HAMSTER HEALTH
These are some of the illnesses hamsters may have:
Hamster Colds
Hamster colds can be a cause of draughts so a correct place for the cage is very important. Cold mixed with a draught leads to a cold to the poor hamster. The symptoms of hamster colds are: hamster sneezing, hamster with wet nose, hamster breathing heavily, the hamster sitting in a hunched position.
It is very important not to wash your hamster or else they would get a cold! Also never handle a hamster when you have a cold as the hamster will easily get a cold. Early referral to a vet is important so that the vet can prescribe antibiotics. A hamster with a cold should be kept in a draught free and warm room. Palatable foods (soft food) are good for sick hamsters. A little added honey with water may encourage the hamster to drink. Also, you can give the hamster some lukewarm milk mixed with water.
Hamster Wet Tail
Hamster wet tail is a bacterial infection and can cause extreme diarrhea. Stress and an unbalanced diet can be two major causes of wet tail in hamsters. Examples of stress for a hamster could be, a trip from the pet store to home.
Isotonic fluids may be administered orally to the sick hamster and also the vet may prescribe antibiotics for the hamster. The area around the hamster anus becomes sticky and wet-looking when the hamster has wet tail. Hamsters with wet tail will not eat. When a hamster has wet tail take it to a vet immediately. The sick hamster will move very slowly and will be very quiet. Any cages of dead hamsters should be binned or washed well and disinfected.
Hamster Diabetes
Hamster diabetes is mostly common in dwarf hamsters especially in campbell hamsters. Diabetes is often herediatary. Symptons of a hamster with diabetes are: hamster drinking excessively, hamster losing fur on the stomach area and on the hands, excessive urinating, hamster in a hunched position, hamster all of a sudden sleeping more than usual, hamster doing excessive exercise, hamster with a sudden weight loss / gain and the hamster trembling.
Feeding of a sugar free diet will help your hamster. This can be achieved by feeding a good quality hamster seed mix, alfalfa, fresh vegetables such as carrots, turnips, potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower and some boiled egg. Commercially processed food treats should be avoided and fresh fruit should be avoided because of the fructose. You should incorporate more protein into a diabetic hamster’s diet. A pedialyte solution in the hamster's water bottle, will help to avoid from the hamster dehydrating.
Hamster Strokes
When a hamster has a stroke, there would be some head tilt. Strokes often happen during the night so the first sign is when the following morning the hamster is unbalanced and typically the head tilts to one side.
The hamster may need help with feeding and drinking, but should recover sufficiently after a week or two. Hamsters who have suffered a stroke may live quite a while longer and lead fairly normal lives, although some head tilt may remain.
Hamster Skin Mites
A skin mite is a harmful parasite. If a skin mite affects a hamster which is in a colony, then the whole colony will be affected. A skin mite is a small spider-like creature that goes into the hamster’s skin making the mite itself almost invisible! Skin mites can be passed on to other animals. Due to excessive scratching the hamster could have some fur loss.
Hamsters can catch mites and these should be treated by an anti-mite spray intended for hamsters. Disinfect the whole cage and apply some anti-mite spray on the hamster bedding and on the hamster. Do not apply the spray directly on the hamster but apply some on a small brush, comb the brush on the hamster and then use a small cloth or tissue paper to dry off the hamster.
Hamster Diarrhea
Hamster diarrhea is a result of incorrect feeding and sometimes in combination with draughts or damp. Rotten food or dirty drinking water and overfeeding of vegetables can also be a cause. Unfortunately diarrhea is often fatal for hamsters.
If your hamster has diarrhea, remove any moist food out of the cage and feed your hamster only dry bread, boiled rice and crispbread. Replace its water with lukewarm chamomile tea and clean the hamster cage litter and nesting twice a day. When your hamster gets better disinfect its cage well.
Hamster Cancers/Tumours
The hamster develops a lump which gets bigger by time and early referral to a vet is vital to increase the chance of successful treatment. The risk of cancer rises when the hamster ages.
