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Guinea Pig Gone Mad

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kate4001

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Mar 31, 2020
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Hi everyone, no idea what I just went through. I have two guinea pigs that I previously posted about having ringworm. They have had it before-it fully developed enough for me to see that something was up about a month after I got them in November. So I have 2 midwestern cages put together for my boys, and my vet recommended that I quarantine them each in a cage both times they had it. I quarantined them last time, and it was just about the saddest, worst month for me and them. They chewed the cage so much to get to eachother that the paint is completely off-I’m sure they ingested a ton of it. This time I decided that I couldn’t come close to quarantining them again, after what happened tonight I know I couldn’t if I wanted to. I had been keeping them to both in the purple cage at night and both in the pink cage by day, that way I only had to clean one cage at a time instead of disinfecting the entire two cages. I had just put them both in their purple cage after putting on their ringworm cream, when my oldest started flipping out. Mind you I had only starting keeping them to one cage at intervals a day or so ago. My eldest zoomed to the front of the cage suddenly, running near the other cage and hiding in the closest tunnel over and over. I thought he was popcorning, as they had been when they got into their cage for the night the past few days. He had peed so much in his little spot. I thought he was just hiding and I was freaking him out-they are overwhelmed by me lately as I keep picking them up and irritating them with putting the cream on them. I left the room for awhile and when I came back he was in the same position, standing upright. I turned to his brother for a minute, when I heard a huge noise and in a split second looked to find him out of the cage looking a bit shocked, he didn’t run away and let me quickly grab him up. I put him on my lap for awhile and he sat still with me seeming calm. He kept looking off to the cage I had blocked off for the night. The second door to that cage was open and I suspected that he had been trying to jump out so he could get in the cage through that door. I put him back in his cage with his brother and he was fine for a moment, I turned and suddenly he ran and jumped face-first into the closed second door of his other cage that is against a wall. I sat back and in a split second, he jumped over the divider walls between the two cages into the bloody pink cage after all. After feeling that my suspicion had been confirmed I quickly set up the pink cage, and put a cover over the ramps so they could go back and forth into each cage. I guess now I really know that I have to keep things this way, I am afraid the poor dear would hurt himself with launching against the sides as he did. He is now sitting under his tunnel that I moved to the pink cage, but wouldn’t take a treat from me when usually thats all he wants. I think I am completely stressing them out with all this ringworm treatment. Should I be seeing certain signs that he was hurt from this jump and fall? I am frankly afraid to go near him again tonight, I have never seen such behavior from him, it shocked me as well. I will see if he is up and about tomorrow when I wake up, it is early in the morning where I live. Does anyone have any recommendations about making the ringworm treatment less stressful for them? Today was their bathing day with their special shampoo so I figure this must have made them quite upset, does anyone have any bathing tips? I had always been told that guinea pigs need a year to fully acclimate to their environment, mine are rescues that have had a long story before me, and I know having to keep changing things around and having ringworm show up twice in the short time I have had them was not the best way for them to get to know me. Should I call the vet and discuss what just happened or is it not necessary? Does anyone know if GuineaDad pads are really anti-bacterial? We had them at first but threw them out as we thought it had caused the ringworm, now I see that they might not be the cause as the got it again on the disposable pads. I also found the GuineaDad pads easy as a solution to their bedding, I thought that they had gotten used to them as a luxury as well:). Thanks for reading and I really appreciate any recommendations.
 
