TOA
PAYOH VETS
TUMOURS IN DWARF HAMSTERS -
A BOXING-GLOVED LEFT HAND
HOOK
What will you do if you need to have your left hand cut off to save your life?
(Video of a person with two hands holding things and eating).
What will you do if your older dwarf hamster need to have her left hand cut off?
(Video of patient: 2-year-old female dwarf hamster with a massive left hand tumour. Weight 22 g. Active and eating when hand-fed. )
INTRODUCTION
HAMSTER HEALTH CLINICAL RESEARCH
Saturday, Jun 22, 2013. Toa Payoh Vets, Singapore
BE
KIND TO PETS IMAGE
Singapore suffers
from haze since 4
days ago (video of
haze affecting the
morning sun at Toa
Payoh area). Most
pet owners prefer
not to visit the
vets to vaccinate
their pets. The haze
was due to the
burning of forests
in Sumatra.
Flames and smoke are
fanned by winds from
the province of Riau
in Sumatra to
Singapore. Some
burning plantations
are vast and larger
than a few towns.
Hot spots in Sumatra
and Kalimantan are
numerous and the
fires cannot be
easily doused by
water. A spike in
respiratory
illnesses, sore eyes
and throat are
present in the
residents of
Singapore. The air
pollutants increased
in the last 2 days
such that the
outlines of
buildings could not
be seen clearly.
(video).
All face masks at
pharmacies were sold
out. Face masks
retail from $1.80 to
$3.60/mask but
online sites are
selling at $25.00.
(Video of
Singaporeans wearing
masks).
So,
on this hazy
Saturday morning
(video of haze), I
expected no
clientele.
However, a mother
and daughter from
Woodlands brought in
a female dwarf
hamster to Toa Payoh
Vets. She has a
large firm globular
growth on her left
fore paw or left
hand (images). As if
she is wearing a
boxing glove.
MIDDLE
"How long has the
growth been
present?" I asked
the teenaged girl.
"Around a week," she
said.
"It feels hard and
is likely to be a
fast-growing tumour
rather than an
infected abscess," I
held the hamster by
the scruff of her
neck and felt this
lump. "The only
treatment is surgery
to remove this lump.
Since it has spread
into 100% of the
left fore paw, I
will need to
amputate the paw
before the tumour
spreads further to
the forearm."
INFORMED CONSENT
1. NO OPERATION.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN?
| Amputation saves the hamster's life. Without amputation, the hamster keeps gnawing her swollen left fore paw which is burdensome and painful. Soon infection sets in and the bacteria will spread to other parts of the body. The hamster becomes ill and toxic and will not eat. She will then die a painful death. Amputation saves her life. |
2. OPERATION - ANAESTHETIC RISKS, BLEEDING & INFECTION
|
The
anaesthetic
risk of dying
on the
operating
table is
higher in old
hamsters.
However, this
hamster is
active and
eating and
therefore, I
assess that
the risk is
minimal. Bleeding after amputation can be controlled by bandaging. Infection can be prevented by antibiotics. "Take some time to think whether you want surgery or not." I asked the mother and daughter to wait at the waiting room while I handled another case. IMPACT OF SURGERY "Your hamster will not be able to hold seeds with both paws to eat if the left front paw is amputated," I said. "Will this be OK with you. In any case, she is not able to grasp the seeds. How does she eat?" "I feed her by hand nowadays," the slim teenaged girl said. POST-OP POSSIBILITIES With the removal of the tumour, the gentle small-sized dwarf hamster may adapt and be able to grasp smaller seeds and feed herself. The mother and daughter accepted my advice to perform surgery. |
CONCLUSION
Surgery was done
under isoflurane gas
anaesthesia. The
fore paw with the
massive tumour was
amputated. Video of
hamster after
surgery. The hamster
goes home (Video and
images). It is kind
of the owners to
take action to get
the dwarf hamster
treated. In the
past, baby-boomer
generation owners
will let the
hamsters die as the
cost of a new
hamster is much
lower than
veterinary fees for
an operation.
P.S
As I record this
case at home on
Sunday June 23,
2013, 8 am,
the 3-hour PSI
(Pollutants Standard
Index) is 106
while the 24-hour
PSI is 120 - 136.
The air is much
fresher now. Just 2
days ago, the PSI
was over 400 and the
outlines of
buildings could not
be seen clearly. The
plantation fires are
said to be due to
large commercial
companies burning
forests to get the
cleared land for
their oil palm
business.
CREDITS
& MUSIC & SINGAPORE
DOWNTOWN SCENE
