De-Worming and Mite prevention

[georgie.gabel]

In October, I got to baby boars. I want do anything I can to stop them from getting worms, mites, or fleas, but I’m not exactly sure how. I’ve found a small animal de-wormer that i think will work, amd it says add to water. How much water do I add it to so that they can get through the whole dose in a day? Is their anyway to prevent mites other than keeping their environment clean and sanitary?

 

[Piggies&buns]

We do not recommend using any kind of low dosed product as a preventative. It can cause resistance to form and then when you really do have a problem, it’s much harder to treat. Guinea pigs do not have a species specific flea. Some products can be harmful so please don’t use anything unless a vet has told you that you have a diagnosed issue and prescribed them treatment.
You are better off practising good care and giving them a good diet so they are as healthy as can possibly be and then only use any medications if they actually have a diagnosed problem.
In the Uk, worms are very rare so hearing of having to worm piggies is not common place. I’m not sure about elsewhere in the world though.

 

[Free Ranger]

I agree with this. Worms are rare here in piggies. If you have dogs/cats which soil on your grass the piggies shouldn't be eating that anyway. Mites / lice are not a serious problem in the early stages and some people never see them. We've seen them because we bring in a pig from here or there as one of ours has grown old and died, and they come in on the new pig. For this reason some people quarantine new arrivals but as parasites are easily treated here with a spot-on medication (from the vet on prescription) I've just done that if necessary. It's a bit like headlice in children - you do all you can to avoid it then you get them anyway... it's a faff but not a crisis! We've not had fleas, and we've never caught any mites or lice from our piggies either.
I've never used a low dose 'preventative' treatment because the problem of increased resistance when you might really need it is a real one, just like with antibiotics. It's lovely that you are feeling so protective of your new little boars but I'm sure they're doing just great.

 

[georgie.gabel]

I agree with this. Worms are rare here in piggies. If you have dogs/cats which soil on your grass the piggies shouldn't be eating that anyway. Mites / lice are not a serious problem in the early stages and some people never see them. We've seen them because we bring in a pig from here or there as one of ours has grown old and died, and they come in on the new pig. For this reason some people quarantine new arrivals but as parasites are easily treated here with a spot-on medication (from the vet on prescription) I've just done that if necessary. It's a bit like headlice in children - you do all you can to avoid it then you get them anyway... it's a faff but not a crisis! We've not had fleas, and we've never caught any mites or lice from our piggies either.
I've never used a low dose 'preventative' treatment because the problem of increased resistance when you might really need it is a real one, just like with antibiotics. It's lovely that you are feeling so protective of your new little boars but I'm sure they're doing just great.

Thank you! It was one of those things that I held back on because I couldn’t find much info about piggies and parasites. I do have a cat, but the piggies live indoors so don’t have access to the grass that might be soiled outside or his litter box. They seem to be pretty happy and healthy at the moment, so I’m happy with that!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Our parasite information can be found here New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you! It was one of those things that I held back on because I couldn’t find much info about piggies and parasites. I do have a cat, but the piggies live indoors so don’t have access to the grass that might be soiled outside or his litter box. They seem to be pretty happy and healthy at the moment, so I’m happy with that!

Hi!

Considering the number of piggies passing through this forum, we haven't seen more than a handful of worm cases in nearly 15 years on the forum.

A fully working immune system in well kept and healthy piggies is easily able to fend off parasites and help fighting them so you are unlikely to be confronted with bad outbreaks. Please be aware that skin parasites are species specific. It is much better (and MUCH cheaper) to hit them hard with a vet grade product and treatment after the correct hands-on diagnosis because any low dosed product cannot prevent or cut through a full outbreak if that ever happens.

In terms of parasites, the best prevention is a good hay and grass based diet with a modicum of preferably green veg and herbs (fruit and high sugar root veg like carrot are like feeding chocolate and should only ever be a treat) and no more than 1 tablespoon of pellets max per piggy per day. Guinea pigs have evolved living on hay and fresh grass, which is high in vitamin C and the reason why they have never had the need to make their own. The growth rate of the crucial chewing back teeth is balanced against the very abrasive silica in grass and hay; the self-sharpening front teeth are used for picking up and cutting food and the digestive process with two runs through the gut in order to break down the tough grass fibre with its microbiome tailored to process mainly hay and grass are all geared toward their main food. The correct diet can not only promote better overall health, it can also add another year or two to a healthy life span. Please take the time to read our diet guide, which looks at diet as a whole and at each food group in detail; it is the best illness prevention you can make.
Rather than investing in prevention products, invest in good quality hay that is ideally not imported and not harvested on an industrial scale in way that churns up the ground during harvest and allows more bugs, like hay mites, to lodge in the hay. you can find the link to our international hay guide in the general diet guide for more detailed information and resources.
Here is our diet link: Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

Here is our very useful and pretty comprehensive New Owners guide collection (of which all the links in this thread are part of). you may want to bookmark the link and browse, read and re-read at need. It is currently one of the best information resources around: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides