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Hamster wounds and bowel problems
If your hamster is caged by himself, there will rarely be any cuts, wounds or bites to worry about. Hamsters in community cages do fight, sometimes to the death, and that is why keeping them together, even by sexes, after they have matured is not recommended. As to wounds, there is no need to be concerned if the hamster can reach them with tongue; his constant licking will prevent their becoming infected. Otherwise, treat them with a mild antiseptic like tincture or merthiolate applied with a cotton swab. Do not bandage the wound. If it is bleeding freely hold a bit of gauze firmly against it until the blood clots. A wounded hamster should never be kept in a cage with others. They are likely to attack him
The hamster’s droppings are a good clue to the state of his health. If they are rod-shaped of normal consistency all is well. Loose, watery droppings indicate too many fresh fruits and vegetables. Hard dry droppings indicate not enough. Constipation is more common among young hamsters; make sure that they get plenty of fresh water.
Be extremely careful of falls. A fall from the door of the cage or off a table, or even out of loving hands, an often prove fatal.
On each hip, hamsters have a tiny gland which secretes minute quantities of fluid something like musk. They spend much time preening the fur around this gland just as birds preen their feathers. It does not mean that anything is wrong.
Source: Basic Book of Hamsters
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009 at 1:19 pmand is filed under Hamster illness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.