guinea pig hair loss, bald spot! Help

[leo8]

My guinea pig named mocha startes having a small bald spot on her back, I thought it was it was strange but I didn't think too much of it. However, the bald spot started growing larger and larger. I'm just a student, I dont have a lot of money or time to take her to the vet. I did some online research and found three possible causes of her hairloss. Mites and parasites, fungal infection, and scurvy. Ive been using ivermectin for two weeks now, about twice a week for the first week and once a week from there. (this treatment is based on LA guinea pig rescue). Ive been using a very small dosage, about 0.2ml of ivermectin each time, just drops on her ears. However, ivermectin doesnt seem to have any effect, so I'm considering to stop this treatment. Ive also started adding vita drops and more vegetables in her daily meals to prevent scurvy, but this doesnt seem to have any effect either. I'm considering to buy antifungal shampoo for her, but I really wanted to just ask people who have knowledge in this field for help before i give her any treatment.

Additional info:
-Mocha is 2 years old
-I got her from a pet store
-the hair loss started about a month ago, but slowly got worse over time.
-theres a bit of eye discharge coming from her right eye from time to time, its white/yellow
The first picture is from a few months ago, when she was healthy. The second picture is her now. I also realized her skin on the baldspot is black, but the skin around her neck is pink.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Please see a vet.
Please do not continue to use shop bought treatments on your piggy. The ivermectin in shop bought product is usually not at a high enough dose to actually deal with an active problem and as such it can cause resistance to the ivermectin and make treating it harder. You also do not know what illness you are treating and you may use so something inappropriate which could prolong the problem, make things worse and/or make it harder for a vet to diagnose. Please do not use any other products on your piggy until you have been prescribed the appropriate medication by a vet.
I hope she is ok

 

[Freela]

That is a lot of hair loss, it really should be seen by a vet. It doesn't look particularly fungal to me (that's usually flaky or raised.) Hopefully someone with some more knowledge of mites can weigh in on that. The kind of ivermectin you get at a pet store isn't the same potency as what you can get by prescription and generally isn't strong enough to actually treat a case of mange mites. I know you say you haven't got time and money for a vet, but getting a good diagnosis is going to be a lot more cost effective than continuing to buy ineffective over-the-counter stuff when your pig is probably pretty uncomfortable. Good luck to you and your pig!

 

[weepweeps]

Please don’t waste your money on pet shop products. See a vet and they will be able to help you sort this out quickly. Good luck. Their skin can be different colours I think so don’t worry about that.

 

[Merab]

I agree with the advice already given.
You do need to see a vet for proper diagnosis and treatment.
Let us know how you get on.
Holding you in my thoughts

Welcome to the forum

 

[leo8]

My guinea pig named mocha startes having a small bald spot on her back, I thought it was it was strange but I didn't think too much of it. However, the bald spot started growing larger and larger. I'm just a student, I dont have a lot of money or time to take her to the vet. I did some online research and found three possible causes of her hairloss. Mites and parasites, fungal infection, and scurvy. Ive been using ivermectin for two weeks now, about twice a week for the first week and once a week from there. (this treatment is based on LA guinea pig rescue). Ive been using a very small dosage, about 0.2ml of ivermectin each time, just drops on her ears. However, ivermectin doesnt seem to have any effect, so I'm considering to stop this treatment. Ive also started adding vita drops and more vegetables in her daily meals to prevent scurvy, but this doesnt seem to have any effect either. I'm considering to buy antifungal shampoo for her, but I really wanted to just ask people who have knowledge in this field for help before i give her any treatment.

Additional info:
-Mocha is 2 years old
-I got her from a pet store
-the hair loss started about a month ago, but slowly got worse over time.
-theres a bit of eye discharge coming from her right eye from time to time, its white/yellow
The first picture is from a few months ago, when she was healthy. The second picture is her now. I also realized her skin on the baldspot is black, but the skin around her neck is pink.

