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Old 02-16-2020, 05:09 PM   #21
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

Quote:
Originally Posted by minnieandhammy View Post
Hi. Sorry about little Bijou. My female Syrian developed cushings at about 1year. From your photos she looks the same as Hammy so I would say she does have cushings. The hair loss and underlying skin look the same and the scabs look the same. Hammy had scabs at the top of her legs. She spent most of her time in her nest. As far as I know there isn't any treatment.perhaps someone else can suggest something to soothe her skin. With Hammy I just gave her a nice roomy nest box with lots of bedding. I put her food and water near her nest box and treated her to her favourite foods. I just gave her lots of TLC basically and after about 4 months I just looked at her and she seemed so miserable and it was starting to effect her face so I took her to the vet and she got put to sleep. I felt she could not go on suffering. I wish there was more could be done. At least something to make them more comfortable.
Thanks so much for your reply, I’m so sorry to hear about your sweet little Hammy.
It sounds like you gave her lots of love and care as she neared the end of her little life.❤️ I really hope Cushings isn’t the case for Bijou, but originally I was almost certain it was. It definitely appears to visibly be Cushings, but I’m stumped since Bijou has been scratching recently (not a sign of Cushings). Originally she wasn’t scratching whatsoever, so it’s quite odd. :/ May I ask if Hammy scratched at all during her illness? Bijou definitely seems to be slower and more reserved, not that she was ever a very hyper hamster to begin with. She doesn’t look good but I don’t think she’s suffering, just scratching and slower/quieter. Bijou spends a lot of time in her nest too, but she’s been using her wheel a bit more since being separated from her sister, which makes me believe she’s not in pain as of now. I’m hoping the vet visit will make things a bit more clear and hopefully rule out a few possibilities. I bought Thyme tea a few weeks ago, after reading online that it can soothe their skin. When I purchased it she wasn’t yet scratching, I haven’t tried it yet but being so small and frail, I wouldn’t want her to get too wet or cold from it.
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Old 02-16-2020, 05:11 PM   #22
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

I think some people have used aloe vera gel for sore skin. Safe if licked and doesn't sting.
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Old 02-16-2020, 05:25 PM   #23
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

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Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Whereabouts are you Periwinkle? The Vitakraft one isn't usually recommended either, but if you're in Canada or the US it is very difficult to find good hamster mixes for dwarf hamsters. It probably isn't nutritional deficiencies as such, but some diets are better than others for quality of ingredients and not so much "filler" material. By history I meant stress if she has been living with her sister and her sister has been the dominant one. The stress can cause all sorts but hopefully she'll improve
Sorry I probably should have mentioned earlier, I live in British Columbia in Canada! Is Vitakraft the same as the Versele-Laga brand I linked? I do have some aloe Vera lying around, perhaps I’ll give that a try instead. She seems to be scratching her face too, her under-eyes are kind of dark so I’m hoping she’s not bruising herself
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Old 02-16-2020, 05:32 PM   #24
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

Sorry I just typed the wrong name. The Versele Laga is not bad but I think they don't list contents. It is better to avoid a diet with fruit in really, due to the sugars - for a dwarf hamster. The Aloe Vera needs to be the gel, not the cream - made from fresh aloe vera.
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Old 02-17-2020, 12:28 PM   #25
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

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Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Sorry I just typed the wrong name. The Versele Laga is not bad but I think they don't list contents. It is better to avoid a diet with fruit in really, due to the sugars - for a dwarf hamster. The Aloe Vera needs to be the gel, not the cream - made from fresh aloe vera.
Oh okay I thought that may have been the case! ☺️And In that case I’ll probably just invest in the Zooplus mix and order a few bags full, I’m also stopping giving Bijou Apple, just veggies from now on! I don’t think the gel I have is all that natural/fresh, I’m going to pick up a better one after work.
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Old 02-20-2020, 10:54 PM   #26
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

*VET APPOINTMENT UPDATE*

Bijou went in to the vet today. This being the new vet she had never been to before, not the other one I have taken her to in the past. (as that clinic has never been super helpful/knowledgeable, despite having the most and best reviews out of the small handful of vets here willing to see hamsters)

