Ohana Exotic Small Animal Rescue

17/08/2023

Marzipan is now, officially, the only hamster who is still waiting for a wonderful home !!

I am pretty confident with a dedicated adopter, he can be okay/won’t zoom off your hand when you try to handle him. He is your typical robo dwarf so he will mainly be a watch only hamster.

And a reminder that I can also adopt him out with the enclosures we have here!! If I were to ever open the rescue back up again, I will be using different enclosures (like the Nightangel stacker cages), so it looks cleaner!

19/07/2023

Hello everyone,

I hope you're all doing well. I have some important news to share with you, and I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you who have been following my rescue journey for the past three years. This journey began during the pandemic when I was a student at Texas A&M, and I never anticipated its incredible growth.

The primary purpose of this rescue was to serve as a resource for those seeking guidance on ethical pet keeping and husbandry, particularly for hamsters and other small exotic pets. As time went on, I started rescuing hamsters in need, as many were abandoned due to impulsive buying decisions. These past few years have been a mix of challenges and rewards, filled with both heartache and joy as I worked tirelessly to save and find loving homes for these little creatures.

However, it's important that I am honest with all of you. Now that I have graduated and begun a full-time job, in addition to fostering dogs and cats for shelters and rescues to address overcrowding, I find myself with very limited time to care for the animals in my own rescue.

In consideration of the well-being of the animals and my own, I have made the tough decision to go on an indefinite hiatus. While it pains me to say this, I will be adopting out the remaining hamsters at the rescue, but I will no longer be able to take in new rescues starting today. To those who have recently reached out about surrenders, I sincerely apologize for not being able to assist.

All the donations that were generously given will be utilized to provide housing and care for the three hamsters still in our care. One of these hamsters may find its permanent home as a sanctuary hamster, considering the challenges of finding suitable adopters for Roborovski hamsters. Additionally, I'm contemplating the possibility of establishing a separate location exclusively for housing rescue animals. As many of you know, my current rescue work is conducted from my personal home. However, this decision will require thorough assessment, especially given the prevailing economic conditions.

Once again, thank you all for your unwavering support and understanding.

03/06/2023

Meet Bruce!
This young gentleman is a BIG boy despite being only 4-5 months old!

He is already tamed and is being introduced to more natural treats (like mealworms and other insects) slowly since he was on a pretty sugary diet before 😅

Please help Bruce find his forever home !

23/05/2023

Meet Honey !
- ** Currently pending for adoption **
Some of you may have seen my IG story about someone contacting me about a hamster who was found running around in a parking lot and a bird try to get them.

Thankfully two lovely people helped save her and contacted me to rescue her. I wasn’t taking in rescues at the time since I’m still rearranging, but this was considered an emergency rescue.

12/05/2023

Hello Everyone!

I’ll be away from posting on social media for a bit since I’m graduating tomorrow with my Masters 😁🎉

Any emails or messages sent this weekend-tuesday will be answered on Wednesday!

10/05/2023

These littles one really need a new home!!
Please contact me or Hammy's for adoption inquires!!

10/05/2023

Look at this photogenic gentleman!
Cloud is an adorable 1.5 year old hamster waiting for his new home !!!

07/05/2023

These lovely ladies still need a home !!

04/05/2023

17/04/2023

07/04/2023

If you guys haven’t seen our stories from earlier this week, then you may have missed the news that we rescued 2 new Syrians!

These little ones were housed in the small cage you see in the picture TOGETHER for 1 YEAR! That’s insane!
They’re also overweight due to not having any exercise because their wheel had the same circumference as a mug.
Now they live a 40 gallon breeder tank with a nice 12” wheel !

Thank you to everyone who has adopted last month! With the adoptions, we are able to rescue more animals in need 😊

04/04/2023

Melody has been adopted and is cozy in her new home!
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She went home to the same adopter as Biscuit (aka Bean), so I know she will be deeply loved !

02/04/2023

Spot is home 🤍🤍🤍
Thank you to his new mom for being an amazing owner and getting him all the bougie Niteangel items for him 🥰

28/03/2023

Welcome Tofu and Soba to the rescue!
(I had to find a quick photo on the internet of gerbils that look like them, since they're so quick and are usually in their burrows when I come home 😅)

28/03/2023

Congratulations to Spot for being adopted!! I know you’ll be spoiled when you go home this weekend 😊

27/03/2023

UPDATED AS OF : MARCH 27, 2023
6:16 PM

18/03/2023

Our girl, Gingerbread, has also found a home !! She’ll be dropped off tomorrow with her sister, Tiramisu 😁😁

14/03/2023

Hello Everyone
I just wanted to say that if you have an emergency, PLEASE PLEASE call an emergency vet, DO NOT contact me !!!! I am NOT a vet !!

I just dealt with one of the most stressful conversations I've ever experienced, with a woman who thought it was a great idea to put a male and female syrian together, and guess what happened 🙄 BABIES.