This must be so stressful for you and the piggies. Someone more experienced may be able to help with some of your questions but as far as the Guinea dad liners go, I haven't had any trouble with ringworm on them so I can only recommend them as a bedding. But under the circumstances I would wash them morning and evening. I do this twice daily anyway especially in the kitchen/hay area, its just nice for them to have clean bedding twice a day.
 
kate4001 said:
Hi everyone, no idea what I just went through. I have two guinea pigs that I previously posted about having ringworm. They have had it before-it fully developed enough for me to see that something was up about a month after I got them in November. So I have 2 midwestern cages put together for my boys, and my vet recommended that I quarantine them each in a cage both times they had it. I quarantined them last time, and it was just about the saddest, worst month for me and them. They chewed the cage so much to get to eachother that the paint is completely off-I’m sure they ingested a ton of it. This time I decided that I couldn’t come close to quarantining them again, after what happened tonight I know I couldn’t if I wanted to. I had been keeping them to both in the purple cage at night and both in the pink cage by day, that way I only had to clean one cage at a time instead of disinfecting the entire two cages. I had just put them both in their purple cage after putting on their ringworm cream, when my oldest started flipping out. Mind you I had only starting keeping them to one cage at intervals a day or so ago. My eldest zoomed to the front of the cage suddenly, running near the other cage and hiding in the closest tunnel over and over. I thought he was popcorning, as they had been when they got into their cage for the night the past few days. He had peed so much in his little spot. I thought he was just hiding and I was freaking him out-they are overwhelmed by me lately as I keep picking them up and irritating them with putting the cream on them. I left the room for awhile and when I came back he was in the same position, standing upright. I turned to his brother for a minute, when I heard a huge noise and in a split second looked to find him out of the cage looking a bit shocked, he didn’t run away and let me quickly grab him up. I put him on my lap for awhile and he sat still with me seeming calm. He kept looking off to the cage I had blocked off for the night. The second door to that cage was open and I suspected that he had been trying to jump out so he could get in the cage through that door. I put him back in his cage with his brother and he was fine for a moment, I turned and suddenly he ran and jumped face-first into the closed second door of his other cage that is against a wall. I sat back and in a split second, he jumped over the divider walls between the two cages into the bloody pink cage after all. After feeling that my suspicion had been confirmed I quickly set up the pink cage, and put a cover over the ramps so they could go back and forth into each cage. I guess now I really know that I have to keep things this way, I am afraid the poor dear would hurt himself with launching against the sides as he did. He is now sitting under his tunnel that I moved to the pink cage, but wouldn’t take a treat from me when usually thats all he wants. I think I am completely stressing them out with all this ringworm treatment. Should I be seeing certain signs that he was hurt from this jump and fall? I am frankly afraid to go near him again tonight, I have never seen such behavior from him, it shocked me as well. I will see if he is up and about tomorrow when I wake up, it is early in the morning where I live. Does anyone have any recommendations about making the ringworm treatment less stressful for them? Today was their bathing day with their special shampoo so I figure this must have made them quite upset, does anyone have any bathing tips? I had always been told that guinea pigs need a year to fully acclimate to their environment, mine are rescues that have had a long story before me, and I know having to keep changing things around and having ringworm show up twice in the short time I have had them was not the best way for them to get to know me. Should I call the vet and discuss what just happened or is it not necessary? Does anyone know if GuineaDad pads are really anti-bacterial? We had them at first but threw them out as we thought it had caused the ringworm, now I see that they might not be the cause as the got it again on the disposable pads. I also found the GuineaDad pads easy as a solution to their bedding, I thought that they had gotten used to them as a luxury as well:). Thanks for reading and I really appreciate any recommendations.
Click to expand...

Hi!

Which country are you in?

What need is vet strength antifungal disinfectant and not just pet shop grade (or lower) anti-bacterial pads. They won't work.
Talk to your vet about oral systemic anti-fungal medication like itrafungol (active ingredient itraconazole), ketaconazole etc.
Itrafungol (UK brand) is a cat brand, but is safe to use on guinea pigs and has been increasingly prescribed by exotics and now general vets in the UK.

