Often, when choosing a hamster, people try to find out all the nuances about its health, maintenance, care, etc. This is the right tactic, because it is better to immediately know what we will face in the future. In markets and pet stores you can find a wide variety of breeds of hamsters.
There are both small Djungarians and long-haired Syrians. Occasionally you may see a white hamster with red eyes. Usually such animals scare people and they pass by. After all, such an appearance is associated with congenital pathologies, weakness, and diseases. However, you should not judge a hamster just by its appearance.
In fact, even a hamster with red eyes can be completely healthy and capable of producing good offspring. It is only important to learn how to determine what causes the strange coloring. Below we will help you determine why your hamster has red, although otherwise completely normal, eyes. This may depend on several factors.
Among them, the most common are tiny Djungarian and long-haired Syrian hamsters. A white hamster with red eyes is less attractive and even frightening to humans. This appearance gives rise to false assumptions about the disease and pathologies of the animal. But here it is important not to rush to conclusions and figure out why the hamster has red eyes.
Most often, the red-eyed hamster is absolutely healthy and ready to give the same strong offspring. The main thing is the ability to determine what contributed to such an unusual color. Below it will become clear exactly how to do this and you can easily figure out on your own why the hamster has red eyes. There are no other oddities in these eyes, only the color. So, there are several factors that influence color.
Breed characteristics
You need to start with one simple fact: red eyes in hamsters do not in all cases indicate an illness in the animals.
Moreover, many breeds of rodents have such eyes initially (more precisely, this is a consequence of selection work). In these cases, “redness” is just breed characteristics:
- Campbell's hamsters. Not all of them, but only some color varieties (light, including sandy and amber).
- Many other hamsters with gray, brown, white coloring, as well as in the “ivory” variants, have red eyes.
There are exceptions too. For example, among “jungarians” this coloring of the cornea is not found at all, with the exception of albinos. However, it is impossible to describe all possible breed variations within one article. If there are doubts related to the coat color and eye color of the animal, consultation with an experienced breeder is necessary.
In particular, there is a classic situation when the same Campbell hamsters are passed off as Djungarian hamsters. So, if in the first case animals have red eyes and this is allowed by breed standards, then in principle Djungarians cannot have red eyes.
Oral and dental diseases
Hamsters, like any rodents, grow their incisors throughout their lives, so owners should pay special attention to oral hygiene and the animals' teeth. If the pet does not grind down its teeth, this will lead to injury, damage to the oral mucosa, the development of acute inflammation, the formation of abscesses, and abscesses.
Pathologies and dental diseases in Djungarians and Syrians are manifested by redness of the mucous membranes, hypersalivation, decreased appetite, weight loss, abnormal growth, deformation of the incisors, and inflammation of the cheek pouches.
Inflammation of the cheek pouches is one of the most commonly diagnosed pathologies. It is characterized by inflammation, prolapse (prolapse), and the appearance of pathological formations. The disease develops due to injury to the oral mucosa. With this pathology, the animals behave restlessly, rubbing their cheeks and muzzle with their paws. Appetite decreases. Saliva flows from the mouth. As a rule, the pathological process affects the inner surface of the cheeks.
Long incisors provoke dental diseases in hamsters
To relieve inflammation, you need to rinse your pet’s mouth with an antiseptic solution or chamomile decoction. To normalize digestion, give your hamster probiotics and enzymes.
For neoplasms, surgical treatment, restorative, and symptomatic medications are prescribed.
If your hamster has inflamed cheek pouches, treatment should be carried out by a veterinarian. The specialist will carefully turn out the cheeks and clean them of food debris. Inflammation will be relieved by bactericidal drugs, antiseptics, and medications for local and general treatment. After therapy, the hamster must be kept on a fasting diet for 12–14 hours.
Albino hamsters with red eyes
The “classics” are albino hamsters with red eyes. In their case, the red color of the cornea is absolutely normal and does not pose any danger to the health of the animal. This color is due to the fact that blood vessels are visible through the pigment-less cornea.
It is generally accepted that animals with red eyes are necessarily blind from birth, but this is not at all true. In most cases, “red eyes” do not have problems with vision. Moreover, blindness is weakly associated with eye color. If blind animals regularly appear in the litter of animals, then such producers should be excluded from the reproduction process due to the presence of some defective genes.
Belmo
This is the name of a white spot on the cornea of the eye; it can form as a result of injury or cataract. It can be small in size or cover the entire corneal area. But always, if you notice anything like this, you need to show the animal to a doctor.
