"Bruised" Ears?

[DrKMcK]

I hope you can get a picture of his ears. I think it may just be the normal color of his ears; just only noticable now because he's losing hair as he ages. If he's getting older, though, it's probably best to not disturb his sleeping. If he's sleeping deeply or is losing some hearing, waking him can really scare him silly. It must have startled you too. The only bite I ever got from my Dale was when he was really old, wrinkled and bald like your little Theo. He was sleeping deeply and I made the sad mistake of touching him. Worst bite I ever got from any gerbil or hamster and all my fault. Dale's ears also had the purplish color to them at the tips.

[BrainGirl]

I was wondering the same thing, his fur is falling out rapidly at this point and I probably just couldn't see the true colour of his ears before. I don't normally disturb his sleep but I thought if I woke him up gently just to get a look at his ears it would be ok. He's never reacted like this before when I've had to wake him! Poor guy, I felt so bad, but he seems ok now. He hid for a few minutes then came out and had some baby food (chicken & sweet potato, yum!) and chewed on his toilet roll

[DrKMcK]

He should be fine, but...you have been warned!!! Believe me, I respected Dale's sleep after that bite! He never bit me again. I really do think they lose some of their hearing when they get older. I think that's why you get that sudden startle reaction to things that never bothered them before. By now, he's forgotten all about it.

[Seedless]

Fluffy's ears are becoming really dark all over as she's aged and James has a dark patch on his only ear. They're both about 12 months old now and I first noticed them changing at around six months.

[LoveMyHams]

Does he have pink ears? My ham with pink ears had blackish patching on his ears. It's never bothered him, just seems to be the way his skin is. See Popcorn's pic below.

[BrainGirl]

Originally Posted by LoveMyHams

Does he have pink ears? My ham with pink ears had blackish patching on his ears. It's never bothered him, just seems to be the way his skin is. See Popcorn's pic below.

Yeah, he does, pinkish with a couple of freckles. These bigger, darker patches are new though. The fact that they're symmetrical probably means that they're not anything to worry about and have possibly been there all along but they're new to me!

[Hams&Hermits]

Pigmentation increases on the ears as a hamster gets older.

it says something about it on the scent gland thread.