Baths

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I’m not sure how you can prevent them getting lice. To check for lice you can just move their hair and check. Maybe make it part of your weekly check if you think they may have been with other piggies that had lice.

I was just checking my boys (and girls later) when I noticed something(s) moving. With the boys I took them to the vet who confirmed. With the girls, I treated them with the meds given previously by the vet (in case the boys needed another dose).

There is static lice as well, which I’m not familiar with. I’m sure you can find info on it if you search on here.

If you suspect then take them to the vet. Home treatment isn’t recommended and some of the drugs they sell aren’t good enough to clear up any parasites or illnesses.

Forgot to add, you should only bath them if they’re dirty or you’re instructed for medical reasons.
 
Siikibam said:
I’m not sure how you can prevent them getting lice. To check for lice you can just move their hair and check. Maybe make it part of your weekly check if you think they may have been with other piggies that had lice.

I was just checking my boys (and girls later) when I noticed something(s) moving. With the boys I took them to the vet who confirmed. With the girls, I treated them with the meds given previously by the vet (in case the boys needed another dose).

There is static lice as well, which I’m not familiar with. I’m sure you can find info on it if you search on here.

If you suspect then take them to the vet. Home treatment isn’t recommended and some of the drugs they sell aren’t good enough to clear up any parasites or illnesses.

Forgot to add, you should only bath them if they’re dirty or you’re instructed for medical reasons.
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She, sugar definitely has it for sure I think she got it from spice as spice itches a lot sugar only a little bit should I take that sugar to yhe vet when I definitely know
 
I’d take them both rather than wait. I didn’t notice the girls scratching more than normal when I found them 🤷🏾‍♀️ Does spice have lice? Oh rhyme 😁😳🤣
 
To be perfectly blunt here you do not know that she definitely has lice and you cannot bathe to "prevent" or "check for" lice. Lots of itching can be down to lice but it can also be down to mites and fungal. As your piggies also have wounds that have not been checked or treated the idea of bathing them to home treat is ridiculous. As you have been told numerous times they need to see a vet for proper diagnosis and treatment to resolve the problem. I'm starting to feel this lack of interest in taking them to the vet is negligent and allowing them to continue to suffer.
 
Broad spectrum shop treatments don't work and only mask the problem. We do not advocate home treatment on this forum. The only way to make sure your piggies are lice free is to take them to a vet for proper diagnosis and treatment. Do not use this shampoo and then take your piggies to the vet as it is like wiping a crime scene and expecting to know what has happened.
 
It’s time to stop asking us the same question in different ways. Your piggies need to see a vet. If your parents won’t listen to you then show them all the answers we have already given on your many posts about the same issues. There is no substitute for seeing a vet.
 
maisiesguineapigs said:
Then why do people do home treatment then?
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If they do, it’s against our advice. Usually it’s to save money on vets bills. But it’s a false economy if you end up treating the wrong condition. Nothing you can buy (except from the vets) will have the right strength to cure a problem. It will only mask or partially treat it. And your animal suffers in the meantime.
We take animal welfare very seriously on this forum. That is why we are telling you to take your animals to see a vet.
 
People home treat because they think it is the cheaper option. It rarely is and in the meantime their pets suffer. Only a qualified vet can diagnose the problem with your guinea pigs. You have been advised time and time again that this is your only option.
 
If you were to go with the spot on to treat for lice, but your piggies are still scratching etc? Would you then go buy something else?

Please just take them (both) to the vet. You will get a treatment that is suitable for whatever it is that they have. You seem convinced they have lice. Have you checked for them or you’re just guessing because of the scratching?

I don’t know how long you’ve had them but you can take them for a general check up and whatever’s bothering them will also be seen and meds given as needed. You don’t want your girls suffering any more than they may be ☺️
 
My boy Finn and Lara are indoor piggies and I have never seen them showing any discomfort of any kind. The only reason Finn gets bum bath is because he has long hair.

So, I wondered if your piggies are indoor piggies, if so where did they get lice?
 
