Bumblefoot or paranoia ?

[asm927]

Hello! I am new to this site, I’ve been using it to do simple research since I have been a hamster owner for roughly a month now. I just ordered a wooden silent wheel from amazon, because I am concerned that perhaps my precious Teddy has bumble foot! I can’t tell if his feet are healthy or if he has developed an issue. He runs faster than Usain Bolt 😂 I have now removed his wheel, but I had that metal blue one from PetSmart since that is what was recommended

Please let me know if I need to take immediate medical care to my Syrian hamster Teddy. If so, what do I need to do? If he’s okay, please relieve my anxiety

[souffle]

His feet look OK though the pic is a little fuzzy. It is normal for hamsters to have the little pads across the whole foot. With bumble foot the whole foot would be very swollen. As long as your wheel is not a barred or meshed one and there are no sharp edges or chewed areas and it is large enough for him to run with a flat back it should be fine for him to have it back. Check also that the new wheel is nice and smooth. Some people plasticote the wooden wheels.

[Pebbles82]

It does look a bit red and swollen (the red bits) from what I can see, but at least it is not raw and an open wound. Someone else recently used thyme tea on the feet (just dab it) and it healed up quickly. I think the old wheel you mentioned is a mesh wheel so good you have replaced it. As Soufflé says the wood wheels can get pee soaked and most people in the uk paint them with plastikote - which I believe is not available in the US. Although someone did order it I think and just paid extra postage. With our last hamster I hadn’t painted my wheel and just have it a good scrub under a tap every few months and it was fine - but he dudn’t Pee in his wheel that often. So some depends on the hamster.

Thyme tea is antiseptic and soothing so should help but it might be an idea to have a vet check.