Is the Vet really doing the right thing?

Periwinkle · 02-15-2020, 12:02 PM

Hey all!

So recently, my Chinese Hamster Rose became ill. It was clearly a URI, and I brought her to our vet immediately who confirmed that I was correct.

The vet gave us Baytril and she has been taking it twice a day every day for 7 days. He said she would improve by the 7th day, but when I didn't hear her sneezing stop and activity at night return to normal by day 6, I made an appointment for a check up.

He listened to her lungs and said they sounded clear, and her 'clicking' has stopped, but still sneezing. He gave us Baytril for another 7 days to "clear the rest up", but I can't help but worry. Is this going to work? It didn't work the first dose...

She eats, drinks, and her movements are quick, agile, and she is not sluggish or lethargic. Her eyes are wide and clear. However, she never runs on her wheel at night.

I know some of you guys will tell me I don't stay up all night to watch her, and this is true. But I don't usually get to bed until 1 or 2 am, and she is still never awake and active. (Besides coming out to get food and water when she wants it, then right back to her nest)
I also know if she uses her wheel because she pees on it, and there is no pee, it's squeaky clean.

Should I be concerned that the medication is not helping? I know I should trust my vet, and he is great at what he does. He even sees farm animals.

Did anyone else ever notice that their hamster's Upper Respiratory infection took a long time to go away? She's only 2 months old. Shouldn't her immune system be fairly strong? Like I said, the only symptoms left are sneezing/coughing fits, and little to no night time activity.

Should I change her bedding? I'm using Kaytee Clean and Cozy. WELP!

GhostsInSnow · 02-15-2020, 02:10 PM

If that is what the vet has prescribed I would stick with it. Sometimes an extended course of antibiotics is needed if things have improved but not quite 100% (I work in a vets so do see this happen from time to time) Obviously after she's finished this next course, if things still aren't sorted then perhaps see if there's another vet at the clinic that you can talk to for a second opinion but I'd go with your current vets advice for now.

Some chronic resp infections can take slightly longer to go away and on occasion, if it's been a particularly bad one then rarely, lung scarring can occur which can cause the clicking to continue even once the infection has cleared up. But definitely stick with the Baytril for now.

You could try changing her bedding if you think it might be an allergy to that. Is the bedding particularly dusty?

Periwinkle · 02-15-2020, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GhostsInSnow

If that is what the vet has prescribed I would stick with it. Sometimes an extended course of antibiotics is needed if things have improved but not quite 100% (I work in a vets so do see this happen from time to time) Obviously after she's finished this next course, if things still aren't sorted then perhaps see if there's another vet at the clinic that you can talk to for a second opinion but I'd go with your current vets advice for now.

Some chronic resp infections can take slightly longer to go away and on occasion, if it's been a particularly bad one then rarely, lung scarring can occur which can cause the clicking to continue even once the infection has cleared up. But definitely stick with the Baytril for now.

You could try changing her bedding if you think it might be an allergy to that. Is the bedding particularly dusty?

Yes, I'll definitely be sticking with it although I am just nervous. Do you ever see anything other than Baytril given for a URI?

Lung scarring... Hmm, I've never heard of that. Maybe I'll ask about it at the next visit. The infection apparently wasn't very severe and we caught it early, on the first day she was showing any symptoms.

I don't think the bedding is dusty... It is supposed to be dust free, after all. Is paper bedding usually the way to go for allergies?

Pebbles82 · 02-15-2020, 03:39 PM

The only thing I would add is that it is important to make sure they get the dose or an infection can worsen. It’s the same with humans and antibiotics which is why you have to take the doses at regular intervals and complete the course even if you start to feel better. Basically the bugs are fighting with the antibiotics - if you stop the antibiotics too soon (or she doesn’t get the full dose) then they can become superbugs and resistant to the antibiotics.

How are you giving the baytril? It tastes nasty so usually they don’t want to take it. A couple of tips on here were - syringe feed it with a tiny bit of runny honey in the syringe after drawing up the baytril. Or put the dose on a tiny bit of meaty beefy dog food they can’t resist. Pea sized- they need to eat all of it hence a tiny bit. That worked for me and our Robo got hooked on the meaty dog food!

All that aside it is possible it is a viral infection and then the antibiotics won’t work. As advised above - finish the course and start her on some probiotics as well. I used benebac and gave it at a different time of day to the antibiotic dose so they don’t interfere with each other. My routine was dog food/ baytril afternoon / baby food with probiotic night time.

The baytril itself can make them a bit off colour but that usually improves when the course is finished. The probiotics will help support her guy and immune system recover from the antibiotics.

If it is viral it should clear up on its own. For helping boost the immune system
you could give a pinch of hemp seeds daily - chock full of vitamins and minerals and they like them- our jammies licked them up from
A little baby good lid ( I put them out separate to the food). Also half a Brazil nut once a week - contains an ingredient that boosts the immune system and a nice treat.

Pebbles82 · 02-15-2020, 03:40 PM

Kayteee clean and cozy is fine.

GhostsInSnow · 02-15-2020, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Periwinkle

Yes, I'll definitely be sticking with it although I am just nervous. Do you ever see anything other than Baytril given for a URI?

Lung scarring... Hmm, I've never heard of that. Maybe I'll ask about it at the next visit. The infection apparently wasn't very severe and we caught it early, on the first day she was showing any symptoms.

