Endless battle with mites?

[Pantalaimon]

one of my pigs has had static lice/hay mites from the day I got him. I’ve had him for four years now. He and my other pig at the time had two courses of topical ivermectin alongside three courses of gorgeous guineas mite shampoo, hers disappeared while his were completely unaffected. He has now had a four week course of ivermectin injections as recommended by my vet. Nothing is working. I’m beginning to feel totally lost with this.

I have had to move my new pig into half of his cage as she was in a 2x2 and after recovering from surgery she needs more space. So inevitably, she will now get mites as well.

What can I do?

 

[Pantalaimon]

His hair under a microscope. His back end is white and the whole area is literally greyish brown with mites because there are so many.

 

[Wiebke]

one of my pigs has had static lice/hay mites from the day I got him. I’ve had him for four years now. He and my other pig at the time had two courses of topical ivermectin alongside three courses of gorgeous guineas mite shampoo, hers disappeared while his were completely unaffected. He has now had a four week course of ivermectin injections as recommended by my vet. Nothing is working. I’m beginning to feel totally lost with this.

I have had to move my new pig into half of his cage as she was in a 2x2 and after recovering from surgery she needs more space. So inevitably, she will now get mites as well.

What can I do?

Hi

I am so sorry.

Would your vet be prepared to trial Stronghold (selamectin)? Cutting off all eggs fixed to hairs can also limit an acute outbreak. It rough but effective as that limits the number of mites that can lay more eggs...

Unfortunately, some strains that come with imported, industrially harvestedinternational hay brand seem to be resistant. We haven't seen those in the years before.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Videos of them walking along the hairs through a microscope.

I have now done an experiment and used a dropper to put a blob of the gorgeous guineas shampoo on the hair with the mites. I then scraped it off and looked at the mites and they appeared to be dying. So I am going to do an experiment and rub the shampoo into his coat without setting him first. He does have an interesting coat that means it is difficult to get it to take on water so I wonder whether that has contributed.

I’m still at a loss as to how on earth I can get rid of these entirely.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Hi

I am so sorry.

Would your vet be prepared to trial Stronghold (selamectin)? Cutting off all eggs fixed to hairs can also limit an acute outbreak. It rough but effective as that limits the number of mites that can lay more eggs...

Unfortunately, some strains that come with imported, industrially harvestedinternational hay brand seem to be resistant. We haven't seen those in the years before.

The thing is, I use haybox hay. So it’s a fairly commonly used brand.

I asked my vet about selamectin but he said they don’t have that there. He could possibly order in topical stuff but thought trying ivermectin injections would be a good idea first.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Hi

I am so sorry.

Would your vet be prepared to trial Stronghold (selamectin)? Cutting off all eggs fixed to hairs can also limit an acute outbreak. It rough but effective as that limits the number of mites that can lay more eggs...

Unfortunately, some strains that come with imported, industrially harvestedinternational hay brand seem to be resistant. We haven't seen those in the years before.

I’ve tried trimming his hair before but I suspect that as I was only trimming the stuff I could see mites on, they were still living on the dark hair where I couldn’t see them.

I did wonder about completely shaving him. Other than getting chilly, is there any major risk to doing this as a last resort if all else fails?

 

[Wiebke]

The thing is, I use haybox hay. So it’s a fairly commonly used brand.

I asked my vet about selamectin but he said they don’t have that there. He could possibly order in topical stuff but thought trying ivermectin injections would be a good idea first.

Ivermectin injections are the most effective way of applying ivermectin.

 

[Pantalaimon]

Ivermectin injections are the most effective way of applying ivermectin.

So perhaps selamectin could work. I will talk to my vet again. Is the selamectin in injection or spot on form?

I’ve had pigs for eight years now and I am still amazed every time at how expensive such small sites can be!

 

[Wiebke]

So perhaps selamectin could work. I will talk to my vet again. Is the selamectin in injection or spot on form?

I’ve had pigs for eight years now and I am still amazed every time at how expensive such small sites can be!

It's generally by injection with a dog product.

 

[Pantalaimon]

It's generally by injection with a dog product.

I will do some research then and talk to my vet. He said he could only get it as spot on.

Thank you so much for your help. I will update here if I ever manage to eliminate them!

I’ve just looked back at the slide on my microscope with the lice in the gorgeous guineas shampoo and all of them are dead or just barely twitching!

 

[AidaB]

Sorry to hear you’re having trouble with mites.
We have had stronghold as spot on in the past from our vets.
I hope you find something that works.

 

[Merab]

Just want to offer support for you.

 

[Pantalaimon]

So shampooing dry and then rinsing afterwards has worked incredibly well. The mites are reduced the most they have been in over a year. I’m now wondering, how often could I bathe him? I just shampoo his back end thoroughly and a little on the rest of his body, leave it to sit for a bit then rinse it off thoroughly. I’m wondering if I could do this every few days for a week or so to really have a go at these mites? I understand that bathing isn’t the best thing for them as it can irritate the skin. But at the same time, these mites need to go!

I’ve attached a picture of the mites in his fur visible during his bath yesterday.

 

[Wiebke]

I will do some research then and talk to my vet. He said he could only get it as spot on.

Thank you so much for your help. I will update here if I ever manage to eliminate them!

I’ve just looked back at the slide on my microscope with the lice in the gorgeous guineas shampoo and all of them are dead or just barely twitching!

Ivermectin and selamectin are medications that are not necessarily easy to get hold of. Vets these days can struggle and have to work with what there is available because of the worldwide demand...