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Guinea pig keeps biting himself sore

Heyli

Heyli

New Born Pup
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This will be a long post so, thank you, for reading....
I got Wilbur, my 9 month old boar, castrated on 11th October with the view to get him some female company as he is currently a lone pig.
Wilbur decided he didn't want his stitches in and chewed them out, then he decided he wasn't keen on the staples the vet put in after that and pulled those out. He had to wear a cone for three weeks to protect his wound once the vet internally stitched him and glued the wound.
When I took the cone off there was dry skin but I thought this would improve once the cone was off. Imagine my horror, when I can back after an hour to find he had scratched his neck open so badly he had damaged two layers of skin and it was bloody and incredibly sore. This required Flamazine cream applications twice daily, baytril twice daily, metacam daily and bandages changed twice daily.
Once his neck had healed (although bald where the wound had been) I took off the bandages and he instantly chewed a new line of sores further down in the middle of his back. Once more, the bandages went back on, cream, antibiotics etc. continued while this healed.
Every time I took the bandages off he was scratching and biting at his back but left his neck alone.
I have been to the vets more times than I can count and she is perplexed and is contacting an exotic vet in Brighton to get some advice.
In the meantime I bought some Manuka and Neem shampoo from Gorgeous Guineas and gave him a bath which really helped his back and he has appeared to stop biting that now and I left the bandages off for about an hour and a half. However, I saw him frantically going at his belly. I put some Neem Soothe Gel on it but it did nothing to stop him and he has once again made it sore and I have had to clean it and bandage it again.
I am really in a catch 22 situation and don't know what else to do.
I am awaiting some more Xeno Mini 50 to treat any possible mites but I think its more a case of OCD than mites because his back and neck is no longer itchy.
Does anyone have any advice on what I can do/try next. I have a rescue sow lined up and ready to bond with him which I think would really help him as he would have something else to focus on rather than over grooming/biting himself.

Any advice greatly received.
H
 
Thank you so much, I honestly don't know what to do next and I'm pretty stressed out with it all. Just want my boy to be happy and with company but can't get him there because there's just been one issue after the next 😭
 
How heavy is Wilbur please? I'm trying to imagine 9 months - all mine are old or fat, or both! If he is about 1.2kg you can go for the xeno-450. Is he a long or short-haired piggy? Or a skinny?!
Has Wilbur been treated for mites or lice before? Just thinking these are contagious so would be more likely if he had to be treated in the past or he'd been in contact with another pig to pick them up. They don't always get bald patches but you can often see 'debris' (mite poop as bits of black) in the fur at the rump.

What I normally say to people is that if it's mites or lice you expect to put the stuff on and within a day or so you see much less itching and scratching - which kind of lets you know it was the right move. An unexpectedly heavy infestation can actually cause an itching frenzy for a couple of hours after application as mites spasm as they die - this is upsetting for owner and piggy both so don't do it at night when everyone's tired.

But all this seems to have been triggered by the surgery and nibbling the wound so I do see what you mean about a bit of OCD - perhaps not so much psychological but more that he's experienced a surgical wound and is now vigorously attacking anything that gives him a little tingle. This is beyond my experience though.

Is he eating and pooping OK apart from this? Can I just ask about general housekeeping issues too - what bedding is he on, or if fleece what is it washed in? For example, I use a non-bio liquid and only a splash of white vinegar in the rinse. I avoid bio liquids because some of our human family members get red, irritated skin from the enzymes in the washing liquid. In summer 2 of them had red feet from sweating into socks washed in Bio-liquid. This can trigger irritation to the tummy in pigs as they wet the fleece where they lie. Bit of a long shot and wouldn't explain his other itches though.

It must be terribly frustrating for both of you, especially with a little sow waiting in the wings, you just have to make sure he has nothing contagious like mites/lice or fungal skin infection. Did the vet mention fungal things at all? I don't necessarily mean ringworm - one of my oldies was itching and scratching a lot and her fur looked a bit manky. We had to bathe her with an anti-fungal shampoo the vet prescribed. The other piggies never got it despite living in the same enclosure, but our vet pointed out that when they are old (or actually under stress) they can be prone to these things as the immunity is affected.

Does his skin (the bits you can see) look dry? Or does it look healthy?

