Hamsters Cheekpouches

Hamsters usually do a good job taking care of their cheek pouches. They using their cheek pouches to store/carry food and bedding. On rare occasions they might have a problem. If they tried to stuff a large item or hazardous item into their pouch, they could become impacted. Sometime items like sticky foods such as cheese, or fluffy bedding like cotton material bedding, may become stuck to the pouch. In this case the hamster will look like it has a swollen face on one side.  If it has his pouch full for longer than a day and it is wet around the face, neck, and arm - it's likely it has an impacted cheek pouch.

Sharp items of food may also pierce thru the pouch and injuried it. If the hamster is unable to remove the stuck items from its cheek pouch or didn't manage to give treatment in time of the injury, this can lead to an infection or abscess.

If a hamster appears to be unable to empty its cheek pouche or any lumps remain continually in the pouch for days and if you not sure what to do, veterinary treatment should be sought. You will want to have this done soon.  If this goes for too long, it could become abscessed and the hamster could lose its pouch or even die.

Often syringing the cheek pouch with lukewarm water will remove the sticky item, or it may be necessary for the vet to physically turn the cheek pouch inside-out to remove the item. Antibiotic treatment may be needed if the cheek pouch is infected.

Sometimes if there is a problem with a hamster's cheek pouch, the hamster will turn the pouch out of his mouth.  This is usually due to soreness and infection.  Again a vet is the best solution.

Once treated well with a good vet, full recovery is usually within a few days.

*Pouches are also a common site for tumors.  The accessibility of this pouch is one of the reasons hamsters have been used in tumor research so often.  You should pay attention to your hamster's neck and pouch area for tumors or lumps and see a vet if you find one.

The following happen to one of my hamster, a pearl winter white, on Nov 2005
suspected is the sharp point of the shelled pumpkim seeds that pierce thru the internal of her cheekpouch and cause the infection.






the hammy push the whole cheek pouch out...
she's doing this is due to the cheek pouch got infection and she felt very uncomfortable and hence push it out...

bring her to the vet...
dr chua from jalan kayu, once see and straight away told me that's the cheek pouch problem...

see the black part, is the 'dead tissue' of the cheek pouch...
that part was being removed...

dr chua said that is due to the cheek pouch infection and might due to some sharp part of the food that poke the pouch and hence...

bring her back for review a week later...
vet said my hammy is doing fine already....  

this is how she's after a week...







healing very well but during this one week she cant have her favourite food especially those tiny seeds and nuts cos she may store these small items again and will affect the healing process hence only big pieces of food or pallet for her only.. =x