Hamster Central - View Single Post - Syrian has mites. Went to two vets that were bad

Shannonmcn · 06-21-2019, 01:28 AM

I am currently having a bit of a problem with bugs in food, so maybe stick the food in the freezer just in case it's not the bedding. Freeze the bedding too in case you're not doing that already.

Hamster mites are actually always present on hamsters, their immune systems tend to deal with them no problem when they're healthy and it only becomes a problem when they're otherwise poorly (could be where your second vet is going with the vit c drops). Then you'll tend to see dry flaky skin around their ears or nose, maybe hair loss from scratching etc. If your hamster doesn't have the physical symptoms of mites that might not be what it is. Humans also can't see hamster mites, that's why you need a skin scrape for diagnosis. Could just be bugs. Or fleas? Can you get a close look at one and check it's not a regular cat/ dog flea?

06-21-2019, 01:28 AM
Shannonmcn PM Fluffy for custom title Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland Posts: 3,192	Re: Syrian has mites. Went to two vets that were bad I am currently having a bit of a problem with bugs in food, so maybe stick the food in the freezer just in case it's not the bedding. Freeze the bedding too in case you're not doing that already. Hamster mites are actually always present on hamsters, their immune systems tend to deal with them no problem when they're healthy and it only becomes a problem when they're otherwise poorly (could be where your second vet is going with the vit c drops). Then you'll tend to see dry flaky skin around their ears or nose, maybe hair loss from scratching etc. If your hamster doesn't have the physical symptoms of mites that might not be what it is. Humans also can't see hamster mites, that's why you need a skin scrape for diagnosis. Could just be bugs. Or fleas? Can you get a close look at one and check it's not a regular cat/ dog flea?