Jaw and throat cancer

[Ginger]

I just wrote a little message to someone who just lost her hedgehog :( and I was wondering this :

When a hedgehog get cancer, it is almost always a throat or jaw cancer. Do someone know if some specialists (vet, etc) works to find the reason of that ?

Could it be because of the chemicals ingredients in the food (I think there is always a bit there), because they breathe cigarette's smoke ? (Some people smoke not only just in front or other persons but also around their pet. :( ).

My mother got a cancer because of the cigarette. Maybe an animal can get it too ? :confused:

[Pippin'sMom]

Hmm, interesting post. I'd like to know about this too. Thank goodness that's what this is really about...after reading the title I thought your hedgie had cancer! :( Good to know that's not the case!

[Ginger]

Hmm, interesting post. I'd like to know about this too. Thank goodness that's what this is really about...after reading the title I thought your hedgie had cancer! :( Good to know that's not the case!

No. Thanks for the thought ! You are a sweetie ! :)

[Pippin'sMom]

No. Thanks for the thought ! You are a sweetie ! :)
No problem. Being a part of this forum and hearing about everyone's hedgies makes me feel like I really know them...I can't help but worry about 'em! Oh, and thank you for the nice comment, it really means a lot. :)

[teela1342]

I don't know about cancers in pets, but I do know that living in a smoking household can affect animals just like it does humans.

I had a great-aunt that smoked like a chimney. I hated visiting because I felt sorry for her 2 cats. They both had horrible breathing problems. They would sit next to you and huff and puff like they had just sprinted a mile. It was so heartbreaking! They may have had cancer too, I don't know. She wasn't big on taking her "babies" to the vet.

The definitive causes of cancer are probably as elusive in hedgies as the are in humans. You would think that if you are feeding them cat food, baby food, and human food they would be fairly safe from food related illnesses. I mean, if it is healthy for cats why wouldn't be healthy for hedgehogs?

[Ododad]

Hmm, interesting post. I'd like to know about this too. Thank goodness that's what this is really about...after reading the title I thought your hedgie had cancer! :( Good to know that's not the case!
I thought the same thing. Thanks Ginger, for scaring the crap out of me! :laugh:

[Kalandra]

Julie, While jaw and throat cancer is pretty common there are plenty that get other types that seem to be just as common. I've been noticing more and more people reporting that their hedgehogs have lymphosarcoma. There are lots of females who have been diagnosed with uterine cancer or mammary cancer.

In my own hedgehogs I have had to deal with lymphoma. oral squamous cell carcinoma, mammary carcinoma, and 2 that we didn't have a biopsy done to determine what type, one was a tiny lesion on all major organs and the other was a tumor on the stomach that ruptured. We also had a case of basal cell (benign skill cell tumor), which just goes to show not all tumors are cancerous (thankfully).

There are lots of information out there speculating why animals get cancer. Environmental conditions (polution), chemicals, and even genetics are blamed.

Just a little information that I have noticed.

[aprild0727]

I just read the post, and as all of you know, I just lost my Holiday from jaw and throat cancer on January 14th, and I just have to say that I do not smoke and I have never allowed smoking near her or the others. It is my understanding - since Holi was an albino - that albino animals are more prone to genetic diseases and defects. And, I sincerely because she was born with only one eye.

I did not have a vet that was aqcuainted with hedgehog health, so it was left to me to care for her and comfort her. Also, it was hard enough for me to know what I was dealing with because she was never the kind of hedgie that would allow me to feel or look her over until she got extremely sick. I have tried socializing her for years, but she was stubborn and a fighter. I guess that is why she lived as long as she did with the disease, and also, my love and care. I loved her dispite her anti-social behavior because it just added more personality and more of a challenge for me. Even when she was sick I was given a tiny challenge sawbing her mouth and keeping it clean and her bottom clean. She even huffed as well as she could all the way to the vet. She wore herself out huffing at the vet that she eventually fell asleep in my hand until I handed her over to the vet.

[SherAlana]

I just began work in the veterinary field as an veterinary assistant, my clinic does not see exotics, however, we all know that certain dogs and cats are prone to certain disorders and diseases based upon genetics within that breed. I suspect the same rules apply in the hedgehog world.

[Ododad]

In all of my studies and web browsing, I have never seen anything suggesting that Albino hedgehogs are any more prone to disease or defects than any other colour hedgie. Please provide a link if possible showing a study proving this. I would like to keep my information updated and correct.
Thank you. :)