Not sure about hamster condition

Question
Hi!  

We just bought 2 roborovski hamsters yesterday (one male and one female), both about 2 months old.  They were together in the aquarium at the pet shop and in the interest of breeding, we put them together in the one cage that we bought.  

Both were active initially but one appeared lethargic this morning (although may have just been sleepy) and again this evening.

After researching on the internet, we decided to separate the hamsters in case it was the beginning of wet-tail condition.  Since we only have one cage, we made a makeshift one out of a can.  Now, (close to midnight) the hamster is becoming more active although breathing is obvious.  Can't tell if it is due to respiratory difficulty or exhaustion from suddenly running and climbing again.

I was panicked enough to look for a 24-hr veterinary clinic and attempted to call several however it appears that hamsters are considered "exotic" and are a specialty/subspecialty in my country.  I have to wait until tomorrow to contact the vet med associations to look for a specialist but should there be none available, I would greatly appreciate any advice I can be given.

BTW, the shop sold me pine beddings and yes, I belatedly realize these are toxic to the hamsters.  Again, if no aspen beddings are available, how do I prepare the paper towel beddings?  Just cut them up?  How often do I change them?

I'm quite worried about the hamsters.

Answer
Hi Aya,

    This could defiantly be do to the pine bedding. After you change the bedding you should see an improvement within a few days. If your hamster does not show any improvement within a few days, then it should be seen by a vet.
If Aspen is unavailable, try a paper bedding like Critter Care (hamsters usually do not try to eat this type of paper bedding), this is also safe for hamsters. Using paper towel (yes, just cut it up) is ok until you can find the right bedding. It is not very absorbent and would need to be changed often (every other day at least), it does not help keep your hamster warm and some hamsters tend to eat it which could cause a blockage in their intestinal tract.
    If you have anymore questions, please write again.

Thank you for writing!