Lump in hamster's ear

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Luna

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Hi. My hamster Luna is a year old and has developed a horrible growth in one ear. I’ve watched it increase in size and now she must have scratched it as it has been bleeding. I believe it’s an ear wart and will have an appointment with a vet on Sunday. I’m so upset for her. I thought it might just drop off but it doesn’t look likely. Has anyone experienced the same thing and can you give me any advice before I go for a consultation which no doubt will be quite costly? Thanks

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Hello and welcome and I'm so sorry Luna has this lump in her ear. You're doing the right thing taking her to the vet to have it diagnosed. I can't say what the vet will think it is or how to treat it. It might be simple and inexpensive or it might mean surgery. Or it might mean a small biopsy to see if it's worth doing surgery.

The only advice I can think of is to think of what questions you want to ask when you're there. Are you in the Uk?

Is she otherwise active and well and eating ok?
 
I've seen something similar to these in gerbils. They can be a benign overgrowth of cells, not exactly a tumour but similar. They are benign but can cause ear infections due to blocking the ear. If they grow inwards into the ear canal they can also cause balance issues. They may also bleed, but often they don't cause many issues at all. If you do notice significant bleeding, you can put styptic powder on it (followed by seeing a vet).

Hopefully if it mostly external rather than extending into the ear, the vet might be able to remove with a non-invasive surgery but they might also suggest waiting to see if it causes any issues as it may not.
 
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Maz said:
Hello and welcome and I'm so sorry Luna has this lump in her ear. You're doing the right thing taking her to the vet to have it diagnosed. I can't say what the vet will think it is or how to treat it. It might be simple and inexpensive or it might mean surgery. Or it might mean a small biopsy to see if it's worth doing surgery.

The only advice I can think of is to think of what questions you want to ask when you're there. Are you in the Uk?

Is she otherwise active and well and eating ok?
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Hi. Thanks for your response. I obviously want to know what it is and if it’s benign or not. I’m based in London and aside from this growth she is active and there are no problems with her eating. The only other thing she does is make a little snorting noise when she’s sleeping. Im
concerned the vet bills may escalate. I’ve sent them photos but they’ve asked to have her in for a diagnosis. Thank you
 
Daisy said:
I've seen something similar to these in gerbils. They can be a benign overgrowth of cells, not exactly a tumour but similar. They are benign but can cause ear infections due to blocking the ear. If they grow inwards into the ear canal they can also cause balance issues. They may also bleed, but often they don't cause many issues at all. If you do notice significant bleeding, you can put styptic powder on it (followed by seeing a vet).

Hopefully if it mostly external rather than extending into the ear, the vet might be able to remove with a non-invasive surgery but they might also suggest waiting to see if it causes any issues as it may not.
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Thank you for your response. I obviously don’t know yet whether they’ve grown inwards into the ear canal because this is an exterior growth that appears to be coming out of the ear.
Do you know if they bleed on their own or because it’s an irritation to her. It hasn’t seemed to affect her balance yet. I read about styptic powder but if this is a viral infection would an antibacterial powder work? She does this little constant snorting when she’s sleeping but otherwise seems absolutely fine apart from this growth.
What kind of surgical procedures would they use only the vet said he doesn’t have electrical equipment, just a blade? This would suggest he wouldn’t cauterise it. He did mention a biopsy. I’m concerned it might get out of hand financially for what might be a benign growth that aside from looking uncomfortable might detach of its own accord?
 
The best thing is to do the consultation and probably the biopsy and the vet will recommend a course of treatment. If it is not benign, the vet will give you an estimate of probable future outcomes and a time scale. It is worrying and quite scary in many ways, but the advantage is it's accessible and you can find out exactly what you are dealing with, and the vet treatment should be contained. The snorting may need treatment too, but that might just need a course of antibiotics if it's a respiratory infection. Your vet would look at this during the exam. Vets often let clients pay in installments, so you can discuss this if more extensive treatment or an op is necessary. If you qualify for PDSA treatment, that is also an option. It is well worth seeing the vet for a consultation as it really sets your mind at rest by clarifying things. The sooner you see the vet the better. Styptic powder is not expensive and just helps clotting from superficial wounds. Scratching might cause it to bleed. Good luck with this, I hope things work out OK.
 
