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Old 09-27-2021, 01:46 AM   #31
ShadowNinjaHamster
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Oh our first one I was a very anxious first Mother lol - slightest little thing. I think it’s fairly normal. But he sounds absolutely fine. Please don’t worry about over feeding him. They just take what they need. It’s rare to see an overweight hamster and they are ones who often live in tiny cages with very little exercise and fed too many sunflower seeds as treats.

A teaspoonful isn’t very much. A dessert spoonful a day is about right. He won’t eat much of it and most of the food they take gets hoarded - then they snack from the hoard. They are funny in that they usually won’t take “old food” that’s left in the bowl. So it means putting fresh out each day. I usually top the bowl up for a day or two then Chuck anything left and start again. Seems a waste of food but it’s not that expensive and a bag tends to last a long time.

This bug situation must be driving you bonkers. As you only seem to find them on the house I’d swap the house out. Tissue box will be fine . Easily replaced as well.

Taming is time and patience and it sounds like it’s going fine. I sometimes think they don’t get fully tame till they’re almost a year old when they become more mature and confident and laid back.
I put a plastic house in his cage, just to see if the bugs are from the house and today I saw the same bugs again on the house. it's not from the house and I have vacuumed my room several times and replaced food as well. I'll do the full cage clean and full apartment clean today after work again. I just don't know what to do anymore and where they come from. Interestingly enough I haven't seen even a one bug in his playpen. Yesterday he was there for an hour because I was trying to figure out where the bugs come from. I don't know what to do anymore and the bugs are so tiny that I have to zoom in a lot to take a picture of them and no one can tell me what those are, because of the bad quality of the pictures. I just dont know what to do anymore.

My hamster seems to be fine, but he's scratching himself a lot, but I mean he comes to me and what I noticed yesterday is that he's in his playpen normally doing his stuff, but when I am near him he tries to escape from the playpen.
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Old 09-27-2021, 01:48 AM   #32
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

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Originally Posted by Amethyst_ice View Post
There was only 1 photo that was clear enough to see the body sections and id also hazard a guess they are biscuit beetles. They are brown reddish which would account for when you saw red when you squished and attracted to dry food, dark and warm areas.

As said, id get totally new bag of food, do full cage clean and get rid of the wooden items. A cardboard box with holes is fine for a house.

Id also thoroughly hoover the room he is in and do it several times a week.

They shouldn't be harmful to either of you
Thank you! I'll do my best to get rid of the bugs. I've already tried, but I replaced his house yesterday and today I still saw the bugs.
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Old 09-27-2021, 10:44 AM   #33
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

If you have a bug infestation in that room it will take a while to irradicate them due to the life cycles. Have you disposed of all the bedding too? If you completely empied the cage, got rid of all the wooden, new bedding, new food and the bugs still remain then it will be in your house somewhere and may be worth calling in pest control to find the source
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Old 09-28-2021, 01:21 AM   #34
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

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Originally Posted by Amethyst_ice View Post
If you have a bug infestation in that room it will take a while to irradicate them due to the life cycles. Have you disposed of all the bedding too? If you completely empied the cage, got rid of all the wooden, new bedding, new food and the bugs still remain then it will be in your house somewhere and may be worth calling in pest control to find the source
The bugs are so tiny that I literally have to zoom in as much as I can and take picture close. I'd like to know what those bugs are. I googled bed bugs but it can't be bed bugs, because they're bigger.
I switched out everything except hay. That I kept on the fridge and tried again, but there are no bugs in his playpen or anywhere else in the apartment, but then again I don't think I'd notice such tiny bugs in my apartment unless they are in plain sight.
I see them only in the hamster's cage.
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Old 09-28-2021, 10:22 AM   #35
Pebbles82
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

Aha! Hay is notorious for having mites/bugs in. I never use it. But if you do use it, it really needs freezing first - for a full week. Not in the fridge - freezer. I think the hay could be the culprit if they keep coming back after two full cage cleans. I would suggest just not using it. Some bugs may be able to survive freezing. All they need for nesting is plain white toilet paper, torn into strips. A pile of it in the cage for them to forage for and take to their nest to build/rebuild it.

Unfortunately you will need to do another full cage clean. I also agree about getting rid of any bark wood items as eggs could be lodged in them and hatching out. The smooth wood house should be fine - you can just spray it with disinfectant and rinse it afterwards. Cardboard may be safer for now though.

