Pet Information > ASK Experts > Exotic Pets > Gerbils and Hamsters > Blind hamster?

Blind hamster?

21 11:36:53

Question
I recently cleaned out my hamsters cage, and I used these wipe things, and usually I'll wipe out the bottom of the cage with some wet toilet paper afterwards... However I forgot today... As soon as I remembered I tipped all the sawdust and stuff into a bin liner and I wiped out the cage with wet toilet paper...

However I had no more sawdust, and no way of being able to get some more. So I had to put the same stuff back in the cage. I noticed that he was being more fidgety then usual, and he was going a bit mad in his cage looking for all the food that was in his bed and had been scattered around the cage due to moving it. He was also a lot more sniffy then usual. I went neat his cage to see why he was making so much noise and he just sniffed in my general direction.
I also shone a small light in his eye to see if he responded to it and to see if his eyes had gone milky at all, and he didn't seem bothered by it at all, and his eyes were still perfectly black. Though he does seem to respond slightly to me waving my hand, but I'm not sure if it was the smell on my hand he was reacting to.

I might just be being paranoid, but I really love this hamster and I'd never forgive myself for making an animal suffer in any way.

Answer
You may not have noticed it before, but all hamsters have pretty poor eyesight, and rely on their sense of smell and hearing much more. They notice movement and figures rather then recognize faces. You probably noticed him smelling around more because I assume you keep his food in a bowl and don't spread it on the cage floor. He was not used to having food smells come from all directions, and sought to find it all. When I change my hamster's cage, he reacts to his cleaned igloo home in much the same way, where he hoards all his food. It all depends on different smells. Your hamster is perfectly fine.