Mystery Sickness

[XxFaerieCharmxX]

Hello all,

I am new in posting here, but I have been browsing hamster forums for years now to keep me updated on the latest care information. I have owned many hamsters over the years (all dwarf hamsters), and I always do my best to provide my hamsters with the best care. I have finally become desperate with my own situation though and decided to try this.

In May of 2017, I bought a Campbell's dwarf hamster from PetSmart. I named him Casper. Where I live, there are no options to adopt, and there were no listings at the time for hamsters being given away. Pet shops never seem to know the age of the hamster, but I estimate that Casper was probably no older than 3-6 months at the time. I didn't notice any issues at the time except his fur did seem thinner on his bottom half.

It wasn't until September and early October of that year that I started to notice his hair thinning all over and becoming bald in some areas. Casper lives in a IKEA detolf tank connected to two big storage bins (about 10 ft long in total by 1 1/2-2 ft). His cages do not have lids, so he has plenty of ventilation. I didn't think it was environmental stress so I took him to the vet and we started treatment for mites even though I never saw him scratch; I have owned a hamster in the past with mites, and they all scratched like crazy.

He didn't improve with mite treatment (yes, I cleaned his toys and cage as thoroughly as I could and cleaned frequently during this time). We then tried to see if he was allergic to something. This was a daunting task because Casper has such a diverse diet. I removed all Aspen bedding (left Carefresh paper bedding and shredded toilet paper/paper towel), and I removed some of the foods that the vet suspected Casper may more likely be be allergic to. This included some of the pellets high in carbs and pellets with dyes. I even tried removing his play sand to see if that was irritating his skin.

While trying to control for allergies, we also treated his skin for an infection. One part of that was giving him antibiotics (I was careful about amounts given). Additionally, the vet wanted to treat his skin directly. I did not give him a bath for this part of the treatment, but rather, I used a gentle cloth to dampen his fur/skin and to remove the shampoo afterward. I was always sure to warm him up and dry him good before putting him back in his home. I tried to limit this because I know this is stressful for hamsters.

He still did not improve after the skin treatments, antibiotics, and months of attempting to find what/if he is allergic to anything. He started to look really bad in December of 2017 and January of 2018.

My vet mentioned Cushings, but it seems unlikely because it is so rare in hamsters, let alone, I haven't read of too many cases in dwarf hamsters. The vet consulted with another specialist and they are suspecting internal issues-such as with his liver. My vet is waiting to get an ultrasound machine in so we can look to see if he perhaps has cysts. Today we started treating him for a fungal infection because his condition looks similar in some ways to ringworm that I have seen in hamsters.

It just breaks my heart because I have been hearing him squeak a lot more lately (I am getting his teeth trimmed to make sure that isn't causing his squeaks), and he looks increasingly worse. He still drinks and eats, but he has lost a lot of weight. He has a small growth on one of his legs which makes it hard for him to move around. He hasn't played on his wheel in months, but he was pretty lazy when I got him anyway. He is overall lethargic though.

I attached some pictures to the post. He has almost no hair. His skin is crusty and scaly. His skin is really red in many places (particularly his face). I never see him scratch himself though. Can anyone tell me if they have ever encountered something like this and what it was?

Thank you!

[racinghamster]

Hi there. I`ve seen these terrible skin complaints in older Roborovski hamsters too and I suspect it is caused by organ (kidney) failure or something else failing within the body which causes a reaction like this. Mites like sarcoptic or demodex can sometimes be the cause but it`s likely to be related to changes in the body. When you see these in dogs for example, the fur is gone and the skin becomes scaly and scabby. It can take months of medicated baths and injections to cure or reduce even in larger animals if found to be the cause.

Poor wee soul. You are a decent owner and I can see you have done a lot to try to remedy this. Most vets will treat for mites, give antibiotics or even injections of a steroid, but end of the day, I feel they are so small that invasive treatments can push them over the edge. Making his life comfortable and reducing his cage space would also help now. Especially if he`s not using his wheel anymore. x

[racinghamster]

Please see this link as it may explain some of the mystery.
Hamster Cushing’s Disease And Dermatitis

Hope this helps. x

[cypher]

So sorry to hear your little Casper has been having such a hard time of it.
Cushing's does seem to be more common in syrians than Russian hamsters but it's still certainly a possibility it can be difficult to treat but treatment is possible. Another member here had a hamster (syrian) with Cushing's who did well for some time with treatment, you might like to read about that here.
Cushings and Treatment
It is difficult to try to guess what the problem may be, going by what you've said it's quite possible it could be a major organ issue, but hard to say, I was wondering what you feed him as well as allergies nutritional deficiency is also worth thinking about especially if you've been removing things from his diet to rule out allergies.
He's been through a lot of treatment so I would suggest giving probiotics just to strengthen his immune system & help him cope.
It's by no means a cure for underlying problems but I have found giving a drop of evening primrose oil along with flax seeds can help with fur loss & skin conditions, some wheatgerm & nutritional yeast may also be of benefit.