Need advice re: small animals/hamsters

[shilala]

Originally Posted by Tenor CS

As we left the store, my wife rubbed her eye. Uh oh. Bright red, burning, won't stop tearing. It appears that wifey is allergic to guinea pig fur.

Christian, I'm not sure that's "allergic". I don't think there's anyone that can touch a guinea pig and touch their eyes and not have that happen.
Certain rabbits cause the same problem.
Usually people will tell you to wash your hands. I'm not sure why they didn't tell you that at the pet store, but it comes with the territory.
I'd always thought it was from the bedding, because cedar and pine is aromatic and irritates eyes anyways. We've kept pigs on the ground (my daughter used to buy them at auction and bring them home a dozen at a time to sell them) and it goes a long way toward alleviating the problem. Bedding them in newspaper helps a lot, too.