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Off to the vets with my piggie...

J

JellyBelly

Mama Doe
She has a skin problem, if it turns out to be mites i will be going back to the vets in the morning with al five little squeekers in tow!
 
Ivermectin or Stronghold should sort her out. Don't know if you are aware, but piggies should be bathed once every 10-12 weeks with an insecticidal shampoo. Most pigs are ok once they get used to the idea of bathing, but expect some outraged screeching to begin with if they have not had a bath before:lol: I towel dry my girls and let them dry off naturally in summer months as they live indoors, but in the winter they get blowdryed - seriously fluffy piggies then:lol:
 
my piggie Florence GOT mites after going to the vets :rolleyes: They have mites living on them harmlessly, which their immune system keeps under control, so if the mites take over it usually means their immune system is being compromised by stress or diet. Woodshavings aren't too good for their skin either and can lead to problems - ideally use megazorb.

The other reason for skin problems, which vets often misdiagnose is fungal. Guinea pigs don't do well in a humid environment, and it's humid at the moment (dehumidifier whirling away in my piggie room as I type) - ivermectin won't touch fungus, and the stress of a vet trip won't help, so I would always try treating at home with a bath in alphosyl shampoo (for dandruff) it's fungicidal as human dandruff is caused by fungus.

If that doesn't work I spray with johnsons mite spray - and they are usually better after a few days - much less stressful for them than the vets :)

This link is very good on skin problems too
http://www.oginet.com/pgurney/skinp.htm
 
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Ok so i'm back from the vets. She was treated with Ivomec. However i used Bob Martins Spot On about a week ago on them all. Now i'm worried she will be overdosed? I totally forgot. I feel terrible. Do you think she'll be ok?

They are bathed about every three months and i have bought some gorgeous guineas shampoo which i will be using next bath time.

Elve-i think it could be fungal but the vet said it was definatly mites.
We will wait and see how she is over the weekend.
Oh and i use Aubiouse under hay as bedding.
 
I have read that entire Peter Gurney website actually, i was talking to the vet about the essential oils treatment but he said he is very sceptical about it. He is old and kind of stuck in his ways though. Have you any experience with the essential oils treatment Elve?
 
No I've never had a problem that the alphosyl or mite spray didn't fix, so I haven't tried the peter guerney treatment - only found it the other day :)
 
Hi JellyBelly :wave: have you had a look on the GG website? It gives tips on how to diagnose a fungal or parasitic infection. They have products even if you are unsure. I used a melt once on one of mine, as he seemed to have a bit of scurf and also his fur broke off. One indicated fungal and one indicated a parasite. I used the melt they suggested (I forget which one now) and he is now good enough to eat - although I wouldn't of course :lol:
 
baileydonut said:
Hi JellyBelly :wave: have you had a look on the GG website? It gives tips on how to diagnose a fungal or parasitic infection. They have products even if you are unsure. I used a melt once on one of mine, as he seemed to have a bit of scurf and also his fur broke off. One indicated fungal and one indicated a parasite. I used the melt they suggested (I forget which one now) and he is now good enough to eat - although I wouldn't of course :lol:
Click to expand...

Oooh I'd forgotten them - the coconeem one sounds very similar to the peter guerney remedy :) http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/melts.html
 
Re. the Bob Martins spot on, the active ingredients are different from Ivermectin (and Bob Martins isn't actually that effective! :roll: ) so you should be OK - check with your vet if you're concerned.
 
Well someone on the guinea pig forum said that it could cause organ failure and death!
But the vet said it's fine because it's been a week. And Bens mum your right, the spot on didn't make much difference!
 
The Bob martins spot on is designed to repel parasites, not kill them so I very much doubt it would react with the Ivomec the vet gave them. If in future you decide to use a spot on again I would suggest you go for the Beapher small animal spot on as it contains ivomec, the other brands are useless.
 
I am assuming it was Bob Martins as i got it at pets@home.
It says to use every four weeks.
Anyway the next whole day i have off work will be guinea bath day! Wish me luck!
 
Oh well the pic don't work for me. I don't know what made me buy the rubbish from pets@home anyway tbh. I'm off to browse that site now!
 
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