It is the least stressful and most effective way of treating. You will still have to do the whole anti-fungal hygiene as the invisible ringworm spores can stay live for about 18 months or even longer and can cause another outbreak.
Here is the link to our very detailed information which is based on our long term experiences and the hard lessons learned by our members: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures
 
Shelley anne said:
This must be so stressful for you and the piggies. Someone more experienced may be able to help with some of your questions but as far as the Guinea dad liners go, I haven't had any trouble with ringworm on them so I can only recommend them as a bedding. But under the circumstances I would wash them morning and evening. I do this twice daily anyway especially in the kitchen/hay area, its just nice for them to have clean bedding twice a day.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your response. That is so interesting that you wash them twice a day. Certain people I live with are not okay with the liners being washed in our machine so I have to take them down to laundry mat once a week... I got rid of them a few months ago but wanted to switch back now, they are also very expensive, but I think its worth it since they are so clean-looking and easy to maintain. Maybe I’ll have to move out;).
 
Wiebke said:
Hi!

Which country are you in?

What need is vet strength antifungal disinfectant and not just pet shop grade (or lower) anti-bacterial pads. They won't work.
Talk to your vet about oral systemic anti-fungal medication like itrafungol (active ingredient itraconazole), ketaconazole etc.
Itrafungol (UK brand) is a cat brand, but is safe to use on guinea pigs and has been increasingly prescribed by exotics and now general vets in the UK.

It is the least stressful and most effective way of treating. You will still have to do the whole anti-fungal hygiene as the invisible ringworm spores can stay live for about 18 months or even longer and can cause another outbreak.
Here is the link to our very detailed information which is based on our long term experiences and the hard lessons learned by our members: Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for all of this information and I will be sure to check the link. I just received a shock to know that the spores can live for up 18 months. That makes me want to throw away the whole cage system and start fresh! I am in the US, my vet gave me jock itch medicine that would be used on a human to treat this. The antifungal shampoo seems to be for animals at least, haha. I am totally intrigued by the oral medication. This really doesn’t seem to be working for me, I’m working my but off and both my pigs and I are on the verge of a nervous breakdown over treatment-with jock medicine. If doesn’t seem like this working with treatment taking over a month last time and now getting on to about the 3 week period. It doesnt seem like enough for me to be slathering them with cream that they just lick off anyway. I will check the forum link for information on oral medicine for them and maybe even reach out to their vet if I can get this in the US? Anyway, thank you this information is very helpful:).
 
kate4001 said:
Thank you so much for all of this information and I will be sure to check the link. I just received a shock to know that the spores can live for up 18 months. That makes me want to throw away the whole cage system and start fresh! I am in the US, my vet gave me jock itch medicine that would be used on a human to treat this. The antifungal shampoo seems to be for animals at least, haha. I am totally intrigued by the oral medication. This really doesn’t seem to be working for me, I’m working my but off and both my pigs and I are on the verge of a nervous breakdown over treatment-with jock medicine. If doesn’t seem like this working with treatment taking over a month last time and now getting on to about the 3 week period. It doesnt seem like enough for me to be slathering them with cream that they just lick off anyway. I will check the forum link for information on oral medicine for them and maybe even reach out to their vet if I can get this in the US? Anyway, thank you this information is very helpful:).
Click to expand...
Nevermind about me asking if its in the US, just took a look at the link and realized that they lay it all out for me, how helpful! Thanks again!
 
kate4001 said:
Nevermind about me asking if its in the US, just took a look at the link and realized that they lay it all out for me, how helpful! Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Just got done reading and holy crap I’m gonna go take notes. Here I am cleaning with vinegar and bleach when that does absolutely nothing for ringworm! Love this forum!
 
kate4001 said:
Thank you so much for all of this information and I will be sure to check the link. I just received a shock to know that the spores can live for up 18 months. That makes me want to throw away the whole cage system and start fresh! I am in the US, my vet gave me jock itch medicine that would be used on a human to treat this. The antifungal shampoo seems to be for animals at least, haha. I am totally intrigued by the oral medication. This really doesn’t seem to be working for me, I’m working my but off and both my pigs and I are on the verge of a nervous breakdown over treatment-with jock medicine. If doesn’t seem like this working with treatment taking over a month last time and now getting on to about the 3 week period. It doesnt seem like enough for me to be slathering them with cream that they just lick off anyway. I will check the forum link for information on oral medicine for them and maybe even reach out to their vet if I can get this in the US? Anyway, thank you this information is very helpful:).
Click to expand...

