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Old 06-10-2022, 04:10 PM   #1
Tiffanyh
Newborn Pup
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Location: North east, England
Posts: 29
Default Hair loss

Hi everyone!

I'm just after a bit of advice to help grow my syrian hamsters hair back.

I had him at the vets a couple months ago because I noticed he was losing hair around one side of his face and under his neck, she gave me some drops incase he had mites and told me to put some coconut oil on as well. His hair seemed to grow back and I continued with the coconut oil every now and then, but recently I've noticed he's losing it again and it quite bald under his neck.

I think i might go back to the vets to get some more drops just in case, she did also mention about giving him a tablet that they give cats (for something I can't remember) if the drops weren't very effective but I don't know how I feel about giving him a tablet.
He's 1y6m old so not sure if it's just because he's getting older as well? He seems like he usual self, but I feel awful that he's losing his hair and I can't pin point what it could be.

If anyone has any advice on what could be best to give him to help with his hair loss along with veterinary treatment that would be great

Thanks!
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Old 06-10-2022, 04:34 PM   #2
Ria P
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Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Wiltshire, UK
Posts: 7,103
Default Re: Hair loss

What does the skin look like? Is it red and does he scratch himself a lot?

The vet should really do a skin scrape before prescribing more treatment for mites because there can be other reasons for hairloss.

I would also feel uncomfortable about administering a tablet meant for cats.

Is this vet an exotics vet or at least a hamster knowledgeable vet?

I had dwarf hamsters who lost hair but their issues were hormonal.

A pinch of brown linseeds daily is good for the fur.
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Old 06-10-2022, 05:04 PM   #3
Pebbles82
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
Default Re: Hair loss

Hi Tiffany. How old is your hamster? It's normal for them to start losing some fur as they get older, but the best remedy for healthy fur and regrowth is a pinch of linseeds (flax seeds) daily. It really does work wonders. They end up with a lovely thick glossy coat and fur does regrow. It's also safe, healthy and hamsters like the seeds and lick them up. A bag isn't expensive and lasts a very long time. I put a pinch on a separate little dish - separate from the food.

I'm a bit concerned that your vet is giving medication for mites. That can be quite toxic to hamsters and should only be given if mites are definitely confirmed via a skin scraping (which is looked at under a microscope). Did your vet do a skin scraping?

Also linseeds are cheaper .

Sorry I just saw he is 18 months old - which is classed as elderly. I would suspect this is part of the ageing process although also check to see if there's anything he could be rubbing his face and neck against regularly. If they try and dig under a house for example and it's a small gap underneath or if a house door is not quite big enough. Also does he bar chew?

There are a number of reasons for fur loss, not just mites. I think it sounds like an unusual part of the body for mites. Causes can be ageing, some kind of disease, or even malnutrition if the food balance isn't right. That is where Linseeds would help. One way they can get malnutrition as they get older is if they have toothache in their back teeth and aren't chewing their hard food properly. Or if the front bottom teeth have got too long or got broken. Have you checked his teeth recently at the front?

If it's some kind of medical condition then there isn't much you can do at his age and as long as he seems healthy and enjoying life I wouldn't worry.
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Old 06-10-2022, 05:10 PM   #4
Pebbles82
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
Default Re: Hair loss

Something like this. Brown linseeds better than golden linseeds (nutritionally). With our hamsters I've noticed a big difference within 2 or 3 weeks.

Wholefood Earth Brown Linseed/Flaxseed - GMO Free - Natural - Vegan - Dairy Free - No Added Sugar, 1 kg : Amazon.co.uk: Grocery
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Old 06-10-2022, 11:59 PM   #5
Tiffanyh
Newborn Pup
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Location: North east, England
Posts: 29
Default Re: Hair loss

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ria P View Post
What does the skin look like? Is it red and does he scratch himself a lot?

The vet should really do a skin scrape before prescribing more treatment for mites because there can be other reasons for hairloss.

I would also feel uncomfortable about administering a tablet meant for cats.

Is this vet an exotics vet or at least a hamster knowledgeable vet?

I had dwarf hamsters who lost hair but their issues were hormonal.

A pinch of brown linseeds daily is good for the fur.
Yeah she's an exotic vet. She didn't do a skin scrape, she checked in his mouth to make sure everything was okay and couldn't see anything.

She said something about how all hamsters carry mites anyway and I think that's why she gave him some drops. Like I say his hair did start to grow back when he was getting the drops, so I thought it was working but with it coming back so soon I feel like it can't be the same thing.

Thank you, I will try some linseeds
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Old 06-11-2022, 12:20 AM   #6
Tiffanyh
Newborn Pup
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Location: North east, England
Posts: 29
Default Re: Hair loss

Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000 View Post
Hi Tiffany. How old is your hamster? It's normal for them to start losing some fur as they get older, but the best remedy for healthy fur and regrowth is a pinch of linseeds (flax seeds) daily. It really does work wonders. They end up with a lovely thick glossy coat and fur does regrow. It's also safe, healthy and hamsters like the seeds and lick them up. A bag isn't expensive and lasts a very long time. I put a pinch on a separate little dish - separate from the food.

I'm a bit concerned that your vet is giving medication for mites. That can be quite toxic to hamsters and should only be given if mites are definitely confirmed via a skin scraping (which is looked at under a microscope). Did your vet do a skin scraping?

Also linseeds are cheaper .

Sorry I just saw he is 18 months old - which is classed as elderly. I would suspect this is part of the ageing process although also check to see if there's anything he could be rubbing his face and neck against regularly. If they try and dig under a house for example and it's a small gap underneath or if a house door is not quite big enough. Also does he bar chew?

There are a number of reasons for fur loss, not just mites. I think it sounds like an unusual part of the body for mites. Causes can be ageing, some kind of disease, or even malnutrition if the food balance isn't right. That is where Linseeds would help. One way they can get malnutrition as they get older is if they have toothache in their back teeth and aren't chewing their hard food properly. Or if the front bottom teeth have got too long or got broken. Have you checked his teeth recently at the front?

If it's some kind of medical condition then there isn't much you can do at his age and as long as he seems healthy and enjoying life I wouldn't worry.
Hi - the vet didn't do a skin scrape, she checked in his mouth to make sure everything was okay and couldn't see anything. She did say that all hamsters carry mites so I think that's why she gave him the drops to see how he got on. Like I say it did grow back but surely it happening again so soon I feel like it can't be mites.

I haven't seem him bar chew, he's in a ritz cage and he usually burrows under the shelf to sleep which is quite low so he could be rubbing his face and neck alot on the bedding when going under there. I'll try and make it a bit higher to see if it helps. I did change his bedding from carefresh to Kaytee clean & cozy as I felt the carefresh wasn't as soft as it used to be.

I haven't checked his mouth myself, it's quite hard to get him to open his mouth even the vet had trouble because he's not a biter and wouldn't even bite on the instrument she was trying to use to open his mouth lol.

Thank you for the recommendation on linseeds, I'll get them ordered.

Do you think I should wait to see the vet?
As bad as I feel that he's losing hair it's quite expensive to keep going (especially if she is wanting to give more drops or a tablet used for a cat) and the exotic vet is quite far away so it's also expensive to go back a forth at the moment, I'm pretty sure he's not in pain as he's still eating and playing on a night.
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