Tails - Missing fur and yellow bum

LokiWolf · 09-19-2012, 08:08 PM

So, I just noticed Charlotte's tail had no fur on it. I picked her up to see if she had any injuries in case it was a fight, but she was fine expect for the fact that her tail had no fur on it anymore. The tail looks fine, just no fur.

Then I picked up Scarlett to see if she was having any problems, her whole tail and butt was yellow. Not a light light yellow, but a deeper yellow.

Could Charlotte or Scarlett have plucked Charlotte's tail fur off or is this something serious? And is Scarlett just peeing on herself and not cleaning her butt?

They're running on their wheels now like nothing is the matter. But Charlotte's tail really concerns me as I can see it clearly against her white coat.

I'm just a overly concerned and easily worried hamster parent. I'll take them to the vet if you think it is serious. But I'm hopping it is not.

HollyHamster · 09-20-2012, 12:16 AM

Well, I know that hamsters naturally have only a little peach fuzz on their stubby little tails. Its just the way they look. Are you saying her butt is hairless around the base of the tail? Or is it just her actual tail? If its just her actual tail, then yeah. Its just the way it looks.

The yellow staining on Scarlett's butt may be a sign of something serious, like pyometra (uterine infection) or diabetes. However, I am not very experienced in hamster health and disease so I can't really say. Hopefully someone who is more experienced in this area can come along and offer their help and or advice on the matter.

Sorry your babies are worrying you so much. I know I am a natural worrier myself, so any little thing makes me overreact and automatically think for the worst. It runs in my mother's side of the family.

**kyrilliondaemon** · 09-20-2012, 05:17 AM

Er... How much yellow?
We've seen small amounts of yellow on some of ours and its never been a concern, so it might be ok... Definetly watch closely for a few days though and if it doesn't get better then a vet visit never hurts (or never hurts anything except the bank balance anyway lol)

LokiWolf · 09-20-2012, 07:59 AM

Isn't diabetes in Roborovskis extremely rare?

It's a lot of deep yellow. I've seen the light yellow of pee stains on their butts before, but this is just darker and a lot more of it. I could try to take some pictures if that'd help, but Scarlett is a squirmer when it comes to holding.

And for Charlotte it's just the whole tail is bald. I can take a picture of it too, this will be easier as Charlotte usually just stops moving when handled. I don't think the tail was like that before I noticed it last night, so it's pretty sudden tail baldness. This leads me to believe one of them might have plucked it, either Charlotte in grooming or Scarlett plucking it in one of their rare tussles. They have these tussles sometimes, like if Scarlett picked up a treat that Charlotte really wants but Scarlett is reluctant to give up or the smaller Charlotte is doing a dominance check to make sure she is still on top (which she is) or if one is using a wheel they want and they don't want to go to the other wheel/share. Stuff like that, nothing big; the tussles only last a couple of seconds.

I can't take pictures right now. They are deep asleep and I don't want to disturb them right now.

LokiWolf · 09-20-2012, 04:27 PM

Okay, I think Scarlett was just a little dehydrated which made her pee more concentrated. As I was cleaning their cage today, I noticed the water bottle had a clog. So I fixed it and it works now. If the deep yellow on her tail and butt doesn't clear up in a few days, I'll take her to the vet.

Charlotte is still without fur on her tail. It looks really weird seeing it furless, but it doesn't seem to bother her. How long does it take for them to grow fur back?