Blind???

[riegfinnid]

I have a hamster that i picked up in an animal shelter when helping my friend adopt a cat. I"m not sure what kind he is, he doesnt match any i've seen so far, i think he might be mixed. Since i've never had hamsters before i dont really know much about what kind of health issues they might have but a couple of days ago when i took him out of the cage to let him run around i noticed that one of his eyes looks cloudy...i;ve seen that in dogs taht are blind...his eye is all discolored...it lookes like its all white-ish inside....i hope you guys know what i'm talking about lol Are hamsters known for having eye/sight problems? What should i do....It doesnt seem to bother his at all....He's doing great besides the eye thing...

[SapphireWolf]

I had an old hamster named Cujo(she's dead now), she had cataracts on both of her eyes(from old age). It dosen't really bother them much because hamsters have very poor eyesight. If you describe the hamster to me, I could help you figure out what type it is. I don't think it's a mix because the only hamsters that can interbreed are campbells dwarf hamsters, and winterwhite dwarf hamsters.

[riegfinnid]

well he's white and orange...long fluffy fur and red eyes....he's about 5-6 inches long...so far he kinda sounds like a dwarf hamster of some sort, right? well the thing about him that confuses me is the long fur on his hind legs...its like on his thighs/back area and its way longer than the rest of his fur....it looks like he has mustage (sp?) on his butt lol
when i first got him and started asking people around about it, they all said that maybe he's just shedding and thats why the fur is like that but its been like that for more than 6 months lol so i dont think its that....i dont know...i dont know much about hamsters, i got him cuz i felt sorry for him, he was in a TINY cage for 3 months and i had an extra one at home...
so you think is eye problem is due to an old age? i always wondered how old he is....

[SapphireWolf]

There's no way he could be a dwarf if he's that big, and the long hair say it all, he's a syrian. Only syrian hamsters have long hair, alot of people call them teddy bear hamsters. I'm not sure about the white on his eye, it's hard to tell because we don't know his age. I took mine to the vet when I noticed her getting the white on her eyes and the vet said it was cataracts from her old age. But, that's all I can think of that it would be.

[riegfinnid]

i've seen syrian hamsters at pet stores...he doesnt look like any of them

[SapphireWolf]

That's all he could be, dwarf hamsters only get 3inches in size, and syrians are the only type of hamsters who can have long hair. Also, there are many different colors of syrians, and different types of fur like long haired, satin, hairless, and normal. Do you have any pictures of him?

[riegfinnid]

no i dont...but i can probably get it....do syrian hamsters have red eyes? i always thought it was a little strange that he had red eyes

[SapphireWolf]

Yep, I used to have one. I love red eyes, I think they are so pretty.

[SapphireWolf]

A syrian with red eyes that is

[Tumbledown]

Even if your hamster turns out to be blind,it's no big deal,as was said before they have very poor eyesight anyway,they can only see clearly 10 to 12 inches in front of them.They make up for this by having excellent hearing and a good sense of smell.My own hamster is probably blind in one eye since birth,the eye looks normal during the daytime but at night there is no reflective "Red Eye".He gets around just fine as long you let them hear you approaching and put your hand in the cage gently and let them Scent you.Keep toys and furniture in the same place in the cage and don't move them around,my vet said,and watch out for very high levels in the cage.

[riegfinnid]

hmm maybe you're right, maybe it is a syrian hamster...i just looked up a bunch of pis of syrian hamsters and they all look completely different...maybe thats why i havent come across a hamster at a pet store that looks even remotely like mine lol
he's a cutie though...sleeps ALOT...and it takes him about 20-30 mins to completely wake up...its really funny...

[riegfinnid]

Even if your hamster turns out to be blind,it's no big deal,as was said before they have very poor eyesight anyway,they can only see clearly 10 to 12 inches in front of them.They make up for this by having excellent hearing and a good sense of smell.My own hamster is probably blind in one eye since birth,the eye looks normal during the daytime but at night there is no reflective "Red Eye".He gets around just fine as long you let them hear you approaching and put your hand in the cage gently and let them Scent you.Keep toys and furniture in the same place in the cage and don't move them around,my vet said,and watch out for very high levels in the cage.



the only thing i really knew about hamsters is that they're near sighted and are very active at night...lol but dont worry people...i spoil ALL my pets and he a great little pet (just dont touch him for the first 10 mins after he wakes up, unless there're treats involved hehe)
He's in a three level cage? is that going to be a problem, what do you think??

[Tumbledown]

It should be okay unless you see him trying to dive off the top level,my own cage has three levels but it's arranged like alternative steps so that each level leads to the next and not a long Jump to the floor.But I still moved his stone feed bowl under the bottom level so that when he does jump off(they are little daredevils sometimes) he lands on a well covered floor area.

[riegfinnid]

oh no, the cage has stairs going to the second floor , the second level has its own floor with the stairs going to the first level (so there's no jumping there) and stairs going to the 3rd half level...he could jump from that but he rarely goes there and its not high up...he can climb onto it without the ladder....besides, he's kinda clumsy lol he avoids the whole jumping thing at all costs cuz he kinda just falls more than jumps...lol i had to switch cages cuz of that...i was afraid he'd hurt himself...

[riegfinnid]

Ok, i have a meeting in 10 min, i should actually do some work now hehe....thank your for all your help guys...feel free to post more advice or what not...ill check back later...thank you again

[Tumbledown]

Mine has ladders too,but sometimes he takes the quick way down and jumps level to level. :flippy:

[xenya88]

:wavey: Just wanted to share. I have 3 syrians. All brothers. One of them is blind. He litrally has no eyes, just little dents where ones should be. That does not stop the little guy. He is the most intrepid of the 3. He has multiple levels in his cage too and has no trouble getting around what so ever. Do not despare. I think your hammy will be just fine. Congratulations on rescuing him. I hold adoption to high regards (my doggie is a rescue)! Cant wait to hear how he fares!

[riegfinnid]

:wavey: Congratulations on rescuing him. I hold adoption to high regards (my doggie is a rescue)! Cant wait to hear how he fares!

I have a rescued dog too...he's great...just has abondoment issues cuz he was neglected and kicked around by his previous owned...but he's a sweet heart...we call him our big marshmellow hehe he's just as dangerous as a marshmellow too hehe (he's a pitbull)

[xenya88]

:bouncy2: Thats so cute- marshmallow! Yeah, Ive had my dog for 13 years, since I was 9. He is still a shy with strangers and is a bit aggressive with other dogs, but he's wonderful with us! I love him dearly. I think adoption, for all animals, is the only way to go. The blind hammy I have I adopted as well, the store gave him to me for free because we knew no one would probably want him! :o Like I said, congratualtions. Hope to hear more about the Ham!

[xenya88]

Its unbelieveable how abusive people can be to animals. It makes me so mad. They are helpless creatures that we domesticated. Why would one own an animal if they were just gonna abuse it. It just makes me sick! sorry, hearing about your neglected pup made me mad! :kaioken: