Is my hamster hurt or sick?

Question
My hamster got stuck on the bars of his cage, squealed and fell about a foot onto a glass table last night and is now not his usual self. His eyes are squinty, he's very slow, I haven't seen him eat today and he's not climbing up the bars of his cage as he normally does. I haven't noticed a limp or anything wrong with his legs but one side of his face looks slightly swollen, unless it's just food in his cheek. Do you have any suggestions for me?

Answer
Hi Stephanie

thanks for your question.  I'm sorry to hear about your hamster.

There could be a number of things going on.  Generally hamsters are pretty robust little creatures and a fall doesn't always hurt them.  However, they can get winded, bruised, break bones or suffer internal injuries.

If he is just winded and bruised, then in a day or two he should be back to normal.  He may want to sleep a bit now, but should rally and look more like his old self quite quickly.

If he has suffered internal injuries, then he will need to see a vet.  Broken limbs are not a problem as they usually heal on their own over about 4 weeks (they do usually limp or drag the foot - from what you've said it doesn't sound like he has broken a leg) but other bones/joints would be a serious problem.

The fact that his face is swollen could be that he had food in his cheek when he fell and this has injured him.  If you gently touch the 'swollen' cheek - what does it feel like?  If it is smooth, or spongey then it sounds like swelling, but if it is lumpy then it is more likely to be food.  Was there any sign of blood by his mouth when he landed, or has there been since?

Can you see inside his mouth - i know this is not easy with a hamster, especially if he has hurt himself he is more likely to be unusually aggressive, however it would be worth trying to look at his teeth.  The bottom teeth are naturally long, however, there is a chance that one of his teeth has broken, perhaps punctured his cheek etc. so I would suggest just trying to open his mouth and have a quick look.

If you gently run your finger along his jaw line does it feel OK - i.e. does it feel as though it is in the correct place, or is the joint out of alignment?

If it is, then I would advise getting a vet to have a look in case he's dislocated it.

Regarding food - right now I would give him soft food - scrambled egg, baby food (either the wet variety in jars/tins or mix up some of the powdered type with a little water).  If he has some sort of injury in his mouth that is stopping him from eating, then this might help.  Make sure he has his usual dry hamster mix too - too much soft food can cause teeth to overgrow.

If he gets worse over the next day or two, or no better for that matter, then I would definitely advise getting him seen by a vet.  It is important that he isn't in pain.  

I had a hamster once who fell from his bars and was very ill - he looked as though he was dying in that he could hardly move, was ice cold and couldn't eat.  I nursed him all evening and expected him to die in the night, and was totally shocked the next day when I found he was much brighter.  Only a couple of days later he was back to normal, so if this is what has happened to your hamster, then you should see some improvement fairly quickly.  If you are in any doublt, however, please get him seen by a vet.

I hope you get on OK.

Regards
Sheila