Hamster Eye Bleeding

Question
Hi, this morning I noticed my hamster was squinting his right eye much more than usual, and then this afternoon came home to find it almost completely shut again.  When I took a closer look I found that the back part of his eye, the part closest to his ear, had a bit of blood coming out of it/the socket(not dripping blood or anything mind you.  Is this minor, or should I take him to the vet?  I just cleaned his cage to minimize chance of infection. He's running around and being his normal self, just acting a bit quieter than usual and rubbing the affected area alot.
Thank you so much!

Answer
Hi Hannah

Sorry to hear about your hamster.  This might not actually be blood.  Hamsters have glands at the back of their eyes that produce a reddish fluid which lubricates the eye and this can sometimes look like blood.  If there is a problem they tend to produce a lot more of this than usual which can cause sticky eyes.

The best thing is to gently wipe the eye area with a damp cloth that has been soaked in salt water.  However, it could be that he has developed an eye infection, such as conjunctivitis which would need treating by a vet with an antibiotic eye ointment.  The overproduction of this glandular fluid can also be a sign of other illness - if a hamster is ill or has a compromised immune system then they can produce a lot more than usual.  There would be other symptoms however, such as sitting hunched, not eating properly, drinking a lot of water, diarrhoea etc.  However, as he is rubbing the area makes me wonder if there is some sort of eye infection.  I would be tempted to wipe the area and monitor him over the next 24 hours - if he is the same or worse or other symptoms appear then I would strongly advise that you get him seen by a vet.  Eye infections are fairly easy to treat.  Even in severe cases where hamsters go blind, this isn't a problem for them in captivity as their eyesight is poor anyway. Eye infections can be very painful and uncomfortable and they do need antibiotic drops/ointment to sort them out.

I hope this helps you.

regards
Sheila