Symptoms of wet tail pet hamster disease
The first signs of the wet-tail pet hamster disease are a sloppy coat, loss of appetite, and laziness. This is quickly followed by excessive, watery diarrhea that can lead to blood traces. Also, a hunched-over pose because of abdominal pain. The name of the disease is due to the fact that the perianal area appears continuously wet from abundant diarrhea. In some cases, a rectal prolapse may happen. The mucosa of the rectum protrudes from the anus due to the great inflammation and constant efforts to defecate. The most common (up to 80% of cases) is that the pet hamsters weaken and die in a period of 2 to 6 days. However, some die even before showing symptoms.
A pet hamster with a wet tail requires urgent veterinary attention. If it lives with other rodents, it must be isolated and extreme hygiene measures must be kept. It is necessary to wash your hands and sanitize all utensils after touching it. Don’t forget to clean its cage or accessories. Also, even then it is recommended that you not be the same person who cares for the healthy and the sick. Healthy people may have oxytetracycline or erythromycin added to the water in an attempt to protect them.
Treatment for wet tail disease
To try a treatment it is important to keep the pet hamster warm and clean, with the least possible stress. Fluids lost through diarrhea should be replaced by mouth with a pediatric electrolyte solution or lactated Ringer’s injections. All solid foods should be suspended for at least 24 hours. An antibiotic for gram-negative germs, such as neomycin or enrofloxacin, is usually prescribed. They are given by mouth as drops once or twice a day. Nonspecific supportive treatments that are added are Kaolin. They are given 2 to 3 drops 3 times a day, vitamin B (such as brewer’s yeast), or a multivitamin.
It is unknown if there is a genetic predisposition for wet tail pet hamster disease. However, it has been seen that not all hamsters get sick. Therefore it is recommended not to reproduce those who have suffered from it. The proliferative ileitis is more common in Syrian hamsters, being extremely rare in Russian or Chinese. If you have a lot of hamsters, it is a good measure to subject any new acquisition. Specifically to a quarantine period of one week. That way, it will avoid the risks of spreading this terrible disease.
