Lump in hamster's ear
- Thread starter Luna
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I think that's fairly standard for hamster surgery. Is it an exotic vet you're seeing?
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Personally I would just see the exotic vet on Monday and only pay the one consultation fee! Exotic vets know a lot more about hamsters and will be the experts at surgery and also more likely to know if surgery is necessary. Also means only one trip for the hamster. I'm sure they'll let you off paying for tomorrow's appointment if you make some reasonable excuse!
I took Luna to a vet yesterday. He believes it’s a wart but could only be certain if there was a biopsy. Bottom line is it would cost £200 for the biopsy and £100 for surgical removal. We discussed the pros and cons and aside from the hefty bill I gather that putting her to sleep to have the procedure is a huge risk as she may not survive it.
He prescribed an antibiotic for the pneumonia - Enrocare oral solution diluted in water - and I’m giving it to her via a syringe.
As for the wart, it bleeds when she scratched or washes her ear. He advised I put a verruca cream in it but my chemist says I must have a vet prescription for it and she is wary about putting salyclic acid on a hamster ear! So I clean it with saline water and hope she won’t be irritated by the wart as last night it was bleeding.
Therefore I’m still in limbo for the wart that is viral
He prescribed an antibiotic for the pneumonia - Enrocare oral solution diluted in water - and I’m giving it to her via a syringe.
As for the wart, it bleeds when she scratched or washes her ear. He advised I put a verruca cream in it but my chemist says I must have a vet prescription for it and she is wary about putting salyclic acid on a hamster ear! So I clean it with saline water and hope she won’t be irritated by the wart as last night it was bleeding.
Therefore I’m still in limbo for the wart that is viral
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I would double check with your vet that he definitely meant a salicylic acid cream. I believe it is safe for hamsters but it's best to be sure. Then see if you can buy one over-the-counter without needing to answer any questions.
Just a thought, did your vet mention the possibility of sedating Luna with a little bit of gas (which is safer than full anaesthesia) and then trying to freeze the wart off, like they do for humans? I don't know if that would work or not or if it would be safe (maybe it would bleed too much) but it just occurred to me.
Just a thought, did your vet mention the possibility of sedating Luna with a little bit of gas (which is safer than full anaesthesia) and then trying to freeze the wart off, like they do for humans? I don't know if that would work or not or if it would be safe (maybe it would bleed too much) but it just occurred to me.
Absolutely right Daisy. I am calling him tomorrow because my chemist is adamant that she would only authorise it if the vet authorised a prescription. Once I get him to commit to the actual cream I need to buy I will go to another chemist.
He did say he’d sedate with a puff of gas and then surgically remove it with a blade. He doesn’t cauterise or do cryotherapy. He was of the opinion that I could “melt” or shrink it with the varruca cream. I think the reason she scratched it yesterday is because I dabbed Vaseline on it to soften it while waiting to get the verruca cream and perhaps that irritated her and she scratched until it bled. I cleaned the area with saline and today it was all cleaned up and not bleeding. Thanks for your input.
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That's good he gave something for pneumonia. How old is she again? It might be risky having anaesthesia if she has pneumonia at the moment, but generally they do ok with anaesthesia. They will always tell you there is a risk - my vet did too, but she also said she had never lost a hamster yet.
I think personally I would want to have the surgery and have it removed in case it grew larger inside her ear and then it might be harder to operate on or more invasive.
They're not easy decisions though.
I think personally I would want to have the surgery and have it removed in case it grew larger inside her ear and then it might be harder to operate on or more invasive.
They're not easy decisions though.
I realise she’s about 15 months old. The vet had to cover himself although he said it was most likely a wart. His main concern was that she might scratch it and it would get infected. I agree that any procedure while she has pneumonia is a risk. Once I find out more about the varruca cream I will go from there. Thanks
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I hope you can get the wart cream and it helps. I can understand trying that first. ÂŁ200 sounds a lot for a biopsy. When I had surgery done it was the other way round. The surgery was done and lump removed and it was then sent away for culture to see what it was - and that bit was an optional extra fee. And she's not that young at 15 months.
There's one here that's a herbal wart cream for pets. Some people seemed to think it worked and others didn't
Thuja wart cream
Bazuka is the only one I'm aware of and it does contain salicylic acid. I think really it would need a vet prescription as the dose might be too much for a hamster. It's difficult when not many medicines are licensed for hamsters.
Bazuka
There's one here that's a herbal wart cream for pets. Some people seemed to think it worked and others didn't
Thuja wart cream
Bazuka is the only one I'm aware of and it does contain salicylic acid. I think really it would need a vet prescription as the dose might be too much for a hamster. It's difficult when not many medicines are licensed for hamsters.
Bazuka