What to do if bitten by a hamster to the blood

Hamster owners periodically encounter hamster bites, most often this happens during the period of taming the rodent to the hands. Although pet teeth are not dangerous, you need to know what to do if you get bitten by a hamster.

What provokes the little brave man to bite?

Hamsters bite in self-defense, because of distrust of the owner, mistreatment. In order to avoid the bite of a rodent in the future, it must be tamed.

This is interesting: There are cases in history when, thanks to their thin teeth, Djungarian hamsters were able to protect themselves from hunting dogs.

Rodents bite the finger in such cases:

• The female is waiting for offspring (aggression is explained by the instinct of self-preservation). The most dangerous is a female with cubs;
• The hamster felt pain, for example, as a result of improper handling. The child can strongly squeeze the animal in his hand, to which the rodent will certainly react;
• A newly bought dzhungarik can respond to a change of scenery. You should not take a hamster in your arms immediately after purchase – let him adapt to the new home;
• A pet does not grind its teeth on special chalk and crackers;
• If the owner of the hamster is a child, adults should tell what to do if the hamster has bitten to the point of blood and emphasize that the animal is not a toy;
• A hamster should feel secure in its house, so even if a four-legged fluffy lump hurt you, in no case should you stretch your hands into the animal’s cage and beat it. The house is his personal territory.

What to do if a hamster bites?

The bite of a hamster is not dangerous, but it is not pleasant for a person. It’s all about the rodent’s teeth – they are sharp and thin, at the time of the bite they diverge in different directions, causing sharp pain. A lacerated wound appears at the site of the lesion.

A hamster bite should not cause a violent reaction, it is contraindicated to beat a pet and yell at him, he will not understand what is the matter, but he will hold a grudge. Whether it is dangerous is difficult to say, what matters is how you behaved after the bite. HTo prevent the consequences of a hamster bite, put the rodent in a cage, wash the wound with antibacterial or laundry soap, treat with peroxide and brilliant green. The process of disinfection is very important, because bacteria can cause inflammation. There is no need to press anything from the wound. You can stick a band-aid to continue doing household chores – put on a fingertip.

If a child who has not been vaccinated against tetanus has been bitten, get a preventive vaccination.

What could be the danger?

A hamster bite is not dangerous, since cases of rabies transmission by these animals have not been registered. But they may suffer from other ailments. If a rodent that has bitten a person gets sick, dies, or abscesses, itching, redness, and a swollen finger appear at the site of the bite, consult a doctor. Vigilance does not hurt if the hamster bites the child.

Breaking the habit of biting

Parents may begin to panic, giving in to which they do not know what to do if the hamster has bitten the child. After the wound is disinfected, and the “wool robber” is sitting in the cage, you need to discuss the situation with the child. Explain that teeth are the only way to protect, and a bite is a reaction to careless handling.

Bites may continue until you have tamed the rodent and begin to treat it affectionately. In rare cases, the animal’s temperament is so aggressive that the hamster may bite for no reason. In such cases, you need to be patient and slowly but surely tame the rodent.

To wean a hamster from biting, treat him with a treat – put your favorite treat in the cage, but do not remove your hand, let him sniff it and remember the smell. The next step is to offer food from your hand. You can start petting the animal after he has learned to eat from his hand.

A hamster accustomed to hands will allow you to take yourself out of the cage, he will like to sit on your hand, but he is unlikely to allow himself to be squeezed, and bites until blood can be repeated.

Important! If the animal is not vaccinated or the bite of a hamster for some reason causes you anxiety, go for a consultation with a doctor. Most likely, he will prescribe an ointment for inflammation.

According to doctors, these animals carry salmonella and meningitis. In practice, infection is unlikely.

A rodent bite resembles a normal wound and heals quickly. Rarely, there is a slight increase in temperature, the wound abscesses, swells. This is evidence of an infection.

Important: even with a bite to the blood, a hamster cannot infect the owner with rabies or tetanus if he has not come into contact with an infected animal.

For a child, a wound from a rodent’s teeth is more dangerous than for an adult, since children scratch them, opening up access to bacteria, they cannot treat the affected area on their own and tell their parents about it in time.

If the hamster harmed the child, for some time you need to watch both the child and the animal: are both healthy and cheerful? You have no reason to worry. Hamsters most often bite children, this is due to the fact that kids spend more time with animals: they want to play with them, while animals go to bed, they do not always understand that a small fluff is a living creature. The self-preservation instinct of the animal wins and the hamster is forced to bite the offender.

If the hamster is well-fed, rested, in a good mood, he will never bite his master and will sit on his palm with pleasure.