How to Treat Your Sick Hamster

Hamsters make wonderful pets if treated right and trained from youth. Because they are so small and fragile, however, a simple illness such as a cold can cause severe damage or even death if not treated quickly and correctly. If your hamster is sick, there are some things you can do to fix the problem.

• Look for signs of illness, such as sleeping in excess, loss of appetite, changes in attitude (a shy hamster that becomes aggressive or a playful one that becomes reclusive), or difficulty moving. Changes in look can also indicate an illness. Bald spots, a runny nose or signs that the hamster has lost interest in grooming and keeping clean can all indicate a serious illness.
  
• Move the cage away from drafts, to a warm area. Cold temperatures can cause or worsen colds, one of the most common illnesses to affect hamsters. If you live in a cold climate, put the cage near, but not directly over, a radiator or heating lamp.
  
• Cut down on the amount of soft food, including fruits and vegetables, if your hamster suffers from diarrhea or soft stools. You may even withhold soft goods completely for at least a week and instead give the hamster only dry pellets. Wet tail, a form of severe diarrhea, needs to be treated immediately, as it is deadly if no antibiotics are administered.
  
• Take the hamster to the vet if the symptoms don’t improve after a couple of days, if new symptoms appear, or if you suspect wet tail. This is especially important in very young or old hamsters, since they may not have the resilience to get better by themselves.

Wet Tail

• Call your veterinarian immediately at the first signs of infection. If left untreated, wet tail can kill your hamster.
  
• Separate your hamster from any other uninfected cage mates. Wet tail is contagious and can be quite serious. Prevent your other pets from contracting it by isolating the sick hamster.
  
• Disinfect the cage with a disinfecting spray or cleaning wipe. Since you have isolated the sick hamster, you will want to help protect the others by thoroughly cleaning all equipment to get rid of any bacteria on them.
  
• Keep your hamster hydrated. Dehydration from the diarrhea your pet experiences could quickly kill it. Make sure there is plenty of clean, fresh water available at all times. Also, keep plenty of fresh foods as well, since animals are able to get water from the foods. If your hamster refuses to eat and drink, use an oral baby syringe and fill it with Pedialyte. Place one to two drops in his mouth at a time. Repeat this frequently.

Cold and Flu

• Contact your veterinarian if your pet is breathing heavy, sneezing or has a runny nose. Cold and flu bugs can be transferred from people to hamsters and if left untreated can turn into pneumonia.
  
• Keep your hamster warm. Make sure the cage is out of drafts and kept at least at room temperature.
  
• Apply Vicks Vapor Rub to an out-of-the-way place that your hamster cannot reach. If the top of the water bottle is out of reach, that is a good place. It needs to be close enough for your hamster to inhale it but not eat it. This will help with the congestion.
  
• Mix a teaspoon of honey with half-cup lukewarm water and a half-cup milk. Add this to a food dish or your hamster's water bottle and allow him to drink it.

Hair Loss

• Increase the fruits and vegetables in your hamster's diet. Another option is to mix equal parts of dry hamster food and either boiled rice or puffed rice cereal. Either way, you are helping increase the protein in your pet's diet to help combat the hair loss.
  
• Give your hamster one drop of cod-liver oil every day. Alternately, crush one garlic-free yeast tablet and sprinkle it on top of the dry hamster feed for four days. After that, sprinkle it only once a week.
  
• Remove irritants from the cage. If the water bottle is leaking, replace it. If you have abrasive bedding, change to a softer form. Any of these stimulants can cause your hamster to itch. When he scratches, he could scratch himself bald.

Diarrhea

• Separate the sick hamster from any other hamster. Some species, like the Roborovski dwarf hamster, like to live in pairs or small colonies, but the sick hamster may be harassed by the healthy hamsters. Be sure to include a full drip water bottle because more water consumption may help to move the feces along. Place the hospital cage in a quiet, warm place away from drafts. A clean cage also makes it easier to check for feces.
  
• Take a pipette or eyedropper and place in bottle of vegetable or olive oil. Squeeze the top so that the eyedropper fills.
  
• Don work gloves if the hamster is biting. Wait until the hamster is awake before giving the oil. This will cut down on the chances of the hamster biting. Gently restrain the hamster and present the end of the eyedropper. If the hamster starts to nibble or lick, gently squeeze to give the hamster a drop. If the hamster is uncooperative, then pick up the hamster and insert the eyedropper end into the hamster's mouth and squeeze out one drop.
  
• Wait 24 hours. If the hamster has not defecated, take it to the veterinarian.
  
• An X-ray of the hamster will help reveal what is blocking the intestines and determine the best course of treatment. VetBase.co.uk notes that overweight hamsters or hamsters fed only dry foods may only need an enema to expel the impacted feces. But emergency surgery may be necessary for other types of digestive tract blockages such as tapeworms or plastic.

Tips & Warnings

• Always wash your hands after dealing with a sick hamster or you risk transmitting the disease back to him the next time you touch him.
  
• Hamsters shouldn’t be given baths or made wet. This can cause colds or more serious health problems.
  
• Keep the cage clean at all times to prevent a multitude of illnesses, including wet tail.
  
• Contact your vet at the first sign of any concerns with your hamster. He will be able to tell you if it is something to be concerned with or not.
  
• Constipation can be prevented by adding fresh fruits and vegetables as treats to the hamster's diet.
  
• Hamsterific notes that bags of fluffy cotton sold as "nesting material" can cause intestinal blockage in dwarf hamster species.
  
• If the hamster is pregnant, the constipation may be due to a potentially lethal complication called dystocia (difficult labor). The hamster will need to go to the vet immediately.
  
• Do not give large amounts of a new food that a hamster has never eaten before. New foods often cause diarrhea in hamsters, but sometimes they cause constipation.

Read more: How to Treat Your Sick Hamster | eHow.com
Read more: How to Treat a Hamster's Medical Conditions | eHow.com
Read more: How to Treat Hamsters With Constipation | eHow.com