References
UPDATES (April 10, 2012)
random ponderings about our life, our notion. truly uniquely unique.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
References (Part X)
References
UPDATES (April 10, 2012)
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Hamster Health Issues / Diseases (Part IX)
Hamster Health Issues / Diseases
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1.
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| Health Problems (3) |
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Hamsters
tend to be
affected by relatively
few naturally occurring
diseases. Their susceptibility, however, to a host of
infectious diseases of other animals, including people, and the case with which
these diseases can be transmitted to hamsters have made them very popular
laboratory animals for biomedical research.
‘Teddy bear’ hamsters and other genetic varieties tend to be much more
susceptible to disease and sensitive to antibiotics and other drugs than golden
hamsters. (1)
Because hamsters are very small, nocturnal
(night- active) and not closely observed, the early signs of illness are
frequently overlooked or not noted at all.
Hamster owners must be constantly
vigilant for signs
of illness and
must seek immediate
veterinary assistance when illness is suspected. (1)
Sick hamsters often become irritable and
frequently bite. They are usually
reluctant to move about and walk stiffly when forced to do so. Their eyes often look dull and sunken, and
frequently have a discharge. Sick
hamsters often stop eating or greatly reduce their intake of food. Consequently, weight loss is a common sign
(not necessarily an easy one to recognize) of illness in hamsters. Fluid losses from diarrhea also may cause
marked weight loss. Sudden
intestinal disease (with
accompanying diarrhea) is
the most common
illness of hamsters, especially amongst
those being weaned
or recently weaned.
If the serious
accompanying dehydration is not recognized immediately and corrected
with appropriate fluid therapy at the direction of a veterinarian, death is
probable. (1)
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| Predisposing factors of bacterial diseases (11) |
The incisor (front, gnawing) teeth grow
continuously for the life of the hamster (this is true for all rodents). They receive continuous wear as the uppers
and lowers contact each other,
Hamsters and humans (Part VIII)
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The main predators of grey hamsters are
mink and stoats. Other hamsters are killed by foxes, birds of prey, domestic
dogs and cats. Common hamsters have sometimes been trapped by man for their fur
and are considered to be a pest because they dig up root vegetables and eat
other crops. Dogs were used to hunt the
hamsters, following them by sight. The species is thought to be in no
danger of extinction, even though its numbers have been reduced over the years
through modern farming methods.(7)
Until 1930, it was assumed that the golden
hamster was extinct as a species. Then, in 1930, near the ancient town of
Aleppo in Syria, a Jewish archaeologist by the name of Aaron Abrahams, came
across a nest containing a small rodent with twelve
babies that he could not identify. He carefully placed the family into a container and had them taken to the Hebrew
University in Jerusalem. There they were identified as golden hamsters and, under laboratory conditions,
encouraged to
Breeding Considerations (Part VII)
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(NOTE: THIS BLOG AND ITS OWNER DO NOT ENCOURAGE IRRESPONSIBLE AND UNETHICAL
BREEDING OF HAMSTERS (AND PERHAPS ALL ANIMALS)
(by HH's Plushie) (22)
- PUPS are baby hamsters.
- A group of hamster pups is called a LITTER.
- WEANING is when baby animals are put onto solid food. You may see the mom refusing to feed her pups, this is normal during weaning and you need not intervene.
- GESTATION is how long the mother is pregnant: from the time the egg(s) are fertilized to the time of the birth. (For example, in humans this is normally 9 months.)
- CULLING is another term for when a mother animal kills her offspring. In the case of hamsters, this is often due to mom feeling threatened and/or thinking that she cannot raise the pups (e.g. in a large litter she may cull some so the litter is easier to manage). Often, if a hamster culls her pup she will also eat it.
The sex of adult hamsters is easy to determine. Males have very large, prominent testicles. In fact, owners unaccustomed to seeing them are often astonished at these anatomic peculiarities. (1)
Sexual identification in hamsters is
similar to other rodents, the anogenital distance in the male is greater than
in the female.(13)
In adult hamsters, the male has a
pronounced posterior bulge due to the testes in the scrotum. The adult female
has a more blunt posterior.(13)
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| What you'll need for breeding (4) |
The image above shows the regular four day
estrous cycle of female hamsters. The rising and falling curve above
the baseline on the graph indicates the
period of receptivity to the male, or behavioral estrus. The blue column in day
2 marks the occurrence of a white, stringy, odorous
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