Henry

Henry wasn't out for a whole day including overnight. Did a health check to make sure he was alright, also weighed him while I had the chance. He lost another 4 grams, down to 39. I'm thinking of mixing in a little of the old Sunburst to his food dish, we seem to have gone too far in the other direction. The Vita Garden was a huge improvement, but I want to keep the little guy healthy. His appetite in general just doesn't seem what it used to be, he almost never takes treats now. He hasn't been limited in quantity of food the past month or so, always had a mostly full bowl available.

Nothing noticeably wrong otherwise, and his pouches are fine too. He unloaded a bunch of bedding he's been keeping for nesting onto my hand.
 
Great videos of Henry, he always looks so cute and is super speedy in his wheel and how lovely to see all the burrow entrances, he’s been a busy boy. I think with all the interaction you have you would notice if he didn’t seem himself. Maybe his weight has now plateaued and this will be his new everyday weight.
 
Zara said:
Great videos of Henry, he always looks so cute and is super speedy in his wheel and how lovely to see all the burrow entrances, he’s been a busy boy. I think with all the interaction you have you would notice if he didn’t seem himself. Maybe his weight has now plateaued and this will be his new everyday weight.
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I was hoping it would, but another 4 grams in two weeks is still a bit much. He seems healthy otherwise though
 
That does sound a little worrying, his weight is pretty low now, I’m not sure but Russian hams in the US do seem to be a bit smaller than those in the UK but still I think it might be a good idea to try adding back some of his old food just to see if that helps.
They do sometimes just seem to want some me time & don’t interact or want treats so much so it could just be that but that doesn’t really explain the weight loss.
Did you manage to check his teeth when you did a health check?
 
Just checking, does the Sunburst have fruit in it? I know some do and if so I personally would not feed it. I am sorry to hear Henry has lost weight. I hope he is back to his usual self soon.
 
Yes I believe it does - so it would be better not to add sunburst. The vita garden is sugar free. To help keep weight on there are some high calorie things you could put out. Like crushed pecan nuts and hemp seeds. If he isn’t taking treats, he may just lick up crushed nuts.

Might be an idea to check his teeth if you can or ask the vet to check them. If he’s having tooth problems then he may not be eating properly.
 
For the crushed nuts (crush them between two spoons) and hemp seeds. I used to put a pinch of each on a separate little dish.
 
Sorry I didn’t realise the previous food had fruit in it, better not to give that then, I thought I remembered something about the protein sticks in the food that he was very fond of, might be remembering wrong though!
It does sound like he needs some change to his diet, giving extra nuts & high fat foods is ok in the short term but he shouldn’t really be losing weight if you can find a food that suits him & giving high fat foods to a diabetic prone species isn’t advisable long term.
Is the protein content of his foo high enough?
 
The vita garden is a bit low on protein, I've been supplementing it with mealworms to make up for that. I didn't get a look at his teeth, but I think they're okay as the vita garden still has his favorite sticks and he's able to chomp them just fine. I didn't want to scruff him, he was out and about last night. We had an interaction, he took treats and was very talkative.

The sunburst does have dried fruit in it, I looked over the ingredients and that's all the vita garden doesn't have. Has everything else but the fruit. I will try a few extra additions, the pecans sound like a great idea. I will see if he takes to those tonight
 
It sounds as though his teeth are probably ok then & it’s great that he was out & interactive again.
I would think about some alternative protein sources, mealworms don’t really add that much & are quite high in fat so you can’t give enough to really up protein enough, have you tried him with dried chicken, most of them like that & it’s higher in protein & low in fat so a good option.
I’m sure he’ll love the pecans, great as a treat but very high in fat like all nuts so not too much.
 
elusive said:
It sounds as though his teeth are probably ok then & it’s great that he was out & interactive again.
I would think about some alternative protein sources, mealworms don’t really add that much & are quite high in fat so you can’t give enough to really up protein enough, have you tried him with dried chicken, most of them like that & it’s higher in protein & low in fat so a good option.
I’m sure he’ll love the pecans, great as a treat but very high in fat like all nuts so not too much.
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That's a good idea, I will also get some chicken and see if he takes to it. He's a bit picky, hopefully I can find something he will eat
 
I hadn’t thought about the high fats. They are healthy fats but I suppose for hybrids, too much fat isn’t so good. Hemp seeds are also high in calories though and maybe a pecan nut once a week.
 
That’s such a sweet video of him eating his mealworm.
He did look a bit curious about the chicken but maybe he was looking for a treat he was more used to having like his pumpkin seeds or something.
It might just be worth leaving it for a while & see if he goes back to it, I’ve often had problems trying to find a chicken treat they like, none of mine have been that keen on the plain white cubes of dried chicken breast but I’ve found other chicken treats they really like after a bit of experimenting.
They do love mealworms, maybe a bit too much but they really aren’t the healthiest of treats or protein sources which is a shame but fine in moderation though.
 
Will he eat fresh cooked chicken or beef not the dried variety freshly cooked meat is Petes favourite he eats it straight away it doesn't get pouched like a lot of things
 
That was actually fresh, was a leftover bit from the dinner I cooked. I will offer a piece again each day this week, he can only turn it down. I might try turkey next, want to find him something he likes.
 
ilguy said:
That was actually fresh, was a leftover bit from the dinner I cooked. I will offer a piece again each day this week, he can only turn it down. I might try turkey next, want to find him something he likes.
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You can only try I'd offer it a couple of times because a bit like children one day they will like it the next day its Yuk have you tried tiny pieces of cheese this is another big favourite of Petes that he never puts in his pouches I'm sure you are giving a balanced diet so wouldn't worry too much about the "extras " it's just nice to give them a good variety
 
If he didn’t go for the fresh chicken then it’s unlikely he’d go for dried, still worth trying the chicken again just to see if he likes it but maybe not the best option for him if he’s not too keen.
Other meats should only be given as a rare treat.
Pseudograins are another good option to try & a more natural food for them, quinoa is higher in protein than buckwheat but mine have never been that keen unless it’s sprouted & even then they don’t always eat it, buckwheat tends to be very popular & is a great source of nutrients, you can give it hulled or in the shell, dried just as it comes (not roasted though) or sprouted, it should be readily available too.
 
I will have to try some quinoa and buckwheat too, got to find something he goes for to try and stabilize his weight. I'm glad he's no longer on the edge of obesity, but soon he's going to be underweight if this keeps up.

I think I will pick up some crickets for him to hunt, see if he goes for them.
 
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