I don't think the bedding is dusty... It is supposed to be dust free, after all. Is paper bedding usually the way to go for allergies?

Unfortunately pretty much all other antibiotics are unlicensed for use in small animals. Baytril tends to be what we use 99.9% of the time where I work.

As Serendipity mentioned, it's important to ensure your hammy is getting the correct dose at the correct time. I personally use baby food, a nice fruit one or a chicken flavoured one goes down a treat. I take some out of the jar, mix in the dose of medication and draw the mixed food and meds into a Syringe. That way I can ensure the correct dose has been given and they've eaten it all. Popping it on food and leaving in the cage can sometimes work but the danger is them not getting the correct dose, getting a double dose when you put the next lot in or just them hoarding it and not eating it at all.

Yes paper bedding tends to be the way forward with allergies, I've used kaytee clean and cozy in the past and never had any issues. The only way I could see it being an issue is if you got a bad batch that hadn't been efficiently dust extracted enough but you would notice that yourself.

Totally agree on the probiotic front too. Antibiotics can play havoc with the digestive system so probiotics would help get everything back in balance and give your little one a boost in the process

Periwinkle · 02-15-2020, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GhostsInSnow

Unfortunately pretty much all other antibiotics are unlicensed for use in small animals. Baytril tends to be what we use 99.9% of the time where I work.

As Serendipity mentioned, it's important to ensure your hammy is getting the correct dose at the correct time. I personally use baby food, a nice fruit one or a chicken flavoured one goes down a treat. I take some out of the jar, mix in the dose of medication and draw the mixed food and meds into a Syringe. That way I can ensure the correct dose has been given and they've eaten it all. Popping it on food and leaving in the cage can sometimes work but the danger is them not getting the correct dose, getting a double dose when you put the next lot in or just them hoarding it and not eating it at all.

Yes paper bedding tends to be the way forward with allergies, I've used kaytee clean and cozy in the past and never had any issues. The only way I could see it being an issue is if you got a bad batch that hadn't been efficiently dust extracted enough but you would notice that yourself.

Totally agree on the probiotic front too. Antibiotics can play havoc with the digestive system so probiotics would help get everything back in balance and give your little one a boost in the process

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serendipity7000

The only thing I would add is that it is important to make sure they get the dose or an infection can worsen. It’s the same with humans and antibiotics which is why you have to take the doses at regular intervals and complete the course even if you start to feel better. Basically the bugs are fighting with the antibiotics - if you stop the antibiotics too soon (or she doesn’t get the full dose) then they can become superbugs and resistant to the antibiotics.

How are you giving the baytril? It tastes nasty so usually they don’t want to take it. A couple of tips on here were - syringe feed it with a tiny bit of runny honey in the syringe after drawing up the baytril. Or put the dose on a tiny bit of meaty beefy dog food they can’t resist. Pea sized- they need to eat all of it hence a tiny bit. That worked for me and our Robo got hooked on the meaty dog food!

All that aside it is possible it is a viral infection and then the antibiotics won’t work. As advised above - finish the course and start her on some probiotics as well. I used benebac and gave it at a different time of day to the antibiotic dose so they don’t interfere with each other. My routine was dog food/ baytril afternoon / baby food with probiotic night time.

The baytril itself can make them a bit off colour but that usually improves when the course is finished. The probiotics will help support her guy and immune system recover from the antibiotics.

If it is viral it should clear up on its own. For helping boost the immune system
you could give a pinch of hemp seeds daily - chock full of vitamins and minerals and they like them- our jammies licked them up from
A little baby good lid ( I put them out separate to the food). Also half a Brazil nut once a week - contains an ingredient that boosts the immune system and a nice treat.

Thanks guys.

My vet actually mixes it with a strawberry syrup and she takes it with zero hassle. But I must admit I could probably do better at getting it to her at the same time each day. It's difficult with my work schedule. I might have to employ help from family members.

I have been trying to give her yogurt but I'm pretty positive she hates the stuff. Any suggestions other than shoving it in her mouth with the syringe?? Where can I get probiotics that are safe for her?

Periwinkle · 02-15-2020, 11:07 PM

Also, sidenote; Hamsters can catch viral colds?? Oh man, how do you treat that?

Pebbles82 · 02-16-2020, 05:46 AM

Yes they can catch viral colds etc from humans

. That is just time and tlc and immune boosting treats (hemp seeds). I don’t know where you get probiotics in Canada but Benebac is available from vets in the US. I got mine from Amazon. It needs to be fir hamsters as only certain probiotics work on them. It can help a lot though. I wouldn’t worry too much about exact time of day within 2 or 3 hours but the full dose is important. If it’s strawberry flavoured will she just lick it from the syringe? Or a teaspoon?

Littlephodopusmom · 02-16-2020, 06:17 AM

Periwinkle..
Hi I saw that you are in Canada and are looking for probiotics for her. My guy hates yogurt also. I wanted to tell you I'm in Canada too, and got my guy his Bene bac plus powder from here.
https://www.hoponline.ca/products/be...powder-0-75-oz

Every day I just got an unshelled sunflower seed moist with water and sprinkled some on it. He didn't mind the taste of it at all and always ate it. He didn't get any trouble from the antibiotics and I am sure it was due to having the Bene bac