Fungal Infection

[Shannon R]

Hi guys,

My 3 boys have what seems to be a fungal infection, I have treated them for mites/lice three times now with no luck. They have been itchy and losing hair for months now. Only one seems to have a lesion that is on his back but I have heard they don't need a lesion. My vet prescribed Ketoconazole but this is an oral med that is taken for 4 weeks and is not without its side effects. I recently had a pig pass and I think it may have been due to an antibiotic he was on for a UTI so I am extremely nervous. The vet said they have no idea about any topical solutions(we have no experienced pig vets in this area )

I was thinking about trying Imaverol which I can buy at this link:
Imaverol 100ml

I would appreciate any thoughts/help on this, as there are no extensive lesions, I was hoping to start here before oral medication @Wiebke ?

Attached pics arent the best but shows spots with hair loss and then weird white things/

Oh, of note, I have gotten ring worm myself after they were itching for awhile...so this also tells me this is likely ring worm in them

 

[Tiamolly123]

I could be wrong, but it doesn't look like ringworm. Is barbering a problem in your cage?

 

[Shannon R]

I could be wrong, but it doesn't look like ringworm. Is barbering a problem in your cage?

No it is not. I cant see what else it would be, and the fact that I now have it..seems to help the hypothesis. I have also read that lesions are not always as visible as we would hope

 

[Shannon R]

Also of note, one pig was mostly black with a whiteish undercoat...he has almost went completely white on the back end from hair loss.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!

If you can treat ringworm orally, then it is much more effective and much less stressful for you and your guinea pigs. I've never heard of a death in connection with oral fungal medication, and it has been around in the UK for the last 7 years or so!
Imaverol is fine, but you need to give a bath every three days for at least three times and follow the instructions on the label. With oral treatment, you can get away with just one bath at the end of it.
Here are our ringworm tips: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures

To be honest, the bald patches do not look like typical round ringworm patches, but there are other forms of fungal skin infection.

How have you treated for mange mites? Many pet store products are too low dosed to be effective in an acute outbreak.

 

[Shannon R]

Hi!

If you can treat ringworm orally, then it is much more effective and much less stressful for you and your guinea pigs. I've never heard of a death in connection with oral fungal medication, and it has been around in the UK for the last 7 years or so!
Imaverol is fine, but you need to give a bath every three days for at least three times and follow the instructions on the label. With oral treatment, you can get away with just one bath at the end of it.
Here are our ringworm tips: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures

To be honest, the bald patches do not look like typical round ringworm patches, but there are other forms of fungal skin infection.

How have you treated for mange mites? Many pet store products are too low dosed to be effective in an acute outbreak.

Thanks for the reply Wiebke, I agree they don't, but I don't know what else it would be at this point. I treated with Revolution prescribed by the vet all three times, and did dosing based on advice from this website, even going with the higher doses. Have you had experience with oral ketoconazole? It is for 4 weeks once a day. I have read about side effects that I am worried about like GI upset(diarrhoea etc.) One of my pigs is a baby, probably around 10 months now too, as it is based on weight I'm sure the vet has considered this.

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for the reply Wiebke, I agree they don't, but I don't know what else it would be at this point. I treated with Revolution prescribed by the vet all three times, and did dosing based on advice from this website, even going with the higher doses. Have you had experience with oral ketoconazole? It is for 4 weeks once a day. I have read about side effects that I am worried about like GI upset(diarrhoea etc.) One of my pigs is a baby, probably around 10 months now too, as it is based on weight I'm sure the vet has considered this.

Thank you for the information on the mites angle; if it was mites, then they should have cleared indeed! It is important that we take that into our consideration, especially with any new members.

We have got experience with itraconazole (brand name itrafungol) here in the UK, which is similar.

I have had itrafungol prescribed first 6 years ago when imaverol didn't get on top of ringworm in a guinea pig with a very irregular heartbeat. The oral medication did get on top of the ringworm within a week with no side effects. Ceri lived another 2 years.
Several of my guinea pigs have been successful treated with itrafungol in the intervening years, always without any problems (no loss of appetite whatsoever) including my Barri who was surrendered to a sanctuary after his previous owner home treated him wrongly to the degree that the first vet who saw him wanted to euthanise him straight away. Itrafungol has done the trick for him, and he is a very happily married 'husboar' these days with his three ladies.