A separate case, although not uncommon, is when a hamster has a white spot on its eye. Veterinarians call this pathology a thorn. The main reason that a hamster's eye turns white is trauma, in some cases cataracts.
It also happens that a hamster has a white spot on his eye that completely covers the entire eye. Homkin's white eyes need to be examined by a veterinarian to determine whether it is an injury or indeed a cataract. But neither one nor the other is an infectious disease, so it cannot be treated with any drops or ointments. Your pet will continue to live, but with the resulting defect.
Red eye diseases in hamsters
Any diseases or pathologies associated with red eyes in hamsters are fraught with the development of blindness, and a blind pet will have a significantly reduced level and life expectancy.
Blindness
Blindness is not a disease, but a consequence of a disease. For example, blindness accompanied by severe redness of the eyes is often the result of blows that burst blood vessels.
Due to the “blood filling” of the cornea, light cannot reach the lens, causing the animal to lose vision. If the mechanical impact was not strong, then this may be a temporary phenomenon. Otherwise, the hamster may lose not only its vision, but also the eye itself.
Hemorrhages and the appearance of a red color can be accompanied by many parasitic diseases and inflammations of infectious origin. Getting caustic and toxic substances into the eyes leads to the same results. Because of this, when a hamster roams freely in an apartment, it is necessary to carefully isolate household chemicals and other potentially dangerous reagents from the animal’s possible access.
In all these cases, the following symptoms quickly develop:
- The hamster begins to behave strangely, constantly bumping into objects around him.
- For the first few days, the animal constantly squeaks and shows other signs of anxiety.
- The eyes become red and cloudy.
- If you look closely, you can see how often the animal began to sniff and generally rely solely on its sense of smell.
Treatment depends directly on the underlying cause of blindness. Anti-inflammatory, antiparasitic, antifungal drugs can be prescribed; specialists resort to washing the conjunctival cavity with antiseptic compounds, etc.
Infections
A very common cause of red eyes is infection. As a rule, redness and swelling are a 100% sign of conjunctivitis. The causes of inflammation in this case can be extremely varied:
- The conjunctival cavity becomes very red and swollen , the hamster becomes “narrow-eyed”, acquiring a thoughtful squint. • Very often, discharges appear from the eyes, the nature of which is associated with the type of inflammatory process (pus - with purulent, serous fluid - with serous, etc.).
- A characteristic sign of conjunctivitis in many cases is redness of the eye with the simultaneous development of photophobia (photophobia). The hamster squints at the sight of any light, and if you shine a flashlight on it, it tends to run away into the house. This is due to severe irritation and soreness of the mucous membranes.
- If the inflammation is severe, the animal feels unwell , eats little or refuses food altogether, quickly loses weight and may well die due to severe exhaustion.
What to fear?
It happens that an ordinary non-albino hamster, with black eyes and not white fur, suddenly develops redness in or around the eyes, which has never been observed before. Here you cannot do without consultation and a thorough examination of the baby by a veterinarian.
Most likely, treatment will be needed, since hamsters, like other representatives of the fauna, are often susceptible to diseases. In a number of ailments, the eye may be directly affected, or redness will only be a symptom of a disease in another organ. The vigilance of the owner and a thorough examination of the animal by a specialist are the most important factors for timely and effective treatment.
The easiest way is to recognize blindness on your own. Whether congenital or acquired as a result of injury, such troubles can happen. When purchasing, in the process of observing the hamster, it will immediately become clear that he does not see. The animal mainly lies down and moves little; communication with comrades will also be significantly limited. The eyes may fester or have slight swelling. If you consult a doctor in a timely manner, at an early stage, the baby’s vision can be saved.
In addition to blindness, other diseases are possible. The protrusion of the eyes allows infection to easily enter them. Dust may get in after long walks around the room, conjunctivitis will not take long to occur. It may also be the fault of the owner, who did not bother to change the bedding and clean up the cage in a timely manner.
- discharge from the eyes,
- wet, sticky and swollen eyelids,
- redness,
- inactivity and drowsiness of the animal.
Self-treatment can do more harm to the animal than alleviate its condition. Until the hamster can be shown to the veterinarian, it is important to isolate it, clean the cage with antiseptics or potassium permanganate solution, and carefully treat all parts of the cage interior. Purchase eye drops that are safe for hamsters and apply up to five times a day, depending on the severity of the infection. The diet will also help the animal recover faster and come to its senses. Natural cereal diet and chicken meat.
This is what it is - a breed of hamsters with red eyes. Be more attentive to your pets, because they, just like people, need care and love. And if you previously walked past these amazing white lumps, perhaps now you should take a closer look at them? They will definitely reciprocate your feelings.
