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Old 05-03-2013, 04:19 AM   #1
moonlite
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Default my robo has bald spot from scratching...

could it be mites? i see him scratching and the spot is like the size of a dime, pea..he is eating normal , what can i do, there are no vets catering to hamsters in my area of town, my other robo living next to him is find tho so i dont know if its mites..what can i do for him? thanks in advance...
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Old 05-03-2013, 10:41 PM   #2
twnk77
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

I looked this up for you, and one of the results came from this site.
Hamster is losing his hair/raw skin? - Yahoo! Answers

I'll copy and paste what the person said, but you could always go to the website yourself if you would like.
"It could be fleas or ticks, maybe mites. How often do you change the litter and scrub the cage? It should be done at least once per week per occupant. Either not cleaning enough or not drying it well enough before putting litter in it can cause fungi to develop. Fungal infections can cause severe skin irritation and left untreated can kill. ALSO, unless your ham is what's called a "Chinese Dwarf", that is to say, if it is a Roborovski, Campbell's, or Winter White, your hamster is probably lonely. These dwarf types thrive best in bonded pairs. Mated pairs bond more closely, but same-sex pairs are good as well, and you won't have the problem of multiple litters.
The reason I mention the pair-bonding is because many hams who live alone will become severely depressed, to the point that their immune system becomes depleted. I don't recommend putting a healthy hamster in with this one, but for future reference. Syrian/Golden/Teddy Bear hamsters and Chinese hamsters are solitary, if you wanted just one.
Bathing hamsters or letting them swim is a bad idea, so if you do that, stop. This might be what is causing the skin irritation or infection. Try a dust bath by putting clean, fine sand (like you get for filters) into a small box or pan, put a few cheerios just under the surface so he has something to dig for, and put him in. He will probably roll around and get the sand all stuck into his fur. This is a good thing. Any moisture, excess oils, and dander will stick to the sand grains, and he will groom them out himself. If this is an infection or mites, it may help.
Make sure he is always in a dry, clean cage. Clean it every day or every other day for awhile. Change the water daily because it can grow organisms as well. Replace any uneaten food in his dish every other day. Remove any uneaten fresh fruits or veggies after 2 hours. Keep the cage in a quiet place, away from drafty areas, doors, and windows.
Call a vet who treats pocket pets. Many will answer questions over the phone. You may have to take him in to be seen.
Source(s):
Long time hamster owner
Veterinary student"
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Old 05-04-2013, 06:01 AM   #3
moonlite
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

thank you for the link, much appreciated!!!
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Old 05-04-2013, 08:17 AM   #4
csockman
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

I constructively disagree with some of the comments listed from the yahoo resource.

1) Scrubbing the cage weekly can be very stressful for a hamster. You are essentially destroying his/her home when you do so. Spot cleaning is recommended, but a full clean cycle every 7 days seems aggressive.

2) I had several robos live solitary lives and they thrived. I have also had litter mates live together and fight (after which they were separated), and litter mates that lived together happily until death.

If you provide me the city in which you live, I can help you locate a vet.
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Old 05-04-2013, 08:20 AM   #5
Ilovehamsters
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

I have had the same thing with my robo, it has now healed on one side and a bit on the other.
I changed his bedding and it started to improve
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Old 05-05-2013, 03:32 AM   #6
racinghamster
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

I find that roborovskis can have skin issues especially as they age. It can be down to mites, but quite frankly, unless a source of mites had been introduced to the environment via hay or a similar product, it`s more than likely to be age related, illness or a lowered immune system due to something internal changing within the body. Hormonal changes could also be a likely cause. Sometimes it can be an allergy to a new food, but unless something has drastically changed, I would rule that out.

If your hamster is happy in himself I would continue to monitor the situation. If he scabs or cuts the area of skin, just mix up some saline (one teaspoon of salt to one pint of boiled, cooled water) and clean the area gently with a cotton pad. Manuka honey is a very good cleanser/healer, but would need to be thinned down in boiled water and only applied very thinly as a theraputic remedy that is safe if ingested. I wouldn`t recommend applying pet creams or powders as these tend to just irritate the area.

Depending on where you are, the best spot-on treatment for suspected mites is Xen050 mini, available through Amazon online, but can be pricey if you only have two robos. But probably a lot cheaper than a vet who will use the same Ivermectin product to treat mites with.