Seven7 said:
My boy Finn and Lara are indoor piggies and I have never seen them showing any discomfort of any kind. The only reason Finn gets bum bath is because he has long hair.

So, I wondered if your piggies are indoor piggies, if so where did they get lice?
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Well if the conditions are right you can bring fleas in from outside on your boots, I have and had the bites to prove it! Lice maybe rarer and they are usually bed bugs that feast on humans..I think the guy might mean fleas..tbf..just making an assumption.
 
Leafy Lou said:
Well if the conditions are right you can bring fleas in from outside on your boots, I have and had the bites to prove it! Lice maybe rarer and they are usually bed bugs that feast on humans..I think the guy might mean fleas..tbf..just making an assumption.
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I'm confused by this. Lice is s condition piggies can get and is completely separate to bed bugs. There are no species specific fleas for guinea pigs though. They may have a flea jump on them from another animal but not be sustained on them so I do think the op means lice.

Either way the symptoms for lice, mites and fungal are all very similar. As the piggies have wounds they are already in discomfort with whatever it is and need help
 
I doubt if many keepers on this forum have come across lice in piggies. Lice are usually a result of neglect. The only time I have seen lice in piggies is in malnourished piggies kept in very poor conditions. Usually from the big rescues where many piggies have been fighting for survival in squalor, and they need proper care, vitamins and minerals to boost their immune system and help get them well again. It’s not simply a case of curing all with a bath. Bathing is just the first step in a long process of nurturing them back to health.

Fleas are species specific.

The original poster @maisiesguineapigs has posted on several threads about their pigs scratching and having open wounds. We have advised that we cannot tell if they have mites, fungal or any other condition. And home treating will not cure the problem. The piggies need to see a vet.
 
VickiA said:
It’s time to stop asking us the same question in different ways. Your piggies need to see a vet. If your parents won’t listen to you then show them all the answers we have already given on your many posts about the same issues. There is no substitute for seeing a vet.
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They think I’m talking nonsense and it’s so annoying
 
Siikibam said:
If you were to go with the spot on to treat for lice, but your piggies are still scratching etc? Would you then go buy something else?

Please just take them (both) to the vet. You will get a treatment that is suitable for whatever it is that they have. You seem convinced they have lice. Have you checked for them or you’re just guessing because of the scratching?

I don’t know how long you’ve had them but you can take them for a general check up and whatever’s bothering them will also be seen and meds given as needed. You don’t want your girls suffering any more than they may be ☺
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maisiesguineapigs said:
They think I’m talking nonsense and it’s so annoying
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yesh my guineapigs a
Piggiefamily said:
Just take them to the vets and stop their suffering. Stop the nonsense!
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Siikibam said:
If you were to go with the spot on to treat for lice, but your piggies are still scratching etc? Would you then go buy something else?

Please just take them (both) to the vet. You will get a treatment that is suitable for whatever it is that they have. You seem convinced they have lice. Have you checked for them or you’re just guessing because of the scratching?

I don’t know how long you’ve had them but you can take them for a general check up and whatever’s bothering them will also be seen and meds given as needed. You don’t want your girls suffering any more than they may be ☺
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Yeah my guineapigs have been itching and the only thing I think is because they may have lice? I did see black speckles in my white guineapig but I haven’t seen it recently I need to double check again I dint know what to do as my parnets wont let me go to the vets so I don’t know if I should get them something as I’m going pet shopping today I have had them since January from a pet shop which isn’t a good pet shop
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Lice are white not black. I have seen them once, years ago and the only reason I could see them was because it was on a black guinea pig. Flecks in the hair could be mite egg casings or could be dried dead skin from itching due to mites or a fungal infection.
 
maisiesguineapigs said:
They think I’m talking nonsense and it’s so annoying
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How can everyone on this thread be wrong and you be right? The people responding to you here are very well educated and have seen guinea pigs suffers and die as a result of neglect. Whilst you are home treating your guinea pigs, refusing them vetinary treatment is a form of neglect. Vets are an extremely vital part of owning a guinea pig.
If you actually care at all for your guinea pigs then you would take them to the vet as they so deserve. Home treatments DO NOT work and I think you have seen enough evidence of that to believe it. Owning a pet means you have signed up to the responsibility of providing a good duty of care and right now you are proving yourself not only irresponsible, but incapable.
 