So clean everything. Make sure the disinfectant gets into all the little crevices in the cage base and the bars are thoroughly sprayed, soaked and wiped. All new bedding, all new food. All items cleaned. No hay.

Such a nightmare for you. Your little hammy is bound to be unsettled by this again so give your hammy a good couple of weeks settling in time again to adjust. I wouldn't attempt to get her out in the playpen during this time unless she actively shows she wants to come out of the cage. It may set taming back a bit but you'll be fine once you start it again. I would bin the hay as the bugs could get out of it wherever you have it stored as well.

I'd suggest using Beaphar deep clean for small animals - it's what our vets recommended for an infestation. Leave it on for a good 15 minutes then give it a good rinse off to remove any scent. I'd get two bottles - I find I can use more than a whole bottle doing a cage clean.

However food is still the most likely source (along with hay). Can I ask which food you're using? As some are really not very good quality foods and probably stored badly as well. You can get good quality food for no more money.

Beaphar Deep Clean Disinfectant

Last edited by Pebbles82; 09-28-2021 at 10:27 AM.
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Old 09-28-2021, 11:39 AM   #36
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

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Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Aha! Hay is notorious for having mites/bugs in. I never use it. But if you do use it, it really needs freezing first - for a full week. Not in the fridge - freezer. I think the hay could be the culprit if they keep coming back after two full cage cleans. I would suggest just not using it. Some bugs may be able to survive freezing. All they need for nesting is plain white toilet paper, torn into strips. A pile of it in the cage for them to forage for and take to their nest to build/rebuild it.

Unfortunately you will need to do another full cage clean. I also agree about getting rid of any bark wood items as eggs could be lodged in them and hatching out. The smooth wood house should be fine - you can just spray it with disinfectant and rinse it afterwards. Cardboard may be safer for now though.

So clean everything. Make sure the disinfectant gets into all the little crevices in the cage base and the bars are thoroughly sprayed, soaked and wiped. All new bedding, all new food. All items cleaned. No hay.

Such a nightmare for you. Your little hammy is bound to be unsettled by this again so give your hammy a good couple of weeks settling in time again to adjust. I wouldn't attempt to get her out in the playpen during this time unless she actively shows she wants to come out of the cage. It may set taming back a bit but you'll be fine once you start it again. I would bin the hay as the bugs could get out of it wherever you have it stored as well.

I'd suggest using Beaphar deep clean for small animals - it's what our vets recommended for an infestation. Leave it on for a good 15 minutes then give it a good rinse off to remove any scent. I'd get two bottles - I find I can use more than a whole bottle doing a cage clean.

However food is still the most likely source (along with hay). Can I ask which food you're using? As some are really not very good quality foods and probably stored badly as well. You can get good quality food for no more money.

Beaphar Deep Clean Disinfectant
He was just in PlayPen and he came and sat on my hand and then I put my other hand next to my hand and he walked onto it and he was walking on my hands for good 15 minutes and today he also licked me (which was the first time ever). Yesterday and today he was completely normal in the playpen, but it's the first time ever we were so 'close' and I like that I can touch him and pet him whenever I want to (of course I have to tell him and let him sniff me first), because once when I touched him he startled. The very first time when I touched him he was jumpy all the time. So in that sense I think we're making a progress. I transfer him to a playpen in a mug and he comes to the mug by himself. I don't have enough confidence to walk with him in my hands, because he might decide to suddenly jump off.
I tried to find any bugs or scratches on him, but everything looks completely normal and his fur feels normal. My only issue is he eats a lot and I'm still not sure whether he's overweight or not, but he was like that in the store already. There were skinnier hamsters than him, but some say it's just the fur that makes him look 'fat'.

Yeah, I've been using the same hay ever since I bought him, but if you don't use hay what do you use? He doesn't hide himself in hay anyway. I don't think he'd actually miss it if I took it away. He either sleeps in the house or out in the open.

I use Nestor mealworms, which he absolutely loves, once a week I give him vitakraft drops and Nestor premium food for hamsters, just FYI there are some corn or I don't know what it is. Looks like uncooked popcorn. It got stuck in his cheek once. I understood it when he was acting weird and sticking his paws into his mouth trying to get it out, so I gently massaged his cheek and he spat it out and also Nestor cookies, but he doesn't eat those lately. Then I also feed him cucumbers. I don't have enough guts to give him cheese and he doesn't eat an apple. I have taken seeds out, peeled it and everything but he just sniffs it and doesn't care.