Hamster cancers and tumours are often treatable. Sometimes when hamster tumours are removed, these can grow up again. Vet's operations on hamsters are not always successful due to their small size and some antibiotics may also be harmful to the hamster. Unfortunately one of the causes of hamster tumours is in-breeding ie: breeding hamsters of the same family example: a brother and sister. A hamster with a tumour may live a normal and happy life but try to avoid any sharp objects (like wooden ladders, wooden ramps or sharp tubes) as these could cause the tumour to burst.
Hamster Glaucoma
One of the illnesses hamsters may have is Glaucoma. Glaucoma affects the eyes of the hamster and its symptoms are that the hamster's eye will appear larger. When Glaucoma takes place, there is an increased amount of fluid within the eyeball which will lead to loss of vision. The affected hamster will rub the eye and the eye may become so big that it prolapses from the socket.
Hamster glaucoma can be a result of rough handling, fighting or from being held too tightly from the scruff. To decrease the chance of hamster glaucoma, avoid holding the hamster from the scruff. Hamsters naturally have big eyeballs to be able to spot predators and Glaucoma should not be misinterpreted by this. See picture on the right for a hamster who has Glaucoma.
Unfortunately there is no specific treatment for hamster glaucoma and early referral to a vet is important as the vet can prescribe painkillers if the hamster is in a lot of pain. As earlier outlined, Glaucoma may lead to loss of the hamster's vision, but this is not a big problem as a hamster's eye sight is very poor. Affected hamsters should not be used for breeding. An eye ointment prescribed by a good vet may be used several times daily to keep the hamster's eye moist.
Hamster's Obesity
Hamster's obesity takes place when the hamster is over weight because of a bad diet and so the hamster’s health is affected. The hamster will appear enlarged and the hamster will also become lazy due to the effort needed for moving.
The solution for hamster obesity is to replace any sugary treats with vegetables. Increase exercise (like for example a hamster ball for the hamster to exercise) so that the animal will lose weight and will get fitter. You can also introduce more play outside the cage; for example hamster running in the room, but make sure that you always keep an eye on the hamster while he is running in the room.
Hamster Greasy Fur
A hamster with greasy fur, could be a sign that the hamster's bedding is not being changed frequently. The hamster's bedding should be supplied generously to prevent odours. Sometimes when one forgets to clean the cage, the hamster will look greasy so it's best to clean the cage
more frequently. The hamster's bedding should be changed at least once a week. For nesting materials you should be using a paper based material such as toilet paper or shredded paper.
Hamster greasy fur, could also be a sign of ilness;
the hamster is too lethargic to clean its fur. If your hamster is lethargic, you should
take it to the vet, since lethargy is a sign of a number of illnesses. Also sometimes
greasy hair could be from the hamster's genes ie: the hamster's coat type is genetically greasy.
Hamster Ear Mites / Hamster Ear Mange
Hamster ear mites / ear mange are called Notoedres. These mites live around the hamster's ears but can also be present around the hamster's face and / or on the hamster’s feet.
These hamster ear mites multiply around the infected hamster’s ears and the hamster becomes allergic to these mites and starts itching itself. The hamster’s skin will become crusty, darkened and the hamster may also develop deep injuries around the head region due to self-multilation.
Treatment of hamster's ear mites / hamster's ear mange consists of either Ivermectin injections by the veterinarian or Ivermectin can be administered orally. Ivermectin is administered weekly over several weeks. Creams may be required to rapidly reduce initial itching. The hamster’s cage needs to be cleaned at the time of each weekly treatment to avoid re-contamination of the mites. For hamster mange, diluted oils can be used cautiously like olive oil, for direct application. Lavender, rosemary, tea tree and garlic oils may also be useful.
Hamster's Overgrown Teeth
The picture on the right shows a hamster's teeth and the bottom teeth in this hamster's picture, should not be allowed to grow any longer. Hamster’s teeth are always growing and small pet chew toys or apple wood and dog biscuits should be given to hamsters to keep the hamster’s teeth under control.
Many hamsters will gnaw on the bars of the cage, but if a hamster had nothing to gnaw on to keep its teeth in trim, the hamster’s teeth may overgrow and could puncture the mouth or jaw, which would lead to the hamster not being able to eat properly and the hamster would starve to death.
