my hamster is acting strange

Question

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Followup To

Question -
Hello my name is karissa and today my  hamster teddy has closed eyes with yellow stuff on them. Itook a quetip and water and wiped them out. He waddles when he walks. Would this be a cold our is he going to pass on>?please email back asap!

Answer -
hi karissa,

symptoms of cold include, runny eyes, nose, refusal to eat/drink, and restricted breathing. keep cleaning this eyes, but use preboiled, luke warm water instead of cold. he is probably waddling when he walks because he cant smell as his nose is running or blocked. he will need to see a vet immediately if you see any more signs of cold. so keep a very close watch on him. bearing in mind hamsters can catch colds fom humans (so wash your hands before you handle him or his cage) and develop them if they are not warm enough, so give him extra bedding and keep him nice and cosy. unforunately if a hamster cold is left untreated, he may very well pass on. but if you see a vet, this shouldnt happen.

good luck, and please let me know how you got on. thank you for your question and ask again if you need to.

joanne :)

Thank you for the advice. unfortinatly my parents dont think the vet will do anyything. I have noticed that he cant use his back feet at all and he is still bitting me.  

Answer
hi karissa,

the fact that he cant use his back feet is a major sign of a broken back (hes probably taken a bad fall) or stroke through overheating or dehydration (put a bowl of water very close to him), which explains the biting, when hes being handled hes in alot of pain. your parents NEED to take this poor animal to the vets. thats all the advice i can give for now.

let your parents know that a hamster is very cheap to take to the vets and shouldnt cos more than 15-20 dollars. or if ur in the uk 10-15 pounds.

please keep in touch and let me know what happens, my thoughts will be with u and your hamster.

best of luck

joanne xx