Cysts?

[hedgies4life]

Can hedgehogs get cysts on their skin? Because mine has a spot that he'd been scratching at, and now there's like a sort of hole there where he scratched. It is on his chest, sort of beside his right front paw. I called the vet, and they said to just keep an eye on it and keep it clean. Has anyone heard of a hedgehog getting something like this? It seems scary but he's still eating and drinking fine. He didn't use his wheel last night, but he was plenty active when I got him out. Thanks for your help...

[pricklemouse]

Yes, they can indeed get cysts. Our big-guy Buddha just recently had one removed, heres a bit of info from a previous post about it:

Good news, Buddha has been to the vet and is doing wonderful It turns out the “pimple” he had was an encapsulated cyst, and not very harmful. Cysts can be dangerous if they break and become infected, but fortunately that hadn’t happened.

The procedure to remove it was very quick and painless and didn’t require surgery; while he was gassed for his checkup the vet simply cut it off with a razor. He didn’t bleed or even need stitches, she just used some kind of skin-glue that sealed it up completely and falls-off like a scab when it’s healed. Buddha was back to his normal self when he woke up, and seems to be none-the-wiser

So, keep your eyes open for hedgie “pimples” and don’t worry; they could just be a cyst, which are really easy and pretty much painless to remove. They’re whitish and round, and on-top of the skin like a pimple.
The whole post can be found here (http://www.chins-n-quills.com/forums/showthread.php?t=89659&highlight=cyst) Hope this helps :)

[hedgies4life]

I'm not exactly sure what it was that caused him to scratch at his skin. Most of it is healing up quite well, and there is a "hole" sort of where I think there might have been a cyst. I'm keeping an eye on it and making sure it's clean, and I've made a vet appointment for Monday afternoon. I shall keep you guys posted. Thanks pricklemouse for your help.

[hedgies4life]

Just an update-

The cyst or whatever it was seems to have been chewed off--gross I know but it didn't bleed and is not infected. I'm giving him a daily bath in just clear water to help keep it clean and treating it wtih diluted hydrogen peroxide. The vet suggested this until I can get him in on Monday and they can look at it. At least he's not distressed or sickly looking.

I'll keep you posted.

[hedgies4life]

The vet figured it was a cyst that ruptured and got infected. He's been put on Baytril for 10 days until the minor infection clears up. Hopefully he will continue to get better.