If a hamster's teeth become overgrown, take the hamster to a vet and the vet may show you how to trim the hamster’s teeth if they overgrow again. The hamster’s teeth can be clipped using a pair of nail clippers but care must be taken to avoid cutting the hamster’s tongue or cheek. To cut the hamster's teeth, hold the hamster by a good scruff of neck forcing the hamster to 'smile' and ensuring that the hamster remains still. Place the nail clippers around the tooth to be cut, ensuring that the blade behind the tooth is pressed firmly and trim the hamster’s teeth around 1 millimetre and not more.
A hamster’s teeth may break more easily if the diet is low in calcium and dog biscuits are a good source of calcium. A lot of sunflower seeds should not be given, as they do not provide the correct amount of calcium needed for a hamster.
Hamster's Fur Problems
The most common signs of hamster's fur problems are: loss of fur, sores, dry, itchy skin, reddened skin. These problems may be caused by tiny skin parasites, allergies, hormonal imbalance or improper diet. Mother hamsters shed fur around their teats when they are nursing their young baby hamsters. Old hamsters have less fur due to a drop in certain hormone levels as the hamster gets older.
Hamster having an allergy can be one of the most common reasons for hamster fur loss. Cedar Shavings can cause allergic reactions. Pine shavings are preferable to Cedar but paper based shavings are the best used. A hamster may become allergic to certain foods. It is important to consider if anything was changed to the hamster's diet, location, or routine which could have caused the hamster the allergic reaction.
Wood shavings as bedding can be replaced with tissue paper to establish if the bedding material is the cause of the allergy, feeding the hamster a plain diet for a few days may establish if the hamster is suffering from a food allergy. When you establish what is the source of allergy that is making the hamster losing fur, the source should be removed immediately.
Hamster's Skin Problems
The picture on the right shows a hamster with a skin reaction on its paws. The cause of the skin reaction could be from the bedding or from a change in the food and / or lifestyle of the hamster. If the bedding is the cause of the hamster’s skin reaction, change the hamster’s bedding to tissue / toilet paper and see whether it might help at all. If you see that there was no improvement, then monitor the hamster’s diet; see whether there were any changes in the hamster’s diet which could have caused the skin reaction to the hamster. Also, a skin reaction can be caused from high temperatures. The right room temperature for a hamster should be 65 ° F / 18° C and 80°F / 26°C.
Hamster's feet can become swollen if you are using a wire cage, with a base made of wire. A wire floor can be made easier on the hamster's feet by covering it completely with Magic Mat from Oasis - this product is found in pet shop. You can also use plastic needlepoint canvas - which is found in craft stores. These coverings can be cut to fit and attached to the floor or sides of the hamster's cage with twist ties. You can also pile on soft nesting material for added comfort.
A hamster with a skin reaction should be treated immediately so that the skin reaction would not grow. Monitoring any changes in the hamster’s lifestyle could determine the cause of the hamster’s skin reaction.
Hamster Ringworm
Hamster ringworm is a type of fungus that grows on the hamster's skin, hairs and nails. As the fungus grows, hairs are broken which then leads to bald areas of the skin – picture on the right shows a hamster with ringworm that affected his head area. Always wear gloves when handling a hamster with ringworm.
Medication with griseofulvin for at least 4 weeks may be combined with shampooing with povidoneiodine, or antifungals such as eniconazole or natamycin. Reasons for hamster ringworm could be plastic enclosed cages since the fungus prefers high humidity and plastic enclosed cages do not provide good ventilation. The hamster’s cage should be cleaned frequently. The cage should be disinfected with a good disinfectant and should have good ventilation.
Hamster's Cyst
A cyst is a fluid-filled cavity or sac. The hamster photo on the right shows a hamster with a cyst in buccal cavity (that is in the mouth area). The cysts can become quite large and it will result in the hamster having a big and swollen area, which by time the cyst will get bigger and the hamster will have problems in eating properly. A hamster's cyst can be treated by a vet which drains the hamster’s cyst with a needle; even though cysts may reappear later.
Having a good vet is very important for the health of your pet.
