Hi, Nichol;a,

How old is he and how long have you had him.
Is he scratching?

W

Hello,
I have a male hamster called Sonic.
We got him in about April, we assumed he was about 2months old when we got him.
About 3 weeks ago, we realised he had 2 bald patches underneath near his back legs.
When we first got him he was a bit jumpy, but he's not so bad now.
He runs on top of his wheel!
He's quite fat!
He's got quite a few toys.
We 'handle' him a lot.

Do you have any ideas why he's got the bald patches?

Thanks,
Megan

Hi,

This is quite normal.

W

Hi there my hamster pepe is 1 year nd 3 months old nd i just got bac from my holiday nd i noticed she had some bald patches on her hips lower back nd face, i dont know what 2 do nd neither does my mum, i read some of the other msgs nd i think it might be th new wool bedding i just got but its all natrual nd from the same make as the paper bedding which i used be4. i would appreciate iff u could maybe enlighten me on the subbject,
thanks alot x

Hi,

If this has happened only since you changed the bedding, it is reasonable to make an association. Try reverting to the paper bedding which you used before.

W

Hi

My hamster is 1 year old nd i have noticed some bald patches appearing, i thought 2 leave her for a while 2 c if the fur would come back, instead its got worse nd she now has lost some fur on her belly, lower back, on top of left leg, cheek nd just above her tail. she is eating well nd acting normal but she hasn't been drinking alot. she isnt scratching so i don't think its mites, Do u have any idea why she is losing her fur?

thanks

Hi,

Try a change of bedding - it may be that what you are using now is causing the problem.

W

i have a hamster that we adopted recently he's around a year old in the last couple of days we have noticed that some of he's fur is missing on the top of hes head ti hes back area i have read many comments that its probably old age but i have another hamster which is older but doesnt suffer with hair loss does it only affect every other hamster thanks

Hi,

Some lose their fur sooner than others, If the bare skin is not inflamed and he is not scratching, ignore it.

W

Hi,
My Hamster is only 4 months old and she is getting a bold patch on her Chin/ Arms area! She is perfectly Healthy and she is eating and drinking fine! I just dont no why she has got that patch xx

Hi, she may have some mites ( small parasites) on her skin. If the patch gets any bigger get it checked by a vet.

W

I have a 9 month old dwarf hamster called rosie and she has a bald patch on the left of her back . I think it is the bedding she has. We have put some cod liver oil on . Do you think it will help ? Thanks x

There are some mites which can come from the bedding that can cause fur loss. Are you sure your hamster is female because male hamsters get symmetrical fur loss on the flanks? Male hamsters have very big testicles so have a quick look at the back end! The hamster may worry at an injured area so this might be the cause. Putting oil on it wont make any difference. Ask your vet.

Hi i brought my son a hampster from my local pet shop approx 8months ago..its a male hampster. today when i got him out for a play out the blue he has a bold patch on his back just below his ears???we are very worried???

Skin complaints are not uncommon in hamsters. Mites can cause hair loss and the hamster may be scratching - see your vet for an injection which can cure this. Male hamsters can get symmetrical bald patches on their sides and this is normal for them. Other things like reactions to bedding or infections can cause hair loss - change the bedding for the former and see your vet for the latter.

i recently got 2 hamsters, i started to notice that one of them, missy, started to get bald spots on its back and on the back of its ear, it eats and drinks right, it sleeps a lot, but im really worried, she scratches a lot, and its starting to get red on the bald spots, help!!!!!!

MarkRicher Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Skin complaints are not uncommon in hamsters.
> Mites can cause hair loss and the hamster may be
> scratching - see your vet for an injection which
> can cure this. Male hamsters can get symmetrical
> bald patches on their sides and this is normal for
> them. Other things like reactions to bedding or
> infections can cause hair loss - change the
> bedding for the former and see your vet for the
> latter.

hi my hamsters loosing fur at the top of her head her hips side of her belly and down her back im worried what shall i do?

This sounds like mites - see your vet for an injection which will kill them

Hi my hampsyer is almost a year old she hasent been eating as much and recently i have been noticing that she is losing fur around her upper neck/back she is still very active and im really worried i need to know what to do and how to help her becuae i dont want to lose her

There are various things that this could be such as mites or allergies but also hormonal problems (Cushing's disease) can cause fur loss so see your vet so that they can decide which it is.

I have a short haired Syrian hamster she is 1 year and 5 months old. The fur around her hips has started to go bald and she is not as active as normal. I have also noticed that she is drinking a lot more than normal and eating less. Could there be a issue that I am not noticing with her. As I am a vet student at college but I cant seem to find the cause of what is wrong.

Can you please help?

This sounds typical of Cushings which is common in hamsters.


Sorry for the delay in replying but I have been on holiday.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/2011 06:59AM by MarkRicher.

help please, my hamster ( bella ) is one year old and almost 2 years old and shes lost fur on her stomach area and on her chest and shes starting to get very hyper when people come to the cage whats wrong with her?

my hamster is 8 months old and he has lost alot of his fur under his neck and around his mouth, i dont know what to do??

As you will see from all the posts above there are a few causes of hair loss in hamsters - scratching and licking causing bald patches can be caused by mites or allergies to bedding. Hair loss that is symmetrical in older hamsters may be due to Cushings disease. If it is mites then you need the vet to give the hamster a course of injections to kill them, bedding allergies mean you need to change the type of bedding you use; there is no treatment for Cushings disease in hamsters.

Hi, I brought my hamster from a pets a home store 2 weeks ago, and have just noticed she has a bald patch on her underneath around the hip area, I was told she was 10 weeks when I got her so now would be roughly 12 weeks.
I am worried, should I take her to the vets? She's eating and drinking well, and not scratching?

Anonymous User Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> We have a hamster, just over 1yr old who has a
> bald patch on her throat/chest area. Could it be
> mites or is it likely to be another problem? She
> seems to be eating a little less than normal. She
> hates the vets so we would like to avoid the
> stress if possible.

As to the above posts I would refer you to the answers above re causes of fur loss. Often until you treat for mites and see if the problem goes away it is difficult to be precise as to whether these are the cause without going to the expense of investigations. Treat for mites then see if there is still a problem in which case changing the bedding may help.

my daughters hamster fur is looking thin by her tail and hips we got her this year not to sure how old she is is this mites