Syrian Hamster with sore nose

Question
Hi :)
I have an Orange Syrian Hamster called Marble, he is 8 months old and has always been in good health.

A few weeks ago I noticed what looked like a white lump above his nose, my partner thought it had always been there, plus it hadn't affected Marbles personality or eating habbits so I thought nothing of it.

The lump didn't look any different when I picked Marble up yesterday but when I picked him up today it seems to of turned into a spot or a sore of some sort. The sore is smaller than the lump was, the swelling seems to of gone down and been replaced with a red pimple maybe.

Is this anything to worry about? Is he going to be okay?

He is very active, he gets 20 to 30 minutes every eening to run around the spare bedroom, this bedroom is empty so it is hazard free I guess. Empty apart from the cardboard sheets and little obsticles we put down for him to keep him occupied.

He is such a loving little pet, he enjoys being handled and hand fed, and we sit in the spare room with him whilst he plays and he climbs on to us when he is ready to go back to his cage, we'd be devastaed if he was poorly.

Do you think we should take him to the vets? Or maybe he has an allergy? We don't tend to stick to one brand of bedding or sawdust for his cage

Thanks in advance xxx

Answer
Hi Laura

Thanks for your question.

It is difficult to know what this lump is and if he needs to see a vet. It could be that he scratched himself somewhere in his house, or if he was chewing the bars, that can make the nose sore.  If it was this, perhaps it infected and is just a spot. In which case this should clear in a next few days.  However, if this is anything else - i.e. an abscess, cyst, tumor etc. then it is likely to get bigger, in which case  vet should be consulted.  Are there any signs of any other lumps around his head?  There is a condition called polyomavirus which cases wart-like lumps to appear, mainly around the head area.  These tend to need to be surgically removed - most times they don't disappear on their own and need a vet to intervene.  Usually they keep on growing.  

I would advise that you  photograph him if you can and then if it hasn't gone away in a few days you have something to compare it with.  Usually tumors/abscesses etc. get quite large and can grow rapidly but it is sometimes hard to remember how it has changed without a photo as a reference.

Regarding bedding etc. sometimes hamsters can develop allergies to these, but the symptoms are usually breathing difficulties or sneezing.  It is important to ensure that any woodchip does not contain pine, cypress or cedar as these contain a volatile oil called thujone which can cause problems. Always buy woodchip that is packaged especially for small animals.  If you think his bedding/wood chip might be a problem, the easiest way of finding out is to remove it completely and just put in paper towels for a week or two to see if there is any improvement.

If this condition comes back or if he starts to show other symptoms then I would definitely advise getting a vet to check him out, but hopefully this matter will sort itself out.

Regards
Sheila