The site you gave me (which I'm very grateful for, thank you) has "We currently have restrictions on exporting foods & medicines to some EU countries. Importing to EU countries has changed" warning on it.

Also, his cage is on a white table, but I don't see any bugs. Most of the bugs have been in his house even during full cage cleans. They are very easy to kill, but I do see some blood, so they might suck my hamster's blood?

I'll do full apartment clean on Friday and that also includes the cage. Still, I'm sure my hamster had fun today to walk on my hands, because he had a chance to get off several times. Also, often when I go close to his cage he comes out of his house and when I open the cage he tries to climb up from my arm. I don't think he tries to escape, because he doesn't climb any further.
The saddest thing is I don't even know how old my hamster is, since they didn't know it at the pet store. Is there any way to figure out his age? Would you also recommend Beaphar food? Oh, I found their website. It's in my country. Do you recommend all of their products? Because I might switch if it helps get rid of bugs, unless you say that my food already is high quality.
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Old 09-28-2021, 01:13 PM   #37
Pebbles82
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

Which country are you in? Sorry I was assuming you were in the Uk. In terms of diet they just need one good hamster muesli mix that contains the right levels of protein and fats. You can usually get Tiny friends Harry Hamster in most countries and that is fine for a dwarf hamster as well. It contains everything needed and whole sunflower seeds and peanuts. I wouldn’t give vitakraft drops. They don’t need added vitamins if they are on a good mix with the right contents (Harry Hamster also contains all vitamins and minerals needed). They can actually have too many vitamins. If he was ever sick or needed extra vitamins the best way to achieve that is to give a pinch of hemp seeds daily - they also contain all vitamins and minerals.

No they don’t need hay. That’s more rabbits and Guinea pigs. All they need is plenty of substrate (paper based better than wood shavings. If you do use wood shavings they need to be kiln dried pine and dust extracted (never cedar or unspecified wood). If it doesn’t say kiln dried pine on the pack it’s not safe.

So plenty of substrate - at least 4” deep. And plenty of toilet paper strips for nesting - and that’s all you need - apart from a house, wheel, some tunnels and other toys/hideouts and a shelf ideally. Plus food and water.

If you do get Harry hanster then freeze that too! Never had an issue with that but after an outbreak of moths from food (which infested my home!) I now freeze all hamster food for a week.

Won’t suggest any more pet disinfectant till know which country you’re in! Amazon sell it too but it’s more expensive there. In the Uk most pet shops stock it.

The taming sounds to be coming on really well - pleased for you . Don’t worry if you have a set back after the cage clean - he just needs some time.
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Old 10-10-2021, 11:58 PM   #38
ShadowNinjaHamster
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Which country are you in? Sorry I was assuming you were in the Uk. In terms of diet they just need one good hamster muesli mix that contains the right levels of protein and fats. You can usually get Tiny friends Harry Hamster in most countries and that is fine for a dwarf hamster as well. It contains everything needed and whole sunflower seeds and peanuts. I wouldn’t give vitakraft drops. They don’t need added vitamins if they are on a good mix with the right contents (Harry Hamster also contains all vitamins and minerals needed). They can actually have too many vitamins. If he was ever sick or needed extra vitamins the best way to achieve that is to give a pinch of hemp seeds daily - they also contain all vitamins and minerals.

No they don’t need hay. That’s more rabbits and Guinea pigs. All they need is plenty of substrate (paper based better than wood shavings. If you do use wood shavings they need to be kiln dried pine and dust extracted (never cedar or unspecified wood). If it doesn’t say kiln dried pine on the pack it’s not safe.

So plenty of substrate - at least 4” deep. And plenty of toilet paper strips for nesting - and that’s all you need - apart from a house, wheel, some tunnels and other toys/hideouts and a shelf ideally. Plus food and water.

If you do get Harry hanster then freeze that too! Never had an issue with that but after an outbreak of moths from food (which infested my home!) I now freeze all hamster food for a week.

Won’t suggest any more pet disinfectant till know which country you’re in! Amazon sell it too but it’s more expensive there. In the Uk most pet shops stock it.

