Sunday, January 08, 2006
Tink ok, after all?
So I heard back from some people on the HoneyHams group, and one guy had a good idea. He thought maybe Tink was marking her territory...he said that strategic peeing is one of the things they do when they are marking. I knew that they crawl really low when they are in unfamiliar places, in order to leave a scent -- but I've NEVER seen her do that in her cage. (At least not for as long as she seems to be doing it, which would be about a week, now. )
But he mentioned that she might do it more aggressively if she'd been near other animals...especially other hamsters. Which makes sense! Because she was right above the other hamsters at the pet shop. So this seems very probable, and makes me a bit less anxious. I just wrote him back to see how long his hamster keeps that up. If HIS hamster's done it for a whole week before, that'll make me much more easy.
Last night, I waited and watched her until I saw her suddenly seem to "snap out of it" -- I can't describe it any other way. All of a sudden, she started moving faster, and more nimbly, and seemed to suddenly be interested in checking out the cage, and scrabbling up at the sides, and then, most glorious of all, she got onto her wheel and started running!!! So I was able to go to bed, knowing she was feeling better. But this morning, she was back to the clumsy creeping around the cage.
Anyhow, I checked out her back legs, and her stomach, and all looks in good order. No broken bones or swellings of any sort, so I don't think she fell, or is having any mechanical problems with her legs. Doesn't seem like. I let her run around on the bathroom floor, too, to check and see if she could walk normally, and it seems that she can.
Man, she is cute when she's exploring! She looks like a large, furry, bug, almost...because she doesn't really walk, she scuttles! Or waddles, maybe. Her round, furry, little butt swings from side to side as she walks. Are most hamsters pidgeon-toed, I wonder? She seems to be. On her back legs, anyway. They point inward, which makes her gait kind of wobbly-like.
Sorry, the animator WILL take over at times. I would very much like to animate her funny little run! Been thinking about it. Might as well get some mileage out of all the watching and worrying I do, right?
Off to take a nap. Tink is curled up, sleeping, in her little house, and it always makes me feel very sleepy...
But he mentioned that she might do it more aggressively if she'd been near other animals...especially other hamsters. Which makes sense! Because she was right above the other hamsters at the pet shop. So this seems very probable, and makes me a bit less anxious. I just wrote him back to see how long his hamster keeps that up. If HIS hamster's done it for a whole week before, that'll make me much more easy.
Last night, I waited and watched her until I saw her suddenly seem to "snap out of it" -- I can't describe it any other way. All of a sudden, she started moving faster, and more nimbly, and seemed to suddenly be interested in checking out the cage, and scrabbling up at the sides, and then, most glorious of all, she got onto her wheel and started running!!! So I was able to go to bed, knowing she was feeling better. But this morning, she was back to the clumsy creeping around the cage.
Anyhow, I checked out her back legs, and her stomach, and all looks in good order. No broken bones or swellings of any sort, so I don't think she fell, or is having any mechanical problems with her legs. Doesn't seem like. I let her run around on the bathroom floor, too, to check and see if she could walk normally, and it seems that she can.
Man, she is cute when she's exploring! She looks like a large, furry, bug, almost...because she doesn't really walk, she scuttles! Or waddles, maybe. Her round, furry, little butt swings from side to side as she walks. Are most hamsters pidgeon-toed, I wonder? She seems to be. On her back legs, anyway. They point inward, which makes her gait kind of wobbly-like.
Sorry, the animator WILL take over at times. I would very much like to animate her funny little run! Been thinking about it. Might as well get some mileage out of all the watching and worrying I do, right?
Off to take a nap. Tink is curled up, sleeping, in her little house, and it always makes me feel very sleepy...