Causes of red spots around the eyes
Sometimes it happens that it is not the eyes themselves that become red and swollen, but only the skin around them. What are the causes of red spots around the eyes? In many ways, predisposing factors are in one way or another associated with other ophthalmological diseases:
- Very often, redness of the skin is explained by the irritating effect of the inflammatory exudate that flows from the eyes during conjunctivitis.
- In addition, many eye pathologies are characterized by severe itching and other unpleasant sensations, due to which the animal constantly rubs its eyelids and the skin around them with its paws. Simply put, redness is a consequence of rubbing and scratching.
Age-related changes
As a hamster ages, a white spot may appear on its eye. This disease is called cataract, it is characteristic of mammals. With it, the lens of the eye becomes cloudy, often in the pupil area, sometimes around the perimeter. First a gray spot appears, then it turns white over time. This particular disease in rodents cannot be cured.
Cataracts can be caused by stress, eye trauma, and spots can also appear as a result of other diseases, for example. food poisoning. In the Djungarian hamster - as a result of diabetes mellitus. Constant sun can also provoke the appearance of this disease: the cage cannot be kept in the sun all the time.
There are recommendations that you can follow to avoid developing the disease:
- do not keep the cage in the sun;
- do not feed the animal sweet treats;
- give your hamster a lot of plant foods: carrots, greens, zucchini and others;
- do not cause eye diseases and treat in a timely manner.
Sometimes hamsters have a congenital cataract. Hamsters don’t see very well anyway, and a thorn will interfere even more. To prevent your pet from getting hurt due to poor visibility, make the cage more spacious and do not put many objects in there.
As others have said, hamsters have poor vision, so do everything you can to avoid making it worse. A good owner will definitely keep an eye on this. You just need to monitor the cleanliness and nutrition of your pet and sometimes study it, and of course, give care and love.
Eye care for hamsters
Proper eye care for hamsters can help prevent or solve many problems:
- The pet should be examined regularly. If you notice signs of something wrong, it is better to immediately contact a veterinarian.
- Representatives of long-haired breeds need to trim the hair around the eyes to prevent hairs from getting into them.
- Do not use bedding material of questionable quality, since saving on bedding often even leads to the death of animals (including from poisoning and ingestion of foreign objects).
- If during a visual examination foreign bodies (sawdust or something similar) were found in the animal’s eyes, you can try to get rid of them yourself. This requires the smallest syringe and sterile, warm saline solution. With their help, carefully spreading the pet’s eyelids, they carefully wash away the debris.
Prevention of eye diseases
As you know, a disease is always easier to prevent than to treat.
By following some simple recommendations, you can reduce the risk of eye diseases in your pet to a minimum:
- Use a material for bedding that will not cause mechanical damage to the eyes and in which bacteria will not accumulate. Pet stores sell special litters; you can use odorless cat litter or wood litter.
- You should not keep many hamsters in one cage, as this can be dangerous.
- Separate from the rest of the hamsters those who have congenital diseases or are genetically predisposed to them.
- Do not place the cage in direct sunlight.
- Examine your pet's eyes regularly for signs of injury.
- Try to minimize or completely eliminate sweets from your diet.
Hamsters often have eye problems and various diseases. This problem can occur in hamsters of any age, both baby and old hamsters.
What is meant by unsanitary conditions?
Lack of proper care is the most common reason why a hamster's eye festers. Of course, unsanitary conditions for keeping an animal primarily mean infrequent cleaning.
Paradoxical as it may seem, hamsters that are kept in special cages for rodents or in enclosures designed for them are the most likely to get sick from dirt. Less often than others, pets living in jars, old aquariums, and bird cages get sick.
Why is this happening? It's all about the design of the bottom of the rodent's home. In special cages it is double, and the owners simply do not immediately notice that they need to tidy up. Fumes from urine and feces swelling in it, fallen grains and pieces of other food corrode the cornea and cause a severe allergic reaction. In jars, aquariums and bird cages there is no double bottom, and a person immediately notices when it is necessary to clean a pet’s home.
However, people who regularly clean enclosures or cages often wonder what to do if a hamster’s eye festers. Since owners do not allow dirt on the pallet, they rarely associate inflammation of the small pet’s organs of vision with unsanitary conditions. Meanwhile, people often buy various houses, labyrinths and other cute objects for their hamsters, in which rodents love to spend time and set up storage rooms. But their owners often forget to wash these houses and labyrinths.
