Hamster Death Cause

Question
Hi i'm not specifically asking about the death of 1 hamster. i understand that you probably don't entertain such requests.
But this knowledge could change the way i treat my other babies.

My syrian was just around 1 year. fat and very healthy. one day he was suddenly found dead in his normal sleeping position. i was very shocked and for 1 whole week couldnt think of any possible reasons for its death.

today i just thought of something.. his water bottle constantly had moss/algae growing. i've tried cleaning it but i'm sure that i wasnt able to totally clear it away. as it could be growing deep in the metal drinking tube.

Could this be the reason for his death?
If so is there any way of cleaning the bottle thoroughly?

Many thanks Shelia!

Cheers,
Edmund

Answer
Hi Edmund

I'm sorry to hear about your hamster.  It is always hard when something like this happens.  I think that we always want an explanation but in all honesty sometimes there isn't one.

Hamsters can die from all kinds of reasons - to have a sudden death like this it could well have been heart related.  There is always the possibility that he was born with a problem and it just happened to manifest itself at this age.  Hamsters can suffer from diabetes and this can make them gain weight but you usually see other symptoms, such as they drink a phenomenal amount, their pee smells incredibly sweet and they tend to pee a lot - so much so that their cage is often wet.  With other illnesses the hamster tends to deteriorate and more often than not they weaken but still find the strength to leave the nest to die.  The fact that your hamster was still in his nest as though he was sleeping makes me feel it was his heart that gave out.  In which case there was absolutely nothing you could have done.

It is important that they have clean water but it doesn't sound as though this was the cause of his death - had dirty water been the cause he would have suffered from diarrhea first of all and gradually weakened and looked dull.  Whereabouts was his cage situated?  Was it in direct sunlight?  If so this might be the reason why the bottle gets a green build up.  If you get another hamster at any stage it would be worth reviewing the location of the cage etc (they should not be in direct sunlight otherwise the hamster can overheat in the summer months).  I keep all my hamsters on the opposite side of the room from the windows so that they don't get too hot and their water bottles are normally fine.  I would suggest throwing that bottle away and starting again if you get another hamster and either fill it from bottled water or cooled boiled water - that might help.  

I hope this helps you.

Regards
Sheila