Others will be along soon. Hang in there x
 
Hi, thank you so much for taking the time to reply.
He is 1069g and he is smooth haired. I can't see any evidence of mites but I've just done him a full dose of xeno mini50 to rule everything out.
He has fleece bedding which is washed in non-bio washing liquid. He sleeps on vet bed with hay on it because he loves the softness of the vet bed and munching while in bed haha.
He is eating and pooping for Britain! I just tried popping him back in after his xeno with no bandages but he immediately started on his tummy so I've put them back on.
Do you know if guinea pigs can have children's antihistamine? I've just bought some Pitriton (chlorphenamine maleate) for my son and wondered about using it for him?
Thank you again, your kind response is very much appreciated.
H
 
Sorry forgot to say his skin looks good other than bald. There is slight dandruff in his hair but figure this is from the scabs he had before. I'm alternating between Calendula lotion, aloe vera and Neem Soothr gel on his bald bits and where he chewed the most recent sore as per advice from the Gorgeous Guineas lady.
 
Oh your poor piggy. I hope your vet can find out the cause. It must be so uncomfortable for him. It’s sounds like you really are trying everything. Good luck.
 
The only evidence of mites you will see is black specks on the back end - these are empty egg casings - bald spots and skin irritation.

Did a vet tell you to use Xeno 50? I ask because 50 in a piggy of his weight can be too low. A piggy od his weight would ideally use part pipettes of xeno 450 for each treatment. If you are going to use 50 then it will need to be a multiple pipettes too cover his whole weight, per treatment.
 
Hiya, yes I did tell the vet I was using mini and she told me to use 5 pipettes which I have done as per the weight chart/instructions.
 
So the xeno mini hasn't done much. Took his bandages off for his daily groom and moisturising with the potions and lotions from Gorgeous Guineas. I've given him 0.2ml of piriton today and yesterday. Put him back in his enclosure to monitor him with no bandages on and he's biting his belly again. I've put some soothing cream on and popped his bandages back on.

Things I have tried over the last couple of months:
- bathed in Manuka and neem shampoo
- creams from Gorgeous Guineas
- xeno mini full application
- antihistamine
- grooming daily

I looked across his back end and there's no dry skin and no mite dirt. I wash his bedding in non-bio. He has hay, veggies and Science Select pellets. Not sure what else to try now other than just taking the leap to introduce him to the sow we have lined up in case it's boredom/loneliness causing it?
Can anyone recommend anything I might have missed?
 
I'm not familiar with mites treatment in the UK, because we use different kind of medicine (or different named medicines), but in German we categorize mites in those living in the fur and those living in the skin. And then there are parasites which are rare in guinea pigs, but can be found sometimes.
Mites living in the skin are not visible at all, but I don't know if the xeno is effective for those mites. Maybe it is that I don't have any further ideas.
If not, it could be worth trying a different medication against parasites like ivermectin.
Or you could ask your vet to think about more 'exotic' parasites that are not seen that often in guinea pigs.
 
Thank you for taking the time to reply, i appreciate it. Xeno mini contains ivermectin and it says on the back of the packet it treats internal and external parasites of small mammals.
 
Was he on pain killers twice a day after his neutering and is he still on them? I’m just wondering whether his pain was properly managed immediately after surgery and now.

Has he been treated properly with a whole course of Xeno ie three separate treatments with two weeks between each treatment (so a full six week course)?
Has the vet done skin tests to check for the presence of mange mites.
With hay mites, you are likely to see the empty egg casings (the black specks in the hair are the only visible part - the black specks are egg casings not mite dirt)

I wonder, what happens if you stop putting anything on him - I’m just wondering whether creams and baths etc could be irritating him? I’m just wondering whether his skin has become out of balance.
Don’t know, just thinking out loud whether that has now become a thing

It is possible the stress of being alone might be an issue now. Speak to the vet, if the vet thinks introducing him to is lady friend might help, then it is certainly worth a try. By my calculations he is six weeks post on in a few days time so it could.

I assume the specialist hasn’t got back to you yet?

@Wiebke any ideas?
 
Heyli said:
So the xeno mini hasn't done much. Took his bandages off for his daily groom and moisturising with the potions and lotions from Gorgeous Guineas. I've given him 0.2ml of piriton today and yesterday. Put him back in his enclosure to monitor him with no bandages on and he's biting his belly again. I've put some soothing cream on and popped his bandages back on.

Things I have tried over the last couple of months:
- bathed in Manuka and neem shampoo
- creams from Gorgeous Guineas
- xeno mini full application
- antihistamine
- grooming daily

I looked across his back end and there's no dry skin and no mite dirt. I wash his bedding in non-bio. He has hay, veggies and Science Select pellets. Not sure what else to try now other than just taking the leap to introduce him to the sow we have lined up in case it's boredom/loneliness causing it?
Can anyone recommend anything I might have missed?
Click to expand...

