[racinghamster]

Hi Figaro, thanks for coming back. I could recommend Manuka Honey for wounds, but remember, it has to me medical grade manuka for it to be of any use. Normal honey is useless as it carries it`s own bacteria, so could add to the problem.

I`m sorry to hear about your cat, that must have been a shock. And vet bills for larger animals are not cheap either, so I can sympathise.

Your hamsters may or not have cushings, but cushings (see the sticky on Cushings at the top of the page) is usually associated with balding all over and true thinning of the fur.

Contact dermatisis can look really inflamed and red under the belly and can also cause flaky/patchy skin conditions, so you could be dealing with that or a knock on effect of varying things going on. You could keep the wounds clean with saline (one teaspoon of salt to one pint of boiled, cooled water) and apply with a cotton ball. This won`t do any harm if ingested, neither will the manuka honey.

As far as your vet is concerned, my guess is they would either be able to identify the cause, or as you suggested, take some educated guesses and send you home with Baytril and some ointment. Skin scrapings are normally required to rule out mites or other parasites or using a special light to identify fungal infection like ringworm, although not all fungal skin problems are ringworm!