Help this hamster!
January 2, 2011 3:37 PM Subscribe
What could have caused this hamster injury? How serious is it? What should I do? And how should I tell the hamster's owners?
Yes, you are not my vet.
So this happened 4-5 days ago. One morning, dude suddenly seemed to have gained a big, bald pink spot below his ear. I wasn't the first one to see him - I saw him about 6 hours after my mom did. She said she saw some dried blood, I never did.
I didn't notice it at first, so it may/may not have been there initially, but there's a big...something on the side of his head. It's not immediately obvious in the pictures, but it is obvious in person. It's some sort of round protrusion, covered in hair, directly below the pink spot. Like an extra-chubby cheek.
He seems slightly less vivacious now (as in, I hear him running on his wheel at night but not in the morning anymore - he's still perky, but perhaps not insanely so), but nothing that would be obvious to someone who doesn't see him a lot. This also concerns me.
I have no clue how this could have happened. We have cats, but for various reasons I'm absolutely sure they could not have gotten into the tank. He has a wooden 'hamster house', a wheel, water thing, food dish, and a plastic toy thing in his tank, all things that have been there for a long time and none that would stand out as a reason for injury (the only thing is that if his bedding stuff were piled high enough in the right place, he *might* have needed to squeeze to get into the door of the wooden house where he spend most of his time. Does that sound likely?). Anything else I may not have thought of? The tank is a standard glass deal, like an aquarium you would put fish in or something.
I've been sitting this hamster for two weeks - I mentioned the issue to the owner when I saw it, but I think I may have downplayed it a little too much. They come back today and will probably pick him up tomorrow. How should I approach this?
Pictures (these are the best I got, not sure how well they show the issues - damn, it's hard to take pictures of them! Also, despite appearances, I promise I am not squeezing him or holding him unsafely.) one two three
Yes, you are not my vet.
So this happened 4-5 days ago. One morning, dude suddenly seemed to have gained a big, bald pink spot below his ear. I wasn't the first one to see him - I saw him about 6 hours after my mom did. She said she saw some dried blood, I never did.
I didn't notice it at first, so it may/may not have been there initially, but there's a big...something on the side of his head. It's not immediately obvious in the pictures, but it is obvious in person. It's some sort of round protrusion, covered in hair, directly below the pink spot. Like an extra-chubby cheek.
He seems slightly less vivacious now (as in, I hear him running on his wheel at night but not in the morning anymore - he's still perky, but perhaps not insanely so), but nothing that would be obvious to someone who doesn't see him a lot. This also concerns me.
I have no clue how this could have happened. We have cats, but for various reasons I'm absolutely sure they could not have gotten into the tank. He has a wooden 'hamster house', a wheel, water thing, food dish, and a plastic toy thing in his tank, all things that have been there for a long time and none that would stand out as a reason for injury (the only thing is that if his bedding stuff were piled high enough in the right place, he *might* have needed to squeeze to get into the door of the wooden house where he spend most of his time. Does that sound likely?). Anything else I may not have thought of? The tank is a standard glass deal, like an aquarium you would put fish in or something.
I've been sitting this hamster for two weeks - I mentioned the issue to the owner when I saw it, but I think I may have downplayed it a little too much. They come back today and will probably pick him up tomorrow. How should I approach this?
Pictures (these are the best I got, not sure how well they show the issues - damn, it's hard to take pictures of them! Also, despite appearances, I promise I am not squeezing him or holding him unsafely.) one two three
Response by poster: It's just weird because this happened literally overnight. I have interacted with the hamster quite a bit, I feel like I would have noticed something - is it possible that this could have happened very suddenly? It's always possible that I just didn't notice, though.
posted by R a c h e l at 4:01 PM on January 2, 2011
posted by R a c h e l at 4:01 PM on January 2, 2011
You sound really responsible and I am sure that the owners will be grateful that you've kept track of the development of the bump as closely as you have. Maybe write it all down as you have here so that they can take the notes with them to the vet?
posted by vincele at 4:03 PM on January 2, 2011
posted by vincele at 4:03 PM on January 2, 2011
It could be an abscess. They can look like tumors at first and can pop up quite quickly. You might want to have a vet take a look at him. Abscesses are treatable, but can cause problems if you ignore them.
posted by troublewithwolves at 4:07 PM on January 2, 2011
posted by troublewithwolves at 4:07 PM on January 2, 2011
It could be that a very small wound got infected and turned into some sort of abscess that's swelled up. If that's the case the hammy is going to need to go to the vet. It really doesn't seem like anything you could have prevented, so don't beat yourself up over it. Just make sure you suggest a vet visit for the little guy!
