Sticky Eye

mikew · 02-24-2017, 10:56 AM

My Syrian ham seems to have developed a sticky eye. He's about 22 months old and so I guess he is in his twilight years. The eye seems to open when he has a wash of a night but then when he pops out for his food the following evening it's closed again until he washes later on and so the process loops.

I came across it 1st last Dec & so took him to the vet but when we got there it was open. The vet looked at the eye and used something to look for ulcers and said he was fine. The problem went away until recently.

Not really sure how to approach things. I tried to bathe the eye with some warm water and cotton wool a few days ago but I didn't have a clue how to keep him still. All I managed was to drop a drop of the water on the eye and it opened but I think the experience stressed us both out. I really can't think of a way to do this properly?
Would taking him back to the vet be the thing to do? or would I just stress him out again?

He's still eating/drinking (maybe drinking more than he did when he was younger) and pops out for a wander in his Wodent wheel of a night.

Would appreciate any advice.

cypher · 02-24-2017, 11:59 AM

As long as the eye is opening after he's been grooming I would leave it be, keep a check on it for any signs of irritation, infection or inflammation around the eye but as long as it's not bothering him & does open I wouldn't worry too much. It is quite a common problem & usually just clears up on it's own if it's not an infection or anything more serious.
If it doesn't open & you need to clean it you could try wrapping him in a towel to hold him still.

JLPrairie · 02-24-2017, 02:53 PM

Sticky eye isn't really a serious issue, usually it leaves the hamster after grooming or bathing (in a sand bath, of course

). It doesn't affect the hamster in any way since they already have some pretty poor vision.

mikew · 02-24-2017, 03:17 PM

It's the oddest thing. He's up now after a quick grooming both eyes wide open & ears pricked up collecting food & jogging in his Wodent

I'm guessing leave him be rather than take him to the vet & stress him?

Drago · 02-24-2017, 03:26 PM

I'd say leave him, but if he exhibits any other symptoms that are worrying, then a vet visit might be in order. I notice some of my hamsters had eyes stuck shut after first waking up, especially if that eye was the side lying against the bedding. Best wishes

mikew · 03-25-2017, 02:44 PM

Puzzled with this.
Eye wasn't Opening after grooming so took to vet.
Vet cleaned eye open, did flurosine Test & said eye normal but infected so she prescribed Isathal eye ointment initially for 7-10 days then said carry on for another week or as much as needed. The Isathal let's him open his eye of a night when he comes out for a job in his Wodent wheel.
Appetite good. Drinking raised but I circumvented that somewhat by increasing the salad I give to him with his Hamster nice.
Vet said his tummy didn't feel right

Seems quite happy but confused how the Isathal Hasn't killed any eye infection by now. Is it Maybe just lubricating his eye as Hypromellose would?
Maybe he has something bad going on in his tummy but I wouldn't be comfortable having him PTS right now as although He's old he still enjoys life.

Drago · 03-25-2017, 03:55 PM

Did the vet say what exactly didn't feel right about his stomach? That's sort of vague, and leaves room for you to worry about many things! It's only really been a day since he started the medications and it might take some time for things to clear up. My puppy recently had an eye issue and it took a week before we saw a difference so I think it's just a waiting game. I wouldn't worry about the idea of euthanasia just yet, as long as he's not doing too poorly, there's still a good chance he'll pull through. Hope he feels better soon!

mikew · 03-26-2017, 12:43 AM

Hi Drago,

He's been on the Isathal for 2 weeks now (short break between 1st and 2nd week)

The vet was vague about his tummy saying it didn't feel right so I asked her to elaborate and she hinted at cancer and said something along the lines of 'well we could open him up and take a look but there wouldn't be much point as we couldn't do anything anyway' which did leave me worried and rather disappointed at her diagnostic skills. She suggested this and the eye problem were linked in some way.

With the extra drinking I wonder if he has Kidney failure with the extra thirst and the swelling maybe being fluid.. I dunno though. I'm no vet.

cypher · 03-26-2017, 12:57 AM

It sounds as though your vet doesn't have the best diagnostic skills, it can be hard to tell what's going on sometimes but she should have a better idea than that, at least which organs are involved or if it's a mass where there shouldn't be one so if you can I would maybe look for another vet. As he sounds quite well in himself other than the eye & drinking more it might be well worth it.

It's not uncommon for them to have kidney problems as they age, it's best to keep protein levels a little lower than you would for a young ham as that will take some of the strain off the kidneys & they don't need as much as young hams anyway.

Not really sure what the link between the eye & "something not feeling right" could be.

AmityvilleHams · 03-26-2017, 08:32 AM

Honestly I'd be finding another vet right away with someone as unprofessional and clearly uncaring as that

I wouldn't assume it's anything specific just yet,as you can't know without getting actual tests done.There are many more potential causes than just kidney failure,possibly even linked to the "something not feeling right".

However,a good vet would be able to actually diagnose and potentially treat whatever is going on including testing for kidney failure(you'd have to make sure they do,and it may be expensive,but it is entirely worth it rather than just playing guessing games).