help - sore nose
Lois R. Gray
My 11 week old male hamster has developed a 'sore' on the left side of
his nose, just above his mouth. It isn't bleeding but is hard to examine
closely as Hamish never keeps still. It is small (about the half the
size of his eye) and bald, and doesn't seem to bother him at all. He has
had it for about 24 hours now. How long should I wait to see if it heals
naturally before I take him to the vet? What might have caused it? I
have stopped feeding him citrus fruit because I assume they might
aggravate it.
--Lois R. Gray
Helen
Bald spots on the nose are often caused when the hamster chews on
something and is rubbing his nose, eg on cage bars or a pastic wheel.
Bald spots can appear overnight when a determined hamster decides to
chew one spot continuously all night.
These areas go bald, but I have never seem them go red/sore. Do you know
the cause of the bald spot? If he is chewing on something and an
uneven/rough surface is rubbing him then you should change or remove
that object. If the object he is chewing is making his nose very sore
then he may stop, but may not as sometimes hamsters can be very stupid.
If it is just bald and not sore then you really do not have to worry as
this is fairly normal. Giving the hamster something else to chew or a
big wheel to run on might help.
I have seen in some petshops a cream or something to help cuts etc heal,
but I would prefer to let it heal normally or if it bleeds take him to a
vet.
I have read in one posting that hamsters should not be given citrus
fruit, but my hamster loves to scrape out the remains of an orange as an
ocassional treat. You are probably right to stop these if his nose is
sore.
Helen
Lorraine Hill
>My 11 week old male hamster has developed a 'sore' on the left side of
>his nose, just above his mouth. It isn't bleeding but is hard to examine
>closely as Hamish never keeps still. It is small (about the half the
>size of his eye) and bald, and doesn't seem to bother him at all. He has
>had it for about 24 hours now. How long should I wait to see if it heals
>naturally before I take him to the vet? What might have caused it? I
>have stopped feeding him citrus fruit because I assume they might
>aggravate it.
>--Lois R. Gray
It sounds like your hamster may have rubbed its nose while it has been
gnawing on the bars of the cage. If you can it would be a good idea
to move the hamster to an aquarium for a few days to allow it to heal.
Lorraine Hill
The Complete Hamster Site
http://www.hamsters.co.uk
Christine Simoes Tilden
One of mine does this all the time. I tried tying a wooden chew thing
where he likes to gnaw the cage (he actually climbs on top of his
wheel - which he otherwise never uses anymore - to get to it), but now
he just bends his head even more to chew the bars AROUND the wood.
<sigh>
Christine Simoes Tilden