The woman contacted me at 2 AM and said she removed the parents, because the mom started attacking the babies because THE DAD WAS STILL IN THE CAGE WHEN SHE GAVE BIRTH?? Of COURSE the mom would be stressed, and mothers will always cull the babies if they are stressed!!
When I told her that she has limited options, most of them leading to the death of the babies, she refused to listen and said if she didn't get help her husband would flush the babies down the toilet.

I'm panicking, trying to advise her to go to an emergency vet, but the woman refused to listen because she didn't want to babies to die. At this point, the babies were either going to starve to death or mom would attack them because she no longer sees her babies as hers, and they became a threat to her.
I told her this, and said the best way to help them since they DON'T want the mom to be with the babies, is to humanely euthanize them. They were almost 5 hours without the mom, and there's no way these babies would grow up healthy without constant care from the mother.

The woman still refused to listen, having the babies suffer without their mom or some kind of care, and basically left the babies alone the entire night, because her daughter said she rather have them die with the siblings than have them get taken to the vet to have them pass, or humanely euthanize them at home.
Daughter still wants the female hamster, and guess what! THE DAD GOT LOOSE IN THE HOME. So now I couldn't even save the male hamster from this hellhole of a house 🫠

Last time I heard, the woman would just have her mother handfeed the babies, but I don't even think the babies will live at this point. They were almost 10 hours without the mother's milk, there's no way they'll grow up healthy or without health complications later in life.

This entire situation stressed me out so bad it almost made me close down the rescue, because I am so TIRED of people, especially ADULTS who are parents themselves, refusing to seek professional vet care and expecting me to just POP up at 3AM in the morning in their home to help with their hamster they are responsible for.

If you have an emergency, CALL AN EMERGENCY VET CLINIC. NOT ME.

Sorry for such a negative post. I try really hard to be considerate and be kind to everyone that contacts me, but I won't lie this almost put the nail in the coffin for the rescue.

Any pet you bring into your home, YOU are responsible for having an emergency vet in your contact list for emergency health issues, NOT a rescue.

10/03/2023

Meet Kuro !
*currently testing him with small dogs and cats!
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I know I am a rescue for small exotic pets, but I wanted to help market my current foster for the Houston Chow Chow Connections rescue!
They are a lovely chow chow rescue I have been admiring for years (almost 4 years at this point!), and I opened up my home to this boy who was minutes away from being euthanized at the Fort Worth animal control. Texas is sadly a big state that dumps chows on a regular basis, because a lot of people do not realize these dogs NEED to be trained and socialized properly to be well behaved pets. A lot of people want chows because “they’re so cute and fluffy!” While they are cute and a big p**f ball, they are also aggressive if you do not train them and socialize them correctly- people do not realize this and end up abandoning them which is awful.

Kuro is actually really well behaved and is calm around others. He also did well with the other dogs at animal control, so my biggest guess is either his previous home was in a bad situation, or they just didn’t care about him anymore so they dumped him in a random field- which is pretty pathetic imo.

Regardless, he’s been a really good boy so far ! I will be testing him with my own personal dogs and cats to see how well he does with them. I’m hoping he does well with cats so it’ll be easier to find a home for him :) !!

10/03/2023

New intakes and their profiles !!
I will write a more in depth bio for all of them on our website.

SPEAKING OF THE WEBSITE!!!!
New fees have been added, please check them out before applying to adopt!

28/02/2023

REPOST FROM NEW TEXAS RESCUE IN THE WOODLANDS !!! Please reach out to Bustling Burrows if you were waiting to adopt a Syrian from me !

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~Located in The Woodlands, TX 77385
~Public meet up, willing to drive an hour out
~$25 adoption fee that includes 1 cup of their current food (we accept cash app, zelle and cash in person)
~Please bring a carrier with you for meet up pick up
~If you’re interested in adopting one of these sweet girls please fill out our adoption google form by visiting the link tree in my bio and clicking adoption application.
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Suzy:
•Female
•Syrian
•Estimated to be 1 1/2 years old by previous owner
•Suzy is a lovable hamster that enjoys running on her wheel and making a mess of her cage. She can be easily handled but doesn’t actively seek it out. She can be very busy and is more curious than Chrissy so she’ll need plenty of things to climb, chew and explore!

Chrissy:
•Female
•Syrian
•Estimated to be 1 1/2 years old by previous owner
•Chrissy is also a loveable hamster that enjoys digging and burrowing. While she can be handled, she can be a bit squirmy and prefers to stay on her own four paws. Chrissy also has a tear in her ear from a previous fight with Suzy, as their previous owners had had them living together for a small amount of time. She’s more relaxed than Suzy, but still needs plenty of chews and toys!
✨➖➖➖✨
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27/02/2023

The girls are out early today! They woke up around 9 AM for some breakfast before heading back for more sleep 🥰

I currently took in a litter of 6 dwarfs because their mom was adopted from the Houston shelter, and the shelter didn’t realize she was pregnant before adopting her out😅

The litter grew up to be super healthy and friendly !! Huge thank you to their previous family for taking such amazing care of them 😊

This litter will be separated once they are matured. While I believe the white females can do well as a pair, I do not come across many experienced adopters who can handle or prepare for pairs so I will be separating everyone once they all mature.