Today, this new vet said that Bijou was too small and delicate, as well as too wriggly, for a skin scrape. So she put a piece of clear Scotch tape on Bijou’s flaky bald areas, and with a microscope slide, confirmed that Bijou had demodex mites. At first she said the mites were dead, but then said she may have seen one move. She let me look in the microscope too, I didn’t see any movement but I could see the mites as she described to me what they looked like. She then told me she would go into the back room to see how demodex mites are treated in hamsters. When she came back, she said that the drug of choice is Ivermectin, but that Ivermectin must be given every day for quite a long time. She said that she had read a new study in a Veterinary Journal, released just at the beginning of February, where a different drug was being used to treat demodex mites in a Syrian hamster, and the drug only needed to be given a couple times, unlike ivermectin. I don’t remember the name of the drug, but she said it was the same one often used for demodex in dogs and cats, in a smaller amount. She told me she was going to research more into this new study and would get back to me through email, and if it isn’t possible or she’s unable to obtain it, we would try Ivermectin. I now know demodex mites proliferate when there’s an underlying cause, so I made sure to bring up all the possibilities I could think of, and mentioned diabetes, tumours, cysts etc. She agreed that the mites may mean that there’s “something underlying.” She said that Bijou is too small for bloodwork, and too fragile and wiggly to properly palpate for tumours, but she did feel around a bit on Bijous lower stomach and said she couldn’t feel any masses or lumps. I brought up diabetes as a possibility and asked if a urine test would be helpful, as well as asking if an X-ray is needed, but she said she would look more into it and get back to me whether an X-ray is possible or useful. Honestly, I feel dumb and regretful for not collecting and bringing in the urine sample myself, but I really did think they would just do it there today, being such a basic test and often the first test vets will do...but I guess the vet wants to do more research first before doing tests. That being said, I kind of hope I don’t have to pay another $90 viewing fee if the vet does decide to have me come in again to do tests, considering today was an “I’ll get back to you” sort of thing, and if I were to come in again it would basically be a continuation of the last appointment. I don’t have a lot of money but I will do anything to help Bijou and I’d prefer to spend it on tests to find why the mites have proliferated in the first place, as well as to treat the mites themselves. This vet definitely seemed to care more about actually treating Bijou than my past vet, which was refreshing, and she listened to what I had to say and was very nice. But she told me a few times how she doesn’t know a lot about treatment of demodex in hamsters and would further research the brand new study before contacting me. This doctor I saw today wasn’t the main practitioner at the clinic, and I couldn’t help but wonder if the main vet would have been more knowledgeable, or would have done tests right then and there like I’d hoped. But since they’re associates I’d hope this vet would consult the main practitioner if she believed they could be of any advice.

The vet prescribed antibiotics for the cut on Bijous stomach, and I’ve attached a photo of the prescription here: https://imgur.com/gallery/rpKnFNN

I’m worried if the antibiotics will cause more harm than good, or if they will even be of any use? I’m assuming Bijou is scratching the wound, which is why it hasn’t gone away. If she continues to irritate the area with scratching, I don’t think the antibiotics would be able to really heal the wound and do their thing if the area is being continuously disrupted... :•\
I’m not completely sure what to do next, I guess all I can do is wait for the vets email response and go from there. I’m planning on submitting the antibiotic prescription to the compounding pharmacy tomorrow after work, but I am still worried if antibiotics will be harmful or even helpful.
Overall I’m not really sure how to feel about today’s appointment or this new vet. I still feel pretty lost and confused, I’m glad we confirmed the demodex mites, but I hope tests will be done to get to the actual root of the mite problem. She seems just focused at the moment on treating the mites.
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Old 02-21-2020, 03:52 PM   #27
Ria P
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

For diabetes you can test yourself. I bought keto stix of Amazon, put my dwarf into a small plastic box, he peed, i took him out and tested his urine.
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Old 02-22-2020, 11:12 AM   #28
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

Enroflaccine is Baytril. To be honest I would ring them and check the dose. It says 0.2 mg but doesn’t say how many mls in the syringe. Iwould have expected it to be 0.02 mls which about 1 drop. But it may be mixed with something? Sorry you haven’t had more info on what could be causing underlying issues. So many vets aren’t that up on hamsters but the vet did at least seem concerned at not causing her any more stress.