I would strongly recommend to please take the plunge. An antibiotic can cause total loss of appetite, but it doesn't usually cause GI stasis; there must have been something else in play.
If you really notice a bad reaction (which I do not expect), stop the treatment and contact your vet straight away.

I have never heard of an oral fungicidal medication causing GI stasis and I know that a fair number 8-10 weeks old pet shop babies with ringworm have been successfully treated with oral fungicide instead of topically; there's never been any negative feedback. We see those ringworm babieson pretty much a near daily basis at the moment!

 

[Shannon R]

Thank you for the information on the mites angle; if it was mites, then they should have cleared indeed! It is important that we take that into our consideration, especially with any new members.

We have got experience with itraconazole (brand name itrafungol) here in the UK, which is similar.

I have had itrafungol prescribed first 6 years ago when imaverol didn't get on top of ringworm in a guinea pig with a very irregular heartbeat. The oral medication did get on top of the ringworm within a week with no side effects. Ceri lived another 2 years.
Several of my guinea pigs have been successful treated with itrafungol in the intervening years, always without any problems (no loss of appetite whatsoever) including my Barri who was surrendered to a sanctuary after his previous owner home treated him wrongly to the degree that the first vet who saw him wanted to euthanise him straight away. Itrafungol has done the trick for him, and he is a very happily married 'husboar' these days with his three ladies.

I would strongly recommend to please take the plunge. An antibiotic can cause total loss of appetite, but it doesn't usually cause GI stasis; there must have been something else in play.
If you really notice a bad reaction (which I do not expect), stop the treatment and contact your vet straight away.

I have never heard of an oral fungicidal medication causing GI stasis and I know that a fair number 8-10 weeks old pet shop babies with ringworm have been successfully treated with oral fungicide instead of topically; there's never been any negative feedback. We see those ringworm babieson pretty much a near daily basis at the moment!

@Wiebke Thank you very much. I know I have to take the plunge but this advice does help me feel better. Does the 4 week treatments of once a day sound right to you? Thanks again!

 

[Wiebke]

@Wiebke Thank you very much. I know I have to take the plunge but this advice does help me feel better. Does the 4 week treatments of once a day sound right to you? Thanks again!

Yes, it is a once a day affair with the dosage depending on the body weight. Itrafungol is a fungal cat medication; you give 0.05 ml per 100g of body weight. Since you are using a different product, you will of course have to follow your vet's prescription.
I would do a 2-3 weeks trial. If it is a fungal infection, then you should normally see a response within a week's time. If there are no changes, you may want to contact your vet and search further.

There are unfortunately skin issues that are very difficult to diagnose and to treat. I have been there with a couple of piggies of mine, so I sympathise! Any vet is going to work down the list according to how serious a problem is, starting with the potentially lethal ones first - hence mange mites and now ringworm.

 

[Hath]

Hi, I've seen ringworm cases you would never think are ringworm, but also those looking perfectly round like from a picture, yet were negative on DTM. I've recently treated my older boy, 6yrs, and his young mate with itrafungol without issues. It's so much easier than creams, plus you don't have to worry if there's patch you're not aware of...

Good luck and hope you're better soon!

 

[Shannon R]

Yes, it is a once a day affair with the dosage depending on the body weight. Itrafungol is a fungal cat medication; you give 0.05 ml per 100g of body weight. Since you are using a different product, you will of course have to follow your vet's prescription.
I would do a 2-3 weeks trial. If it is a fungal infection, then you should normally see a response within a week's time. If there are no changes, you may want to contact your vet and search further.

There are unfortunately skin issues that are very difficult to diagnose and to treat. I have been there with a couple of piggies of mine, so I sympathise! Any vet is going to work down the list according to how serious a problem is, starting with the potentially lethal ones first - hence mange mites and now ringworm.

Hi again,

My boys are still itchy/losing hair(maybe less so) after 4 weeks of treatment with Ketoconazole. Should I Imaverol 100ml for one last try?

Or should I try another shot of Revolution for mites?

Wanted to ask as the above Imaverol is $$.

Thanks for the advice!