23/02/2023

Update with Biscuit (previously named Bean)!

His owner says he is very photogenic and his new family loves him!! Thank you for his adopters for giving Biscuit a loving home 🥰

12/02/2023

Bean has been adopted and he is home now !!!

29/01/2023

Meet Cotton Ball !
*before anyone says anything, he is no longer in this cage, and he was moved to a 600 sq ft bin cage. I just took these pics when we just got home 😊 *
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STATUS: ADOPTED ✅
Age: 1 year old
S*x: Male
Species: Syrian

Cotton Ball is a sweet little guy who is absolutely soft 😊 He’s currently in quarantine for health checks and to make sure he’s cleared for adoption!

13/01/2023

Meet Bean !
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Applications are open now !
Status: ADOPTED
Age: ~ 1 Year
Species: Hybrid Dwarf

Bean is such a wonderful little guy! Honestly one of THE NICEST dwarfs I ever met. At first I thought he was blind or deaf, since his reaction times would either be non-existent or slow, but turns out he just likes to take things slow! His previous owners said they didn’t have the means to take care of him anymore, but they did an awesome job taming him!

While Bean would be great for anyone, even children, he wakes up waaaay later than any of the other dwarfs I’ve rescued. I’m used to having dwarf hamsters wake up around 6pm or earlier if they hear me, but Bean wakes up around 9-10pm. Similar to syrians! So as wonderful as Bean is, I wouldn’t recommend him to children who need to sleep early. He would be a wonderful companion for a teen/college student or adult !

** TRAVEL SCHEDULE **
I will be going to San Antonio (again lol) for Lunar New Year/Jan 21-22nd!

I will also be doing a big-ish rescue intake on Sunday/Monday in Navasota, so I can drop by Katy if any adopters in Houston are interested and want to meet me there 👍🏼

02/01/2023

[ CHOCOLATE ]
STATUS: AVAILABLE ☑️
Applications are open !
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Age: ~6 Months
Gender: Female
Species: hybrid dwarf

Chocolate is the perfect name for this sweet girl! She’s back up for adoption looking for a wonderful family who wants a sweet and lovely hamster! She’s currently with a foster, and her foster loves her ^ _ ^ she would make a wonderful first hamster for anyone, or for someone who just wants a hamster that to hang out with. She can nibble if you pick her up by surprise (just a soft nibble! It is not a hard bite, it’s just a reaction like if you were to jump when someone startles you), so the best way to avoid this is by calling her name or making a small noise to let her know you’re there.

Her wake up times are to be known (I have to ask her foster), but in my experience dwarf hamsters always wake up when they hear your voice, and/or they wake up earlier on the day (around 6pm-7pm is how early our other dwarves wake up).

Please apply for this lovely girl today!! She will be seen by a vet that our foster is taking her to, so she will have records sent home with her 🙂

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*Transportation Notes:
I WILL be in San Antonio in the 6th-8th of this week!! If you are in the city, or on the way, I can meetup for drop off 🙂
For Houston adopters, I will be in Katy sometime next week for pickup!

Dallas/DFW adopters: You would have to either meet me near Waco or in College Station since I do not have any plans to go to Dallas this month, but will probably go in February if you can wait that long ! (No concrete dates, so I cannot guarantee a day unless you can travel to central Texas for pickup).

02/01/2023

[ PUFF ]
STATUS: ADOPTED ✅
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Age: ~5 Months
Gender: Male
Species: Long Hair Syrian

Puff is now available for adoption! He was previously in a home with children, so he can be handled by kids and has A LOT of energy ! He currently wakes up around 9pm - 10pm, and needs at least 15-30 minutes of playpen time. Unless your child can be up until almost midnight (and probably until 1am), I would not recommend Puff if he will be your child’s pet. At this stage in life, hamsters will wake up late at night, which isn’t suitable for younger family members who sleep early.

While he can be handled, he can be too energetic and will jump out of your hands if he’s feeling risky 😜 Safest way to transport him to a playpen is with a mug or small carrier so he doesn’t take the leap of faith into the ground haha.

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*Transportation Notes:
I WILL be in San Antonio in the 6th-8th of this week!! If you are in the city, or on the way, I can meetup for drop off 🙂
For Houston adopters, I will be in Katy sometime next week for pickup!

Dallas/DFW adopters: You would have to either meet me near Waco or in College Station since I do not have any plans to go to Dallas this month, but will probably go in February if you can wait that long ! (No concrete dates, so I cannot guarantee a day unless you can travel to central Texas for pickup).