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Pebbles82 · 04-30-2021, 02:13 AM

It could be rubbing from the house. The Leif house is a bit small for a syrian - both compartments and entrance holes. It’s a good size for a dwarf hamster. Some people who have used it for Syrians knock the central panel out to make the centre compartment bigger. There will be quite a few doors to go through and the angled top entrance. I would definitely suspect that as a cause of skin and fur rubbing.

He shouldn’t be allergic to a wood house - it’s more shavings etc that cause allergy - but it’s possible!

Rodipet maje rxcellent labyrinth houses that are smooth birch wood ply (no allergy issues and it can also be painted with plastikote to seal it/waterproof it). But they are expensive and a cage needs to be big enough to fit the Syrian sized one. But they do make a good two room house. All their houses have large entrances at least 7cm diameter. If you can’t get those or they are too expensive then any smooth wood house with a big enough door would be better - a large guinea pig house can work well instead of a maze house - you can fit a litter tray in one corner and they still have room for a large nest and hoards.

One other thing that can cause sore red skin is urine burns. I’ve never had that despite one Syrian who insisted on nesting in his toilet in his pee! But if the skin is rubbed as well it may be more susceptible.

So that is one thing to try - change the house. If doing the I usually just pop the new one over the top of where the old one was so as to leave the nest and hoards etc in tact. So they accept the change without freaking out.

Another thought I had was what do you use to clean the cage? String scents or disinfectants can cause issues for hamsters too. I know you had to disinfect everything recently so always best to use a pet safe one like Johnson’s or beaphar abd even then rinse well afterwards to remove any odour.

Generally though disinfectant isn’t needed - just warm soapy water for the cage base (eg a drop of washing up liquid in water - low scent again - not a lemony one).

It’s why scented bedding is so bad for them.

Kaytee clean and cozy is a good option for allergies plus nice and soft. The bigger packs tend to last longer. Also if you do partial cleans and spot clean mostly then bedding lasts a lot longer and it’s better for the hamster as full cage cleans stress then.

Can you get science selective from Amazon? Or anything from Amazon ? They do quite a few houses as well.

04-30-2021, 02:13 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Possible allergies? It could be rubbing from the house. The Leif house is a bit small for a syrian - both compartments and entrance holes. It’s a good size for a dwarf hamster. Some people who have used it for Syrians knock the central panel out to make the centre compartment bigger. There will be quite a few doors to go through and the angled top entrance. I would definitely suspect that as a cause of skin and fur rubbing. He shouldn’t be allergic to a wood house - it’s more shavings etc that cause allergy - but it’s possible! Rodipet maje rxcellent labyrinth houses that are smooth birch wood ply (no allergy issues and it can also be painted with plastikote to seal it/waterproof it). But they are expensive and a cage needs to be big enough to fit the Syrian sized one. But they do make a good two room house. All their houses have large entrances at least 7cm diameter. If you can’t get those or they are too expensive then any smooth wood house with a big enough door would be better - a large guinea pig house can work well instead of a maze house - you can fit a litter tray in one corner and they still have room for a large nest and hoards. One other thing that can cause sore red skin is urine burns. I’ve never had that despite one Syrian who insisted on nesting in his toilet in his pee! But if the skin is rubbed as well it may be more susceptible. So that is one thing to try - change the house. If doing the I usually just pop the new one over the top of where the old one was so as to leave the nest and hoards etc in tact. So they accept the change without freaking out. Another thought I had was what do you use to clean the cage? String scents or disinfectants can cause issues for hamsters too. I know you had to disinfect everything recently so always best to use a pet safe one like Johnson’s or beaphar abd even then rinse well afterwards to remove any odour. Generally though disinfectant isn’t needed - just warm soapy water for the cage base (eg a drop of washing up liquid in water - low scent again - not a lemony one). It’s why scented bedding is so bad for them. Kaytee clean and cozy is a good option for allergies plus nice and soft. The bigger packs tend to last longer. Also if you do partial cleans and spot clean mostly then bedding lasts a lot longer and it’s better for the hamster as full cage cleans stress then. Can you get science selective from Amazon? Or anything from Amazon ? They do quite a few houses as well.