Syrian with dry skin

[Bethyboo11]

Over the past few weeks, I've noticed my female Syrian, Cookie, has been spending a lot of her time in a corner of her cage constantly scratching. I checked her skin last night, and it's pinky-red, with what seems to be flakes of dandruff.

[AmityvilleHams]

What substrate is she on?If it is wood,it could be some sort of allergic reaction.

[POLAR WHITES]

Could she have mites ? Could be worth a trip to the vets

[Bethyboo11]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

What substrate is she on?If it is wood,it could be some sort of allergic reaction.

Her substrate is Kiln-dried pine

[AmityvilleHams]

Hamsters can be allergic to pine,kiln dried or not.It is not 100% safe in every case,and it's not unheard of for hamsters to develop an allergic reaction to pine.In fact,it's one of the most common issues in hamster keeping and I see that sort of thing happening very often!

[cypher]

Mites usually begin to show around the eyes & ears rather than general scratching so although it is possible mites may be a problem it could also be an allergy to wood shavings which does sometimes happen or it could be something lacking in her diet.
What are you feeding her?
For skin problems I always try a drop of evening primrose oil & a few extra flax seeds.

[Bethyboo11]

Originally Posted by cypher

Mites usually begin to show around the eyes & ears rather than general scratching so although it is possible mites may be a problem it could also be an allergy to wood shavings which does sometimes happen or it could be something lacking in her diet.
What are you feeding her?
For skin problems I always try a drop of evening primrose oil & a few extra flax seeds.

I feed her the Pets at Home Hamster muesli.

[Bethyboo11]

Originally Posted by cypher

Mites usually begin to show around the eyes & ears rather than general scratching so although it is possible mites may be a problem it could also be an allergy to wood shavings which does sometimes happen or it could be something lacking in her diet.
What are you feeding her?
For skin problems I always try a drop of evening primrose oil & a few extra flax seeds.

If it's an allergic reaction, will we need a trip to the vets?

[AmityvilleHams]

You wouldn't need to go to the vets,just change all the substrate and replace it with an allergy-friendly substrate

[cypher]

I agree about a possible allergy, the only way to know if that is the problem is to change the substrate & see if it improves, a paper based substrate like Fitch is the best option if you suspect an allergy.