Does the wound look infected and did you start the antibiotics or still thinking about it?
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Old 02-24-2020, 06:52 PM   #29
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ria P View Post
For diabetes you can test yourself. I bought keto stix of Amazon, put my dwarf into a small plastic box, he peed, i took him out and tested his urine.
Thank you, I might consider this, because the Vet wanted me to try to collect Bijous urine to bring in when picking up her medicine on Saturday, but Bijou only peed a few drops in a plastic bin (it ideally needs to be around a millilitre at least, I believe she said) and the vet said she probably wouldn’t have any more luck than I did.
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Old 02-24-2020, 07:02 PM   #30
Periwinklepets
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Default Re: Potential Cushings Dilemma...I’m stuck

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Enroflaccine is Baytril. To be honest I would ring them and check the dose. It says 0.2 mg but doesn’t say how many mls in the syringe. Iwould have expected it to be 0.02 mls which about 1 drop. But it may be mixed with something? Sorry you haven’t had more info on what could be causing underlying issues. So many vets aren’t that up on hamsters but the vet did at least seem concerned at not causing her any more stress.

Does the wound look infected and did you start the antibiotics or still thinking about it?
The dose says 0.02 mL on the enroflaccine bottle I picked up a few days ago, I’m assuming it was just a mistake, and you’re correct because it is definitely a tiny, TINY drop. With how squirmy and nippy she can be, I’ve found it really hard the past couple days to get such a small drop into her mouth. The other night I don’t even know if much went in, but I don’t want to try too many times because I wouldn’t want to over-dose her. I went back on Saturday to pick up the Demodex medication (not Ivermectin but this new other idea of medication the vet had) It’s a medication for dogs, in chewable tablet form, but the vet said that she had contacted the compounding pharmacy beforehand and that they agreed that they would be able to create a dosage for a Bijou (a syringe-able liquid dosage, like the antibiotics) out of it. The vet also said that she discussed Bijou’s case with the main practitioner of the vet clinic, who agreed it could work and supported the idea. I went today to drop off said dog medication to be altered, but the pharmacy said that they were unsure if they be able to do it or not (and I’ve already paid for the dog medication.) The pharmacy said that they would get back to me tomorrow about whether or not it would be doable. I’ve attached photos of the medication box and the vet’s prescription attached to the box as I made sure to get pictures of them before handing them in to the pharmacy today. https://imgur.com/gallery/b1I67Tr

I’m assuming that if the pharmacy is unable to do anything with this dog medication, then we would try ivermectin, but on Saturday the vet seemed to think that they were able to do it and confirmed to me that the pharmacy had agreed :/

I brought up about how there are almost definitely underlying issues causing the Demodex mites, but when I asked again about different tests we could do on Saturday, she agreed about the underlying issues, but said that she wanted to see how Bijou responds to these two medications first. Her reasoning being that none of the tests are very safe or doable and that the risks outweigh the benefits. She said that for X-rays (and I think also ultrasounds) that Bijou would very likely need to be sedated which she said can be dangerous, as Bijou is only 20 grams and very very wiggly. She wanted me to try to collect Bijous urine to bring in on Saturday, but Bijou only peed a few drops (it needs to be a millilitre at least, I think she said) and the vet said she likely wouldn’t have any more luck than I did. If this new dog medicine is possible, it would be a small drop too, just like the antibiotics, but only given to her once, and then repeated in 60 days. Because of how hard it is to get medicine into Bijou’s mouth, the vet suggested the pharmacy make several doses in the case of fail to administer. So far Bijous stomach looks about the same, but it’s hard to know how much medicine has even successfully been consumed by her so far
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