What is Hamster Wet Tail?
There's nothing more frustrating than seeing your precious pet sick, you'd do everything and give anything to see them happy and moving again. And when it comes to hamsters the scare is even bigger because of how tiny and fragile they look, you even get to think there's no way they can recover from a health scare.
One of the most common diseases presented on these little house rodents is the wet tail, affecting your little one and, if not detected on time, even threatening their lives. Keep reading to learn to identify if your hamster has it and how exactly should you act to save your hamster from a sad ending.
What is hamster wet tail?
The hamster wet tail disease, scientifically known as proliferative ileitis or regional enteritis, is a disease that affects a hamster's gastrointestinal system and, in no time, the rest of their body. The wet tail cause is one of two types of bacteria called Campylobacter jejuni and Lawsonia intracellularis, both of them present normally in a hamster's intestinal flora but suddenly begin to overgrow and result in a sometimes lethal diarrhea.
It's very important to mention that Wet tail is a stress-related illness, which means that anything that stresses your hamster like being separated from their mom, a moving from the pet store to your house, the death of a partner and even being handled too much and too roughly can detonate this disease. Even though Wet tail can be present in any breed and age, Roborovski hamsters, Syrian hamsters under 12 weeks old and elderly hamsters face a greater risk of getting it.
What are the symptoms of Wet tail?
Even though at first it might be a little hard to notice your hamster is sick, you must be alert to some symptoms that make it clear Wet tail is present:
The first and most noticeable symptom is the one that gives the disease its name, a wet tail. This happens because of the liquid diarrhea that keeps the tail humid and covered with feces, of course this causes another symptom which is a really foul smell, even for hamster standards you'll know that smell is not normal for your pet.
Other symptoms are related to their eating and drinking habits, they might not have appetite or thirst, they'll be a lot less active, weak and even walk with a hunched back and their ears pointing to the ground. All of this happens because they're probably severely dehydrated because of the diarrhea, you can also notice them being more aggressive and having a runny nose and sticky eyes.
Is Wet tail painful?
Keep in mind that hamsters are tiny and delicate living things, and as it would happen to you, diseases hurt them too. Wet tail is considered one of the most common, most painful and most deadly illnesses for hamsters. Since they are heavily dehydrated and with a non-stop diarrhea, good chances are they are suffering from stomach ache as well as an important irritation in their tails from having to defecate so often in so little time. You can also see a hamster is in pain with Wet tail from the way they move, they are so weak it probably hurts to even walk. Added to all of this remember their sickness is caused by stress, which is a very different but very real type of pain.
Treatment for Wet tail
The most important part of treating Wet tail is to detect it as soon as possible and start medicating. The Wet tail medication consists of an antibiotic designed specially for hamsters accompanied by a course of hydration. It might be necessary that you hand feed your hamster only with dry oats and avoid any food with water, and slowly hydrate them using a dropper that includes the medicine in it.
The Wet tail treatment cost can vary depending on the vet you see and the medicine they prescribe your pet, but you can always buy without prescription Wet tail drops at any pet store or supermarket for less than $15.
It's important that you keep in mind that even when detected and treated on time, the Wet tail survival rate is pretty low and with no exact numbers. Sometimes, a hamster can pass from 24 to 48 hours after the illness begins.
Prevention of Wet tail
You might think that because this sickness is related to stress there's nothing you can do to prevent your pet hamster from getting it, but you're wrong. Providing them a safe and stress-free environment can make a difference. Some vets recommend giving them Wet tail drops mixed with their water once in a while to prevent them from getting the disease.
Other thing that might be very important to prevent Wet tail is to keep their cage in perfect conditions, always cleans and change their bedding once in a while. If you have more than one hamster and one of them gets the disease, immediately separate them to avoid infection.
Remember the most crucial step in helping your little one overcome Wet tail disease is an early detection and professional treatment along with your care and love.