Hi

Please have him vet checked in case it is an internal pain as a post-neutering op complication (i.e. potential abscess at the back of groin area or a band of swelling causing gut adhesions (rare but my Hywel had that and survived it thanks to being seen by a specialist vet after the general vet the rescue had used couldn't cope; Hywel lived within spitting distance of his 7th birthday).
Abscesses and infections often develop around 7-10 days after an operation.

More on neutering post-op complications: Neutering operations: Considerations, post-op care and complications and a successful recovery example
 
If you suspected mites and gave him a correct dose (and it sounds about right because that's a lot of mini pipettes!) any mite related itching should have subsided within a day or so. If he was unaffected then it tells you that mites was unlikely. Your vet can then advise about re-application.

This is beyond my experience now so my feeling is that whatever is bothering him is not common and it does seem to have been triggered by the surgery.

If you decide to bring in his lady friend (seeing as he doesn't appear to be infectious) I guess one of two things could happen. Either it has no affect on his barbering at all - in which case I'd be thinking it's something physical, perhaps like Wiebke suggested above. Or he might stop - in which case you'd think it might be a habit formed in the wake of a difficult time for him. But have a little think about when you make your introductions, just in case one doesn't like the other it's always good to have a plan B...

We've got everything crossed for you Wilbur x
 
Hi everyone
Update:
I had been trying to get hold of my vets to get a referral to an exotic vet in Brighton but couldn't get past the receptionists for days. Just had a call from my vet to say this was now going ahead and that the exotic vet had suggested to my vet the use of gabapentin or lazer therapy might be worth a go if I wasn't keen on being referred. I have asked to be referred, I'd rather see a specialist.
 
I think it's a wise move. Whatever is amiss with Wilbur sounds like a specialist issue and I would also rather let a specialist get hands-on with him and have a good look before trying any new medication etc. He might also prescribe a little sow! Or at least reassure you that they would be safe to be together 💕
 
This is my boy, Wilbur.

Can anyone zoom in and tell me if the white things on his nose look like lice or just little bits of hay or skin? I haven't seen evidence of them elsewhere.
 

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If you can see them it'll be lice not mites - but you should be able to see them move. You can see the legs and everything just like a small insect. Lice will just clamber around in his fur! So if you can't see them moving it's most likely some kind of debris. Try fishing one out and giving it a squeeze. He might have just been nosing in something.
 
There's another piggy on the forum at the minute who's belly has gone completely bald underneath. She's a little sow so it might end up being a hormonal issue but one of our members has added something that might be useful to you:

"I would also ask the vet to try to look at skin under the microscope for fungal signs. Are there any skin flakes? I had one piggie who lost some fur on her lower belly and, in her case, she had a yeast infection of the skin. We had to treat her with antifungal bath and cream..."

The flakes on his nose might well be from where he's nosing underneath himself. Fungal / yeasty infections are notoriously itchy.
 
Heyli said:
This is my boy, Wilbur.

Can anyone zoom in and tell me if the white things on his nose look like lice or just little bits of hay or skin? I haven't seen evidence of them elsewhere.
Click to expand...
It really is impossible to tell from a photo.
Have you managed to set up an appointment with the specialist yet?
 
I've held them up to the light and they look like straw. I think you posted at same time as my previous post which said I've got an appointment first thing tomorrow with the specialist.
 
Update:
The boy is now on Gabapentin pain relief/to space him out a bit so he doesn't self harm. She said see how he is after a few days and then supervised bandage removal. She thinks it's not skin issues and something underlying but she took a skin scraping to rule out mites or fungal first (have to wait for the results could be up to 5 days for that). She suspected an abcess to be the underlying cause of his agitation so also did a biopsy on his lump and thick smelly pus came out in the needle. So he needs to have that operated on. She said it isn't an active abcess but cant have thick smelly pus sat inside him obviously. I've booked him in for the operation on the 6th December. £204 for today and estimated £350 for the op 😭 is not a welcome bill so close to Christmas but it's needed so he'll have it.
I feel better knowing he's been seen by a specialist and I was listened to properly and didn't feel like I was being rushed through like I do at my normal vets.
 
I’m so pleased there is a plan in place. Good luck with the op. When I had a poorly piggy for over two months I really appreciated the help and reassurance on the forum. Sending healing vibes and a hug for you. ❤️
 
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