posted by d13t_p3ps1 at 4:07 PM on January 2, 2011
posted by d13t_p3ps1 at 4:07 PM on January 2, 2011
I had a cat who pulled my hamster halfway through the metal bars of his supposedly catproof cage. Could any part of the hamster have been accessible to a cat's claw?
posted by eleslie at 5:03 PM on January 2, 2011
posted by eleslie at 5:03 PM on January 2, 2011
Response by poster: It's a glass-sided cage with a mesh top (there was stuff on top of the cage that was undisturbed, and there's no way the cat could have gotten in without ripping something or similar). I've allowed the cats to have supervised time around the cage, mostly to see if they could get in, and the worst they could do was stand on the top and perhaps break the mesh (which clearly didn't happen here). Also, the hamster doesn't care and is not at all shaken if the cats are stalking him from outside the tank, both pre- and post-injury. I'm quite sure that the cats had nothing to do with this.
I've sent a message to the owner with all the details above - am I pushing it time-wise if they don't pick him up for another day or two and he doesn't see a vet for a few days after that? I know I could bring him in, but I don't really have the time (also, the owning family is significantly more wealthy than me. So I'd prefer not to be the one who ends up paying.) With something like an abscess, how long do I have?
posted by R a c h e l at 7:19 PM on January 2, 2011
I've sent a message to the owner with all the details above - am I pushing it time-wise if they don't pick him up for another day or two and he doesn't see a vet for a few days after that? I know I could bring him in, but I don't really have the time (also, the owning family is significantly more wealthy than me. So I'd prefer not to be the one who ends up paying.) With something like an abscess, how long do I have?
posted by R a c h e l at 7:19 PM on January 2, 2011
How old is the little feller? Hamsters don't live very long.
If he's acting normal... sometimes lab rodents (mice, rats.. I'm unfamiliar with hamsters aside from a childhood pet) gets "obsessive compulsive" and loses patches of hair from over-grooming. It's not a problem unless it's paired with health declines (weight loss, pelt quality decline (scruffy, coarseness), eye booger problems, red eyes, snotty nose, hunched appearance, stopped eating, less activity) or behavioural problems (biting, hiding). Sometimes its a sign of stress, but sometimes it just happens.
You can gently palpate (feel) the area; if it's normal (no bumps or hard/squishy parts, not flakey and dry) compared to the other side... <shrug>
posted by porpoise at 7:30 PM on January 2, 2011
If he's acting normal... sometimes lab rodents (mice, rats.. I'm unfamiliar with hamsters aside from a childhood pet) gets "obsessive compulsive" and loses patches of hair from over-grooming. It's not a problem unless it's paired with health declines (weight loss, pelt quality decline (scruffy, coarseness), eye booger problems, red eyes, snotty nose, hunched appearance, stopped eating, less activity) or behavioural problems (biting, hiding). Sometimes its a sign of stress, but sometimes it just happens.
You can gently palpate (feel) the area; if it's normal (no bumps or hard/squishy parts, not flakey and dry) compared to the other side... <shrug>
posted by porpoise at 7:30 PM on January 2, 2011
I used to raise hamsters (although they were Russian Dwarves, not Syrians, so YMMV), and this doesn't really look like an accidental injury to me, it looks more like the hamster has an illness of some kind. There's quite a few things it could be, and a vet should probably check him out.
My first thought was an abscess, but the pictures make the spot appear quite pink, and abscesses are usually quite red. It could be a tumor, although in my experience, those have looked a little more gray, and the lump has been able to move underneath the skin. Ringworm in hamsters presents itself as a pinkish bald spot, but I don't know whether or not that would cause a lump.
I always found the LJ hamsters community to be very helpful, and Hamsterific has a very useful illness guide, but I would strongly recommend that you find a vet who treats hamsters.
On preview, if the hamster is eating and drinking normally, you're probably fine for the next couple of days, but it would be better if he sees a vet within a day or so of the owner arriving home.
posted by Joey Joe Joe Junior Shabadoo at 7:40 PM on January 2, 2011
My first thought was an abscess, but the pictures make the spot appear quite pink, and abscesses are usually quite red. It could be a tumor, although in my experience, those have looked a little more gray, and the lump has been able to move underneath the skin. Ringworm in hamsters presents itself as a pinkish bald spot, but I don't know whether or not that would cause a lump.
I always found the LJ hamsters community to be very helpful, and Hamsterific has a very useful illness guide, but I would strongly recommend that you find a vet who treats hamsters.
On preview, if the hamster is eating and drinking normally, you're probably fine for the next couple of days, but it would be better if he sees a vet within a day or so of the owner arriving home.
posted by Joey Joe Joe Junior Shabadoo at 7:40 PM on January 2, 2011
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I would just approach it the same way you told us about it, explaining when you saw it and changes in behavior, that way they can offer that to the vet should they go.
posted by artifarce at 3:46 PM on January 2, 2011