Little Ones said:
How can everyone on this thread be wrong and you be right? The people responding to you here are very well educated and have seen guinea pigs suffers and die as a result of neglect. Whilst you are home treating your guinea pigs, refusing them vetinary treatment is a form of neglect. Vets are an extremely vital part of owning a guinea pig.
If you actually care at all for your guinea pigs then you would take them to the vet as they so deserve. Home treatments DO NOT work and I think you have seen enough evidence of that to believe it. Owning a pet means you have signed up to the responsibility of providing a good duty of care and right now you are proving yourself not only irresponsible, but incapable.
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That’s actually quite horrible the guineapigs were meant for my sister but I loved them too so I own them now too and my parents wont let me go to the vets and I have seen hometreatment that works then why do they sell it in the shop the then?
 
maisiesguineapigs said:
That’s actually quite horrible the guineapigs were meant for my sister but I loved them too so I own them now too and my parents wont let me go to the vets and I have seen hometreatment that works then why do they sell it in the shop the then?
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I’ve been where you are, I was your age when I was battling my mum about the welfare of our Guinea pigs. However home treatment was always off the cards. Your pigs need a vet. That’s the bottom line, everything i said is true. Have you offered to pay for all vetinary treatments? That’s what I did when I was your age, they were allowed the vets if I paid for it. Perhaps you need to show your pigs to your parents and explain where the problems are and what they are. Explain that you are responsible for them and so they should allow you to be. They need vetinary treatment as much as a cat or dog.
Shops sell home treatments because they want money, plain and simple. Pet shops sell cages they know are too small for guinea pigs, they sell toys they know could potentially kill them, pet shops are constantly giving misinformation. That’s unfortunately just the way it works. And that’s also why this forum exists, because here people have genuine information about what works and what doesn’t.
 
Look the people advising you on here know what they are on about. Places sell the home treatment stuff but it has from peoples experience not worked.
If you cant afford a vet then you need to seriously consider why you have pets.
Sorry to be blunt but this is ridiculous - go to the vets and get the correct diagnosis and treatment for the pigs.
 
As you are clearly choosing
to ignore the advice you have been given by lots of members which is TAKE YOUR PIGGIES TO THE VET why ask for advice in the first place?
 
@maisiesguineapigs

Hi, my longhaired guinea pig Bellamy had lice which I discovered only days after bringing him home. The cause for the lice is unknown -possibly the stress of the new home and new friend? - I don't know for sure and the vet couldn't give me a definite cause especially as the setup (or at least what I saw of it) looked well kept. Luckily due to his dark skin I could see the small, white wriggling things on his rump so booked a vet appointment for that very afternoon for BOTH my boys as I knew it was highly likely my other boy now had lice also. (This isn't to say yours definitely have lice).

At the vet appointment, they did a scraping if both my boys and concluded definitely that it was indeed lice and Steve also had them though Bellamy was a bit more affected. They prescribed the best and appropriate spot on treatment (THIS IS WHY A VET IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE DOSE IS DIFFERENT FOR EACH PIG AND THEIR WEIGHT ETC. BELLAMY HAD A MUCH SMALLER DOSE THAN STEVE DUE TO SIZE). the spot on was to be administered every two weeks for a total of six weeks (though they did say that in some cases not all cases cleared up) and the vet visit for me and for my two boys cost £70 which I felt was pretty reasonable. Not to put you off but at least it's a figure that is entirely reasonable and perhaps show you the trip isn't going to cost the earth.

The lice cleared up by about the third/fourth week (though obviously I finished the course), cleaned their cage daily (though I do anyway) and now both boys are comfortable again.

Please, do see a vet. If it is lice it is easy to book an appointment and very easy for a vet to diagnose. It is going to cost less the quicker whatever it is is caught. :)
 
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