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Socks Mum said:
The best thing is to do the consultation and probably the biopsy and the vet will recommend a course of treatment. If it is not benign, the vet will give you an estimate of probable future outcomes and a time scale. It is worrying and quite scary in many ways, but the advantage is it's accessible and you can find out exactly what you are dealing with, and the vet treatment should be contained. The snorting may need treatment too, but that might just need a course of antibiotics if it's a respiratory infection. Your vet would look at this during the exam. Vets often let clients pay in installments, so you can discuss this if more extensive treatment or an op is necessary. If you qualify for PDSA treatment, that is also an option. It is well worth seeing the vet for a consultation as it really sets your mind at rest by clarifying things. The sooner you see the vet the better. Styptic powder is not expensive and just helps clotting from superficial wounds. Scratching might cause it to bleed. Good luck with this, I hope things work out OK.
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Thanks for this. Unfortunately I don't qualify for PDSA treatment.
 
See what the vet says :-) They will explain and give you options before you have to decide anything. I've had surgery on a hamster before. It cost about £200. The vet might decide to start with anti inflammatory treatment and see if that helps (eg Metacam). But see what they say.
 
Do let us know how you get on.
 
Thanks Maz. I just took her to another vet for some advice as the first appointment I could get is Sunday. Vets won't see her for a consultation without an appointment at £55- £65 initially and that's before any treatment! What I really want to know if whether the growth would simply come off naturally anyway without expensive treatment. Anyway the consultation is booked for Sunday.
 
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That's not bad actually, for London. I'm in the north east and all the vets are charging £50 for a consultation now. I think only a vet can tell you whether it would come off by itself or not. Anti inflammatory medication can sometimes shrink things as well.
 
I've been doing a bit of research and apparently these warty looking growths are quite common in dwarf hamsters. And it is possible the vet will want to remove it surgically to avoid it getting bigger and causing more problems. The surgery may not necessarily be that expensive - it's not like abdominal surgery. But see what they say on Sunday.
 
Luna said:
Thank you for your response. I obviously don’t know yet whether they’ve grown inwards into the ear canal because this is an exterior growth that appears to be coming out of the ear.
Do you know if they bleed on their own or because it’s an irritation to her. It hasn’t seemed to affect her balance yet. I read about styptic powder but if this is a viral infection would an antibacterial powder work? She does this little constant snorting when she’s sleeping but otherwise seems absolutely fine apart from this growth.
What kind of surgical procedures would they use only the vet said he doesn’t have electrical equipment, just a blade? This would suggest he wouldn’t cauterise it. He did mention a biopsy. I’m concerned it might get out of hand financially for what might be a benign growth that aside from looking uncomfortable might detach of its own accord?
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They usually don't bleed on their own but can sometimes bleed easily if scratched.

Styptic powder doesn't cure it, it just helps to stop bleeding and prevent a secondary bacterial infection, even if the wart (if that's what it is) itself is caused by a virus.

I'm not really sure about the surgical techniques as that would depend on your vet's capabilities.
 
If it is a wart, that might be good news as warts don't tend to bleed easily or cause much irritation. It would still keeping an eye on but may not need treatment.
 
Daisy said:
They usually don't bleed on their own but can sometimes bleed easily if scratched.

Styptic powder doesn't cure it, it just helps to stop bleeding and prevent a secondary bacterial infection, even if the wart (if that's what it is) itself is caused by a virus.

I'm not really sure about the surgical techniques as that would depend on your vet's capabilities.
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The vet I'm seeing tomorrow says he does his surgery with a blade not with cauterising it. I just wish it would fall off naturally 🥴
 
🫂 I think that's fairly standard for hamster surgery. Is it an exotic vet you're seeing?
 
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