hi my hamster just looked as though he was having a fit, then threw himself over and just lay there. He seemed to cough a couple of times, really making a noise? His Breathing was very slow i called my son down and he opened yhe cage and picked him up, the hamster was very agitated and wrestled out of his hands onto the floor, we say he was dragging his right rear leg a bit. My son picked him up and held him (he tought his eye was bulged and the other one was twitching?)We got a box of bedding to sit him in quietly. After 5 minutes the hamster started washing himself - he is always doing this normally, and then we put hik back in his rotastack.
It appeared to all be new, he was investigating everything. The right leg is OK and he is climbing up and down shutes well. He has eaten a tiny piece of cuecumber - before he would have tucked it away- he seems very affable to us now, he comes to the cage when we stand there and seems OK. Was it a stroke or epileptic fit?
What do we do now?
has he had a fit/stroke
Posted on 2008/01/11 by User
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aubrey -
Veteran Advisor Helen Fines says:
Hi. It sounds as though Aubrey has had a seizure (also called a fit). It's always hard to be sure, but you gave a very good description of the neurological signs and the rapid recovery is typical. A true stroke is rare in domestic animals, certainly in a 6m old hamster, and wouldn't result in rapid return to normal activity. Seizures have many causes and would be very difficult to investigate in a hamster, so i'd do nothing for the time being except observe him as much as you can. If he has more seizures you can then get an idea of the frequency, type and length, which would go some way to diagnosing the cause. Hope this helps.
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