->Hi everyone,
->
->My wife and I are going away on a short (4 days) vacation and have not
->been able to find someone to look after our teddybear angora hamster,
->Sunshine. How long can one safely leave a hamster without a
->"babysitter"? I plan to give her clean bedding and extra food and water
->before we leave; are there any other precautions I should take?
Hello:
There is no certain answer to your first question and I've been
called fanatical on the subject, but I would say that 4 days at the outside
should be fine. More than that and I'd want to have periodic checks done
at least.
The problem is that, in general, hamsters don't like changes in
routine much. I've known of hamsters that went into a kind
of meltdown when their routine was upset. Hamsters have been known
to become so stressed from environmental changes or loss of regular
interaction that their digestion fails. So I'm a bit overcautious perhaps.
However, you know your hamster. If it's the laid-back type, and
especially if your own interaction with it is casual, there should be no
problem at all. As for other precautions. I've had one passed on to me
from someone whose hamster was saved by it:
Give your hamster two water bottles and high ground for a flood
emergency.
You get the picture -- one bottle leaks (occasionally a bored
hamster will go looking for new things to bite), bedding becomes flooded
and cold, water everywhere but nothing to drink.
I hope this helps. Best of luck, DGI
PS: If you live in the NY/NJ/CT tri-state area, I will baby-sit your
hamster.
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David G. Imber
Maniform Creative Services
http://www.maniform.com
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