I think hes sick

Question
My sister and I have been noticing that her dwarf hamster seems to have a swollen eye and he shows sighns of a human like pink eye or cold.She trys to pick him up and he freaks out and bites her like it hurts him. He usally is very obediant and kind to us but he seems to be acting very unusual. What should we do?

Answer
Dear Rachel,
thank you for your question.
I do recommend seeing a vet with the hamster. If you can find a rodent vet near you, that's ideal. You might find one here:
http://www.vin.com/vetquest/index0.html
or you phone a few vets inyour area and ask them to recommend a vet knowledgeabe about rodents.
I cannot tell you what's wrong with your hamster, not without seeing the hamster and I have no medical training anyway. But it might be that he's in pain since he tried to bite.
I'm sorry that I cannot be of more help, but this is really a case for a vet.
Best regards
Jennifer