Patchy hair loss and flaking can also be due to too much exposure to a sand bath which can dry the skin too much, so if your boys have a sand bath 24/7, try removing it for a week or two and see if this helps.

I have an elderly male roborovski ( 20 months old) who has reddened, patchy fur, but he`s had this ongoing for a while now and it stabalises itself without intervention. I removed his sand bath a month ago as his tummy became very red with the loss of hair under his tummy altogether. I suspected the sand was the culprit and it does seem to have made a difference.

Hope this helps.
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Old 05-05-2013, 03:42 AM   #7
linford27
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

Quote:
Originally Posted by twnk77 View Post
I looked this up for you, and one of the results came from this site.
Hamster is losing his hair/raw skin? - Yahoo! Answers

I'll copy and paste what the person said, but you could always go to the website yourself if you would like.
"It could be fleas or ticks, maybe mites. How often do you change the litter and scrub the cage? It should be done at least once per week per occupant. Either not cleaning enough or not drying it well enough before putting litter in it can cause fungi to develop. Fungal infections can cause severe skin irritation and left untreated can kill. ALSO, unless your ham is what's called a "Chinese Dwarf", that is to say, if it is a Roborovski, Campbell's, or Winter White, your hamster is probably lonely. These dwarf types thrive best in bonded pairs. Mated pairs bond more closely, but same-sex pairs are good as well, and you won't have the problem of multiple litters.
The reason I mention the pair-bonding is because many hams who live alone will become severely depressed, to the point that their immune system becomes depleted. I don't recommend putting a healthy hamster in with this one, but for future reference. Syrian/Golden/Teddy Bear hamsters and Chinese hamsters are solitary, if you wanted just one.
Bathing hamsters or letting them swim is a bad idea, so if you do that, stop. This might be what is causing the skin irritation or infection. Try a dust bath by putting clean, fine sand (like you get for filters) into a small box or pan, put a few cheerios just under the surface so he has something to dig for, and put him in. He will probably roll around and get the sand all stuck into his fur. This is a good thing. Any moisture, excess oils, and dander will stick to the sand grains, and he will groom them out himself. If this is an infection or mites, it may help.
Make sure he is always in a dry, clean cage. Clean it every day or every other day for awhile. Change the water daily because it can grow organisms as well. Replace any uneaten food in his dish every other day. Remove any uneaten fresh fruits or veggies after 2 hours. Keep the cage in a quiet place, away from drafty areas, doors, and windows.
Call a vet who treats pocket pets. Many will answer questions over the phone. You may have to take him in to be seen.
Source(s):
Long time hamster owner
Veterinary student"
This information is unfortunately not correct.
1. Having cages cleaned even weekly is extremely stressful for a hamster, and cages don't really need to be cleaned much at all. A full clean out once a month will do, as long as the cage is spot cleaned. it should NEVER be cleaned once a day or every other day, this will just make the hamster much more stressed and sick.
2. Hams live happily alone. Robos, Campbells, all hams can live alone happily. Sometimes they can live in pairs, but they live alone and this is sometimes better for the hamster. They will not become depressed, their immune systems will not be affected.

Really it could not have been worse advice. Please don't do these things! It will make things much worse for your hamster. I don't know how they got to be a vet student with advice that will just worsen the hams condition!!

Anyway, your ham could have mites, irritation, things like that. You should get him seen by a vet. Are there any vets near you that see hamsters?
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Old 05-05-2013, 04:50 AM   #8
moonlite
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

thank you for all the input, i am in shanghai china now, and the language barrier makes it harder for me to get anything and i am pretty sure they do not have any vets catering to small animals besides dogs and cats and i avoid the pet shops here when i can because i get really pissed off when i see the way animals are being marketed here. i have been doing spot cleaning every day and offering meal worms to him as consolation . hope he improves a little and i might try the above suggestions if it doesnt improve soon. thanks again...going by the seller i think he is like two months old...
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Old 05-05-2013, 07:08 AM   #9
csockman
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

moonlite, I suggest you create an account on this forum and ask if anyone can recommend an exotics vet in Shanghai:

Pets

Short of that, you can research this clinic/DVM to see if they fit the bill

???????????? - Julia Langfitt, DVM

It is always good to have an exotics vet in your pocket when the circumstances dictate that you need one.
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Old 05-05-2013, 07:27 AM   #10
moonlite
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Default Re: my robo has bald spot from scratching...

thank you csockman, i will call them tomorrow, really aprreciate your time on this...
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