The taming sounds to be coming on really well - pleased for you . Don’t worry if you have a set back after the cage clean - he just needs some time.
I'm currently living in Poland. I got him new food, new bedding, new house, new cage, new toys, threw away all the wooden stuff and there are still bugs. The bugs are very small and I have to zoom in a lot to take a picture. When I squash them there's a lot of blood. The bugs just walk, they don't jump nor fly. Just walk I also got rid of the hay and I also cleaned my apartment the best I could. I don't know what to do anymore, but I will clean my apartment today again. I also got him a bathroom and I have noticed that there are a lot of bugs near his bathroom (he doesn't use it, but I put his faces there and I'm hoping he'd learn to use it, so it'd make easier for me to clean. Someone said my apartment might be infested, but I haven't seen the bugs before nor I see them anywhere else but the hamster's cage. At this point I am not sure if my hamster has the bugs and I think if those were fleas then I'd have fleas as well. The thing is there are different bugs and they're not all the same. Some are red and very little ones and then tiny black ones. I no longer want to take him to a vet, because it's cold outside and I am afraid he'd get sick when I take him to the vet. I also have difficulties with spot cleaning, because my hamster comes always out when I'm near the cage and he tries to climb on my hand all the time (he doesn't attack me nor bite. He seems to be very friendly) and I guess he's thinking about food whenever he sees or sniffs my hand.
I haven't noticed any bugs in his playpen, but then again the bugs are usually in his nests or near his toilets or on the house.

The only bedding that I have is in the freezer and it has been there for about a week. I don't know what to do anymore, really. I am just hoping that the bugs aren't harmful for my hamster, but I guess he's fine? He looks fine. I don't know how to check, but his hairs seem to be fine and the skin seemed to be fine. I have no idea how to check his stomach. I can't turn him around on his back and I don't want to do it by force. His cage is on the white table and I've never seen bugs there.

An apartment is generally a bad place to live, because the bugs might be coming from anywhere. I remember when I was little we lived in an apartment and my neighbour had a dog and the dog got fleas and then we and also other neighbours got fleas as well. It's the same thing with cockroaches and everything. When my sister lived in an apartment her neighbour had cockroaches and then she got cockroaches and then they decided to buy a house.

I deep clean the cage and apartment again and change the cage's location, I guess. I simply just don't know what to do anymore.

What I've noticed is me killing the bugs in his cage helps a lot, because once I didn't kill them for 4 days and there were a lot of them.

I still use the same brand of bedding, because I can't find anything else and I can't find sand bath for him from the stores, so I guess I have to order it online as well. Not really sure if I'm unhygienic / is it my fault that my hamster has bugs?

When I google a lot of people have had the same problem:
Tiny bugs on hamster. Help! - Ailments & Injuries - Hamster Hideout Forum I guess I have to change the bedding as well?

Last edited by ShadowNinjaHamster; 10-11-2021 at 12:09 AM.
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Old 10-11-2021, 05:15 AM   #39
Pebbles82
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

That link mentions lice. I also cannot think where they can be coming from except something in the cage - either food, bedding or wood items. Hay was definitely a possible source - all kinds of bugs and mites from hay. But you’ve done another cage clean since removing the hay I assume.

It really is a process of elimination. If you start with a thoroughly disinfected cage, new bedding (preferably paper based, not wood), disinfected and cleaned items and new good - there should be no bugs. Clearly eggs are hatching out and the eggs won’t be visible.

It is a real conundrum - never heard of anything like this before. What bedding are you using? Yes bugs do like cosy hamster cages with food in but I think if they were coming from outside the cage, ftom the building eg, you’d see some in the apartment elsewhere. I remember living in a house that had carpet bugs. Tiny little mites. Horrible. We never did get rid of them despite hoovering all the time, but they didn’t seem to do much harm. They clearly just kept hatching out.
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Old 10-11-2021, 07:02 AM   #40
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Default Re: I think my hamster has some health issues? I want to confirm

Hi,

When I was younger I had two robovski hamsters and one of them got ear mites. I won’t lie this chat has gotten quite long so I’m sorry if this has already been covered I’m just scan reading.

But they were tiny mites that, like you say, are barely visible I think they were brownish in colour? I was only like twelve when this happened so sorry if parts are wrong.

I occasionally saw a bug in his home and I thought it was weird so I just cleaned more. I took him to the vets eventually where they told me the mites actually were living in his ear.

They gave me some medication to put in his water daily and I did. And I do believe it helped for a while but he was older anyway so I think this was kind of the last straw.

His ear was very swollen when he passed away, and I remember coming home from school when he passed away, I knew instantly he’d died as the bugs had travelled from his ear and was all over the cage and my dresser.

If you can see a vets do, as a bug infestation will not clear up itself. I was young here like I said, and I didn’t know of exotic vets so this was a normal vet that was able to supply me with this medication.
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