we can end the discussion on a note when they were once happy :-)

[Alty]

I'd love to see pictures. I have to say that when we got our first hamster I was very drawn to the Russian dwarfs. The lady at the pet store warned us away from them. That was before I decided to learn everything I could about these little animals.

We've always had Syrians in the past, and never had any issues. The only difference between Syrians and Russian dwarfs is that Syrians have to be alone. They are solitary animals and will fight to the death with any other hamster once they reach sexual maturity.

I can completely understand how upsetting this is. So many people think that hamsters are disposable pets. They're not. They really do find a way into our hearts. Our one hamster, Chicklet, was my favorite. She and I had a special bond. She was a little stinker. She was an escape artist. We bought the best cage we could afford, locked it down like Fort Knox, and she'd still manage to escape. The weird part was that I'd check on her in the morning, she'd be gone, but no matter how hard I looked there was no way that she could have escaped. No door open, no bar chewed. I really wish I knew how she did it.

She would escape and then crawl under the stove. The first time she got out we searched for three days, left the cage, door open, on the floor at night, with yummy treats inside. I swear she went to the cage, got the treats, and then continued her adventure.

We had her for a little over a year. She was healthy, alert, and such a joy. One morning I found her dead in her cage. Just like that. :(

Let yourself grieve them. When you're ready to accept another pet into your life I'd be more then happy to answer any questions you may have. If I can't, then I'll find someone that can. :)

[Broken13]

Lol @ under the stove! So dangerous, yet too funny!
Mne only escaped once... My two year old nephew "escaped" for want of a beter word) from our eyes and although we thought they scared him he actually picked cookies up and off she went!! Lol I'm talking 3 hours of me sitting on the flor shouting at people not to open the door to the room! Too funny :-D

I am trying to get a couple of pics to upload, but as I'm new to this site it may take some time lol

Should I start a new post or is one already available on Syrian hammy's?

[Broken13]

So it seems I need a url to submit the pics :-( will be tomorrow before I can do that as it's 1.51am here lol

I'm asuming that photobucket will work so I will get right on that then.

Was extremely nice speaking with you, and I got some very useful information from you that I hadn't seen anywhere else! Aka the cage cleaning and purifying process.

Feel free to close this tread.. and I'm sure I can find a way to upload pics on here somewere and you will find them lol :-)

Ntmu... Tracy. :-)

[Broken13]

[Alty]

OMG! They were so cute! What adorable little hamsters.

It looks like they had a very good life. They were so lucky to have you. :)

[shazamataz]

They are so freaking adorable!! I wish we had Hamsters here in Aus.

[Rowejs]

Exactly the same thing just happened to my girlfriends hamsters. One partly eaten, the other in it's little house dead but intact. Weird.