Newbie with new hamster and possible eye infection?

Tara Moss · 10-04-2020, 09:48 PM

Dear Hamster Central,

Our lovely Syrian hamster Valka has been with us for 9 days and seems to have something wrong with her right eye, which she is keeping mostly closed suddenly. Her mood has changed and she seems unhappy/not as inquisitive or active in the past day or so, and now we've noticed the eye. Is this a likely sign of infection developing? Poor thing, she is just little and came to us just over a week ago.

I am guessing we need to get her to a vet? Any advice is most welcome. This is our first hamster! We haven't noticed anything that has gone wrong, and her enclosure and food and everything is right.

Best wishes,

Tara

cypher · 10-04-2020, 09:51 PM

Sorry to hear this, it could be an infection, hard to say for sure but I would get her to the vet as soon as you can, eye infections aren’t uncommon & usually clear up with medication, her behaviour change is most likely a sign she’s in pain or feeling unwell.
Hope she’s better soon.

Maker · 10-04-2020, 11:56 PM

The vet will probably prescribe eye drops which will be awkward as she is so little so ask them to put the first dose in so you can watch how they do it - if you aren’t allowed in then ask them to record on your phone.
Also do you want to run her bedding etc by us? If your advice is from a pet shop they can get it wrong

LunaTheHamster1 · 10-05-2020, 02:01 AM

Just a quick question, what type of bedding are you using? I only ask because I used carefresh in the past and it can be quite dusty and cause some hamsters eyes to close up.

Tara Moss · 10-06-2020, 08:12 AM

Thank you so much for this advice. We are using aspen shaving bedding. Is that okay?

Thankfully by morning her eye was normal and open, so we are waiting to see how she is going.

I get the impression she was very tired, and her schedule seems to be that she gets very active around 1am in the morning and then goes to sleep around 9am, so if we see her in the day or she is disturbed by lights or comings and goings she is quite tired. It may have been sleep in her eye?

Still working all of this out! She is lovely and quite small, so just a little one.

AmityvilleHams · 10-06-2020, 10:40 AM

Aspen can be very irritating for various reasons. I would switch to Oxbow Pure Comfort or Small Pet Select paper bedding, with the Small Pet Select option being the best paper substrate on the market - pure virgin fiber, completely dye free, minimal dust, etc.

You'll definitely see recommendations for Kaytee Clean and Cozy but that can be dusty and isn't always the most reliable in terms of quality control.

LunaTheHamster1 · 10-06-2020, 10:45 AM

Lots of people do use aspen shavings but if it happens again you may want to try a different type of substrate and see if it makes a difference. Especially if your hamster does a lot of burrowing/digging around

cypher · 10-06-2020, 10:47 AM

Good to hear her eye is ok now, a lot of hams are ok with aspen but if you do continue to see any problems with her eyes or other dust related problems you might want to switch to a paper based substrate.

Tara Moss · 10-06-2020, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LunaTheHamster1

Lots of people do use aspen shavings but if it happens again you may want to try a different type of substrate and see if it makes a difference. Especially if your hamster does a lot of burrowing/digging around

Thank you. Yes, we got her a big enclosure with lots of possibilities for burrowing, and she seems to love that. I will see how she goes and think about swapping out the substrate! Thanks for the advice.

Tara Moss · 10-06-2020, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cypher

Good to hear her eye is ok now, a lot of hams are ok with aspen but if you do continue to see any problems with her eyes or other dust related problems you might want to switch to a paper based substrate.

Thank you. This is great advice. Fingers crossed x