Hamster-Wet Tail?

Question

I just got two boy robo hamsters yesterday, and the bigger one has been lazing about all the time after the first day. I'm pretty sure he has wet tail because his tail is wet and he smells bad, so I'm going out tomorrow to buy the medicine for it. But what do I do in the meantime? It's like 11:30, so should I keep the hamsters separated so the other one doesn't get infected? If I do that, I have no where to put one of them; they share a cage. I guess I could make a makeshift one out of a plastic bin or something for the night...help?

Answer 1

hat Causes Wet-tail

As I mentioned above, wet-tail is stress related.

    * Too much handling

    * Change in environment

    * Change in diet

    * Inadequate cage cleaning

    * Being away from mother and/or siblings

    * Death of a tank mate

Baby hamsters are more succeptable to wet-tail than juvenile and adult hamsters.

Symptoms of Wet-tail

The symptoms may not appear for a few days or so, but once they set in, you can see various symptoms.

    * Wet bottom end

    * Smell/ foul odor

    * Diarrhea

    * Lethargy

    * Lack of appetite

    * Excess sleeping

    * Not grooming itself

    * Walking with a hunched back

The most obvious symptom will be the wet bottom, tail area.

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Wet-tail Treatment

Well, luckily there are several products out today that can help cure wet-tail. You can take a trip to most of your local petstores to include Petsmart and Petland to grab a bottle of 'Dri-Tail' or 'Wet-tail Drops.' Or, you can go to a vet that sees hamsters, and he can put the hamster on Baytril or Sulfatrim.

Personally, I have had better luck with 'Dri-Tail' than with the vet prescribed medicines.

Prevent Wet-tail

For a new hamster, you can prevent wet-tail by (1) having the cage completely set up before bringing home the hamster, (2) set the hamster up in his cage and leave him alone for a MINIMUM of 1-2 days allowing him time to adjust to his new surroundings, and (3) set up the cage in a quiet place with less traffic.

If you already have a hamster that you're worried about, (1) watch how much you handle the hamster, (2) watch the duration he is out of his tank, (3) try not to change his food or surroundings drastically, and (4) do not add any new hamsters in with him.

yes separate them imidiatly

this has happened to me, make sure you act as fast as possible i didnt relize this was happening to my hampster, and when i took notice, it was to late. the vet told me to feed mine yogurt bc the can get diarea. unfortunatly i am an animal lover and it is very had to see it happen if you act to slow. take the hampster to the vet,

Answer 2

separate them, it's contagious. Also sometimes that store bought medicine doesn't work.  Mine died from wet tail 24 hrs after showing symptoms. Good luck.

Answer 3

You should try to separate them but chances are the second ones infected too. Go and buy some Dri-Tail and make sure to treat both of them. You can put this medication in the water bottle and also you can medicate the animal directly. It is suggested the you do both in animals that appear extremely weak and have had several bouts of diarrhea.

Until you get the meds the only thing you can do is keep him drinking. Wet tail dehydrates hamsters so try to make him drink. Bring the bottle to his mouth because hes probably too weak to get up and drink. You can also hydrate the animal orally with an eyedropper with some water or Pedialyte

Answer 4

Yes, keep the two separate if you can. Wet tail is very contagious and can easy affect both hamsters. Depending on where you got them you could take them back, have the store treat them for wet tail and then rebuy them once they are better. You give them a small bowl of oats that they can eat that that might help. Remove any seeds from their diets too.

If you do make a makeshift cage for the one make sure it can't get out.

Answer 5

seperate them ASAP its contagious get to the vet.

Answer 6

This does not sound like wet tail, if you have not seen any diarrhea, then do not give him any medication from over the counter. Are thinking of Dry-tail, Dri-Tail can actually cause, or worsen the symptoms of diarrhea if they have it, or get it, by killing off the hamster's "friendly" or resident bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract. This then lowers the ability of the hamster to fight against the symptoms that are causing the diarrhea. Resident bacteria are usually kept in high numbers in healthy individuals, which compete against lower numbers of intruder bacteria. These resident bacteria play a role in the immune system. If you can get some BENE BAC from the pet store this is good and really helps out in these situations. By keeping the beneficial bacteria levels high. Bene-Bac contains healthy Lactobacillus acidophilus bacteria, which is normally found in a healthy digestive tract.

If his tummy is wet and yellow this sounds more like he has been in his own urine, as his urine is normally yellow. I would wait and see before you give him any meds. If he is grooming, and eating then I do not suspect this is diarrhea, as a hamster with diarrhea is very reluctant to do that, because of abdominal cramp and pain.

Just as a note, Dwarfs do not normally get wet tail like the Syrians do but they can and do get diarrhea, this is normally a dietary problem, so always think about what you are feeding them.