You may have just recently had your hamster in your hands, only to wake up one day and find that it’s no longer breathing. The passing of any pet is heartbreaking, especially when it’s unexpected. Unfortunately, hamsters can be quite vulnerable animals that may pass on suddenly.
The lifespan of a hamster averages only three to four years. They are also prone to illnesses caused by bacterial and viral infections, stress, and a poor diet. One of the most common reasons for a hamster’s sudden death is wet tail, a disease that can cause the death of a hamster in days.
The very short lifespan of hamsters is one of the biggest considerations when getting one as a pet. They may be very low-maintenance, but when not given proper care, they can die a sudden death. We’ll talk about the causes of sudden hamster deaths throughout the rest of this article.
Why Do Hamsters Die So Easily?
Hamsters naturally have a very short lifespan, with an average of about 36 months. One reason for this is that they are fragile and sensitive animals that are prone to getting sick when in unfavorable conditions, such as when placed in a damp or cold environment.
When they catch illnesses from animals (or even humans), they are less able to fight off these diseases as compared to larger animals with tougher immune systems. So when they catch a cold or get an infection, hamsters can easily die if they are not given immediate attention.
In fact, a common hamster disease called wet tail is often considered a death sentence for hamsters because even when diagnosed early, this disease can cause the death of a hamster in about three days. Hamsters that are given medical attention early have a slight chance of survival, but most hamsters do not make it.
The second reason why hamsters die easily is that due to their tiny size, they have a much higher metabolic rate. The larger the animal, the slower the metabolic process. In other words, hamsters use up their energy much faster than large animals do, which is why they only last a few years.
Syrian hamsters, the largest kind, may live up to five years in captivity, but that’s the exception and not the rule. Dwarf hamsters, on the other hand, tend to live up to a maximum of three years. So if you’re thinking of getting a new hamster and want one that has the most potential to live longer, you might want to get a Syrian instead of a dwarf.
How Do Hamsters Die?
When a hamster approaches death, its pulse will begin to slow down, diminishing until it fades completely. Its breathing will also become erratic or choppy, and some hamsters suffer from a stiff jaw or have a short episode of spasms before dropping on their side and dying.
A dead hamster will also be cool to the touch, even if there is a heat lamp or a heating pad in its cage. If you observe your pet closely, you will also notice that its chest no longer rises and falls when it is dead.
Before a hamster’s breath fades, however, there will be telltale signs that a hamster is dying, including the following:
- Spending all its time hiding. If your hamster’s cage has tubes or tunnels, it’s normal for your pet to spend most of its time in these, but when you notice that it’s no longer coming out, it could be time to see the vet.
- Having very little energy. Hamsters are balls of energy. A healthy hamster will not grow tired of running for hours! So one of the clearest signs that something is seriously wrong is when it no longer shows any interest in play and spends most of its time sleeping.
- Developing a cold. A dying hamster may also develop cold or cold-like symptoms, such as sneezing.
- Loss of appetite. Aside from being full of energy, hamsters are highly food-motivated and will even hoard even when they’re full. But a sick or dying hamster will lose its appetite, which will show in untouched food.
- Unusually strong odor of urine. Hamster urine is naturally pungent. But when you’ve had your pet for a few weeks and notice that its urine is smelling stronger than usual, it could be suffering from late-stage diabetes.
- Wet or loose stool. Hamster droppings should look like solid pellets. When something is seriously wrong with their health, such as when a hamster is dying, their stool can be wet, and their bowel habits will drastically change.
Take note, though, that a hibernating hamster may sometimes look like a dead hamster. So if you notice that your young hamster isn’t moving at all, don’t panic! It may just be hibernating.
Here are signs that your hamster is simply hibernating:
- Its breathing is very faint. Unlike a dead hamster, one that is simply hibernating will still breathe but will do so very faintly. Still, you will see its chest rise and fall with shallow breathing.
- There was a sharp fall in temperature. If you notice that your hamster is no longer moving after a sharp drop in room temperature, it could simply be hibernating as a result of the temperature change.
Take note that hibernation is not a usual behavior among hamsters in captivity, as hamsters only need to hibernate to conserve energy and adapt to sudden changes in their environment’s temperature. When a captive hamster undergoes true hibernation, this means that it’s not getting proper care.
Common Reasons Why Hamsters Suddenly Die
Because of their innate vulnerability to disease, it’s not surprising to hear of hamsters that die suddenly. However, take note that a hamster’s life span is very short, so while a hamster’s death may seem sudden to you, it may simply have died due to old age.
Hamsters are considered senior or old when they reach two years of age.
Fatal Diseases
The most common culprit for sudden hamster death is a fatal disease. This can be due to a viral or bacterial infection or even stress. One example of such illness is wet tail disease, which is known to bring about diarrhea and wet bottoms in hamsters, hence the name.
Wet tail is the most common cause of hamster death, and once diagnosed, it’s almost impossible to treat, even if it’s detected early. More often than not, a diagnosis of wet tail disease means a death knell for hamsters, so instead of trying for a cure, most hamster owners do their best to make the last days of their pet as comfortable as possible.
Other fatal diseases are:
- Arenavirus
- Tularemia
- Cancer
- Abdominal mass
- Polycystic disease
- Amyloidosis
Hamsters often contract diseases from bacteria and viruses, which is why it’s important to get a pet from a pet store that has very strict hygiene practices. When several hamsters are in close proximity to one another, the chances of transmitting disease are very high.
Keeping your hamster’s environment clean and safe by sanitizing its cage regularly and keeping your distance when you have the flu is very important in ensuring that your hamster gets to enjoy a healthy life for as long as possible.
Stress
Hamsters are very vulnerable to stress. Unlike other animals, they are unable to cope with anxiety-causing situations—especially prolonged ones—very well. In fact, a stressful situation, such as one where a hamster can’t find a rhythm with which to do normal functions like eating and sleeping, can be so stressful to the point of causing serious illness and death.
To keep a hamster healthy, it’s crucial to keep its environment stress-free by doing the following:
- Introduce your pet to its new home properly. Slowly introduce your pet to you as its owner and its new environment by providing a safe space where it can relax while at the same time observe you from a safe distance.
- Keep a regular routine. Hamsters need routine in their life, which means the time for eating, sleeping, waking up, and playing should be the same every day. Changing up its schedule too often can cause anxiety in your hamster.
- Keep its cage dim. Hamsters like their home dim but with just enough light (at the right time) to signal sleep time. Keep the cage away from distractingly bright lights, direct sunlight, or flashing lights.
- Turn the noise down. Any loud noise or sound will startle your hamster. And when there are loud noises all the time, your hamster will not be able to relax enough to fall asleep, which is very detrimental to its health.
- Keep large animals away. Hamsters are prey animals that are naturally afraid of larger animals.
- Make its cage a safe refuge. Make sure that a cage is not only safe but cozy enough for your hamster to feel safe in. Adding playthings like tubes and tunnels is a great way to make the cage truly feel like home to your pet hamster.
Some signs that a hamster is stressed include:
- Aggressive cage biting
- Being suddenly aggressive towards you or biting
- Non-stop digging or intense scratching of the surface of its cage or bedding
- Running rapidly around in circles
- Excessive grooming, such as licking its fur repeatedly
If you don’t know what exactly is causing your hamster to stress, consult a vet right away. While external factors most often cause stress, it may also be a sign that your pet is suffering from an underlying health condition.
Infections
If your hamster isn’t hoarding, is it even a hamster? Your hamster may look really cute with its cheeks protruding. But those large cheeks may be hiding a painful secret: an impacted cheek pouch that’s infected and has formed an abscess.
Impactions of the cheek pouch are fairly common among hamsters because of their hoarding instinct. They will keep packing food and other materials in their cheeks in preparation for a rainy day, even when they’re in captivity where everything is provided.
This behavior, when not monitored, can cause a hamster’s cheek pouch to be impacted. And if that impaction is not detected or eliminated manually (or completely) by your pet, it can rot inside its cheeks, creating an infection that can further develop into a painful abscess.
The problem is that hamsters are very good at hiding that something is wrong with them. If they have a tunnel, they will hide in it so you won’t see that it’s actually suffering.
As a hamster owner, you should closely monitor your hamster’s health by checking them every day for unusual lumps or strange behaviors.
The Flu
Believe it or not, hamsters can get the flu from humans. So if you’re feeling under the weather, stay away from your hamster, as you can pass sickness to your little pet. Colds may be no big deal for us humans, but for hamsters, it can be fatal, especially for a hamster that’s already under a lot of stress.
These are signs that your hamster has caught the flu:
- Sniffling
- Sneezing
- Lethargy
- Loss of appetite
- Increased thirst
Injury or Trauma
If you’re not careful, you can easily drop your hamster when you try to pick it up. It could also fall from a high place during play or when it escapes from its cage.
A hamster fall may not be accompanied by a loud thud, nor may it look as dangerous as it actually is. But a fall can actually be lethal to a hamster.
Hamster bones are very fragile, and if your pet suffers from a fall, it may break its bones, creating irreparable damage and sometimes causing instant death.
Hamsters can only safely fall from a height of 10 inches (25 cm). If your pet has recently had an accidental fall from a height higher than that, it has become lethargic, refuses its food, and spends all of its time in hiding, it’s time to bring your hamster to the vet.
Conclusion
Hamsters may be low-maintenance pets, but it does take a lot of commitment to provide them with the right care. Their lives are short, but they can be full of joy and contentment at the hands of a dedicated pet owner.