Creaming is not very effective in our long term experience as the affected area is always larger than the bald area during the acute phase and it cannot prevent the shedding and spread of spores. Long term piggy owning forum members have tried just about everything over the years, so we have had plenty of feedback as to what works and what not and have learned most of the tough lessons behind the advice the hard way.
Let's just say that the last outbreak of ringworm I had in a room of 30 piggies remained confined to the one affected piggy although I can't say that I have enjoyed deep cleaning the room from scratch and quarantining the affected piggy with their companion in another room until it was safe for them to return. But the tips really work. There is just no shortcut. I have a set of old towels and fleeces in a bag in the attic that I wash at 90 C/ 200 F each time, which I only use for any ringworm outbreak.

You may however find vet grade or any disinfectant hard to get by at the moment but even thoroughly washing (and not just wiping) everything down and out helps to remove the spores. The easiest and most effective way is always mechanical removal (the same as with the current hand washing advice) before a chemical attack.
 
Wiebke said:
Creaming is not very effective in our long term experience as the affected area is always larger than the bald area during the acute phase and it cannot prevent the shedding and spread of spores. Long term piggy owning forum members have tried just about everything over the years, so we have had plenty of feedback as to what works and what not and have learned most of the tough lessons behind the advice the hard way.
Let's just say that the last outbreak of ringworm I had in a room of 30 piggies remained confined to the one affected piggy although I can't say that I have enjoyed deep cleaning the room from scratch and quarantining the affected piggy with their companion in another room until it was safe for them to return. But the tips really work. There is just no shortcut. I have a set of old towels and fleeces in a bag in the attic that I wash at 90 C/ 200 F each time, which I only use for any ringworm outbreak.

You may however find vet grade or any disinfectant hard to get by at the moment but even thoroughly washing (and not just wiping) everything down and out helps to remove the spores. The easiest and most effective way is always mechanical removal (the same as with the current hand washing advice) before a chemical attack.
Click to expand...
Super helpful, thanks so much for this response. I like the idea of washing the cages outside with a hose and some disinfectant. I have coroplast inserts in my cages that I imagine would be durable enough to wash. As for what you said about the disinfectant, there was a point where I had to resort to baby wipes because we couldn’t even get any clorox wipes or anything! My vet told me to use the cream and also bleach the cages, which according to your article is not effective. I have also been using vinegar which your article also said was not so effective. I trust the experience of seasoned guinea pig owner with 30 piggies! Wow! I am off to call the vet about some oral medication+antibacterial pads, thanks for both your response and your article! You are saving me a lot of work and stress!
 
I just wanted to update the thread and say that I got a liquid antibiotic prescribed for them. Nutmeg has come out of his corner and has let me clean the cage and even give him the medicine today. He took it flawlessly. I am so happy that I have come upon such a great method of treating this ringworm! So much relief today as my new treatment takes about 5 seconds while my creaming method was taking hours a day with bathing and everything happening to two nervous piggies. Pumpkin struggled a bit with his syringe but I think it had to do with his confidence of being a baby-he is little enough to slip out and run fast away-luckily that didnt happen and I think the struggle had to do with my nerves more than anything... Both of them seem relieved, there had been a lot of popcorning since I stopped using the cream on them. I am also mentally popcorning for this new method. I think it took Nutmeg’s breakdown to force me out of my habit and determination with creaming to seek an alternative. Thanks again for everyone’s help! Fellow guinea pig lovers are so nice!
 
Bless you, sounds like you are having a rough time. Hope the ringworm soon clears up and you can enjoy your piggies x
 
Hannah_xx said:
Brilliant news! So glad you’ve taken in all the advice and it’s all working out SO much better and less stressful for you!
Hope the ringworm clears up soon :yahoo:
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Thanks so much Hannah!
 
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