iPod Nano 4th gen won't hold charge

I haven't used my iPod Nano in at least a year. It died before I left it sitting there. I've now learned this is poor battery care but never knew that before, obviously. I know how to care for my iphone and MacBook but that's beside the point. I plugged it in for about three hours and it was on, synced to my MacBook iTunes, showed it was charging, but when I remove it, it dies and won't turn on. It has yet to show the fully charged symbol, so I'm wondering if it'll ever do so/it will ever work without being plugged in anymore? Are there any good experiences with this? I figure if I haven't used it his long, ill live, but it's far more convenient than my iPhone for exercising and the car, and I kind of miss it and never really got my money's worth :/ I hope the battery isn't totally fried!