View attachment 195756
View attachment 195755

edit：scheduled appointment at exotic animal veterinary on febuary 21st. The costs are high but I think it will be worth it. Their rating is very high.

Thank you for all of your replies, Ive read all of them, already stopped using ivermectin and If it is a mites infection I'm hoping to get ivermectin prescripted by a vet.

 

[leo8]

FYI this is the ivermectin i was using. Just curious, what do you guys use to treat/prevent mites for your piggies? Or do I have to go to the vet every time if my piggy gets mites again?

 

[weepweeps]

I was prescribed Xeno 450 for my piggies when they had mites. Three treatments two weeks apart. So three treatments in total. You have to treat all the piggies who live together in one go. I’m in England though. Not sure about USA. Glad you got an appointment.

 

[Piggies&buns]

FYI this is the ivermectin i was using. Just curious, what do you guys use to treat/prevent mites for your piggies? Or do I have to go to the vet every time if my piggy gets mites again?

You only need treat mites when there is an active infestation as diagnosed by a vet. You need a correct prescription strength treatment.
We do not recommend using any preventative treatment as they are too low dosed and using a preventative can lead to resistance forming, making curing an active case harder

 

[Wiebke]

FYI this is the ivermectin i was using. Just curious, what do you guys use to treat/prevent mites for your piggies? Or do I have to go to the vet every time if my piggy gets mites again?

We use ivermectin or selamectin.
The issue is the strength. Pet shop products are designed for long term regular maintenance and are much lower dosed than what you really need in an acute outbreak in order to get on top os any skin parasites. You should be able to step in with the same product if there is a return with the same symptoms.
You are most likely dealing with mange mites - but we can only guess and not tell you for sure; which can easily cause dangerous DIY misdiagnoses and more suffering or even death at the worst. Hence why we recommend to see a good vet.

The problem with maintenance products is also that they are only rarely really needed and basically a waste of money.
Mange mites eggs in the skin are carried by many piggies. They are generally kept under control by a healthy immune system. Long term exposure to lower concentrations of ivermectin or selamectin can promote resistence issues. We strongly recommend to hit any skin parasites hard if or whenever they turn up and otherwise concentrate on a good balanced long term diet, which is what promotes a healthy immune system (and incidentally a longer average life expectancy). With a little luck, you won't need to treat ever again.
Regular maintainance is only needed with piggies with a long term compromised immune system and even then it is usually with a vet strength product at longer intervals on recommendation of your vet.

More on skin parasites, the correct treatment and home treatment treatment aspects: New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

Vet strength ivermectin or Revolution are generally the US brand products but it is important that you make sure that you actually need to treat for skin parasites or a fungal skin infection, which can initially look much more similar that textbook images will make you believe and can in either case start off in not textbook locations.
I had a pair of sisters once that developed a very similar bare spot on their shoulders each within three weeks of each other - only that one turned out to have ringworm and the other mange mites...
Ivermectin can temporarily suppress ringworm but not cure it so you can become stuck in a kind of vicious circle.

You will need to wait until your current treatment has totally worn off before you can treat again as you can overdose with ivermectin. You also want markers for what issue you are dealing with appear again as with your current state, it could be frankly anything - it's basically a wiped crime scene as far as a (cursing) vet is concerned.
The higher the concentration, the bigger the gap between treatments. You will need to make apply three rounds for one full treatment course.

Please also respect that in the UK it is law that only vets are allowed to diagnose in a hands-on examination. We aren't. We can only make suggestions where, how soon and what likely for to seek medical treatment since we are legally a public space. And we can - and specialise on that - help our members with practical tips and moral support during treatment and recovery or bridging help until you can see your vet.

US based medical information:
Guinea Lynx :: Mange Mites
Guinea Lynx :: Fungus

All the best!

 

[Merab]

Hope your vet trip goes well.
It can be expensive. My Phoebe has just about wiped out my vet fund, but it is worth it.