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Help - the guinea I am looking after has fly strike!

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bubble'n'squeak

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I am looking after a friends guinea-pig - she is really old and I have had her for 9 days. She could not walk well when she came to me but she seems to have totally lost the use of her back legs now.
Anyway the poor thing has fly strike, I kept her clean and moved her around but with the hot weather...
What should I do! should I take her to the vet tomorrow? if she was mine I would have her put down straight away...
I picked off 2 maggots but I suppose there will be more - this is just awful!
How much is it to have a guinea put down?
 
If it's your friends guinea pig, i don't think it's fair to have her just put to sleep,

The best thing to do would be seek veterinary treatment and advice, book an appointment as soon as possible, then see where it goes from there,
 
They need to see a vet ASAP. They will be in great pain and it will be a horrible death if they aren't seen now. Treat them/see the vet and worry about getting money from your friend/your friends opinion later - I'm sure they'll value the fact you took them to the vet and did the best you could.
 
I know, I have texted her and waiting to hear back...
But it's just so awful! this poor old guinea is so smelly as she just can't move. She is eating well but finding the maggot on her has really turned my stomach!
She must be in pain...
 
Is she long haired? Might be worth giving her a trim if she is and a bath whether she's long or short hair. Might make her a bit more comfy if nothing else..

Definitely a trip to the vets tomorrow to get her treated.
 
I would get her to the vets ASAP, it's not fair to let her suffer and they may be able to treat it. Don't rush in to making a decision to have her put to sleep, especially without speaking to your friend first- at least relay the vets advice to your friend and they can make their own decision.
I don't have any experience about either conditions or the prognosis, hopefully someone with a bit more experience can give you some more advice. x
 
Fly strike doesn't necessarily mean the end, but it has to be acted on very quickly.. RSPCA advise: If caught early, flystrike can be successfully treated, but success depends upon how much damage the maggots have done and if your vet considers your animal to have a reasonable chance of recovery. After treatment, wounds can take several weeks to heal. During this time, your animal will be at increased risk of further bouts of flystrike and infection, so it will require careful nursing and additional preventative measures should be taken.
 
Thanks everyone for the advice.
I have still not heard back from my friend...
This friend said to me that if they guinea pig died while she was away I should not feel bad as she is very old and has not been moving much recently.
I will phone the vet first thing tomorrow...
From what I can see even if this condition is cured the poor old lady is on her way out, she is basically paralysed at the back end and drags herself around although she is eating well still and seemed ok until a couple of days ago.
She is short haired btw.
I have 2 rabbits and 2 guineas of my own but this is the first time I have ever come across fly strike... I just wish this had not happened on my watch but it has been so hot recently...
 
I have dealt with flystrike on sheep, its horrendous and very serious and does kill if it isnt caught in time, they will and do litterally eat the poor animal alive,

I cannot express how serious fly strike really is and time is imperative, I spent 3 hours on 3 ewes that had strike cutting all the wool away with a pair of blunt scissors - only because they didnt have sheers or clippers (I can sheer sheep and much much quicker than that). After each section of wool was clipped away I put the treatment on the skin trying to find the end of the maggots, but these were just all over. The ewes survived thanks to my time and effort to get rid of the maggots.
 
I had a rabbit with this years ago, you really need to bathe & make sure the maggots are gone. They will multiply like crazy. I would get to a vet ASAP.

For info, if it gets to that point, it is about £25 ish. You may also have to pay a consult fee which varies but is about another £25-£30. I had to make the decision for my little guy a week ago but for a different reason ;(
 
lisalynette said:
Okay, I'm at a loss. What is fly strike?:{
Click to expand...

fly strike is the term used when flys lay eggs in warm wet patches on animals fur/fleece, the eggs hatch into maggots and this type of maggot eat living flesh to then grow into flys.

They will choose the warm wet patches for the best place to lay eggs, common areas chosen are round the backsides where poo and/or wee sticks to the fur/fleece or in the case of sheep any wet wool that has been damaged or mucky (through a wound or rain then sunshine weather)
 
Never mind, I looked it up. It says it can be caused by fleas as well. You can clean it with Betadine as well I read. I have to agree not to leave it one more day. Thats just horrible.
 
lisalynette said:
Never mind, I looked it up. It says it can be caused by fleas as well. You can clean it with Betadine as well I read. I have to agree not to leave it one more day. Thats just horrible.
Click to expand...

fleas? never heard of that, and very much doubt fleas lay eggs that hatch into maggots, flea allergy could create open wounds that could attract flys but most people notice the wounds and treat before the maggots get hold. The thing with flystrike is it goes undetected due to the way they incubate in the fur.

Timing is essential, if there is a fully mature maggot already spotted, chances are 24 hours later the poor animals in shock and dying. Its quick and painful the way it takes hold, I know this sounds very OTT but I really cannot express how urgent flystrike is to treat and prevent it spreading.
 
You can't leave it at all, they'll multiply & eat the guinea pig from inside out sorry to be awful, I lost a rabbit to this when I was at school years ago, it's really horrific if it's left you have to get them out.
 
This pig needs to be seen tonight!

Fly strike is horrible and the longer it is left the less chance that the piggie/rabbit has of survival. The maggots will mature and begin to eat away the the flesh, causing pain and fluid loss and sending the piggie into shock. This guinea pig must be given medical attention tonight, regardless of weather you can contact your friend or not. Please do not wait.

x.
 
Ok here is an update. I just checked on her and she seems ok apart from a very wet and smelly bum. I will clean her cage out and give her a bath before I can get to the vet.
She smells awful poor thing.
What do you suggest I bathe her in? I have read that a salt solution is good?
There are no maggots on her today and I can't see any lesions on her skin... so I am hoping they were laid somewhere but not on her?
I have also separated her from her much younger companion..
 
I would be concentrating more on getting her to the vets, the maggots wont have crawled over to her, they would be in her fur even the smell could be more maggots hatching out. And if she is still wet behind then more will come, the only way to stop flystrike from happening is to keep them dry, I am concerned that if you bath her, you make more wet patches and would have to completely dry her off to guarantee no more eggs will be laid which sounds easy but its not.

Even a short haired pig I would hope the vet will shave the area that is mucky, getting rid of the warm, wet patch covered in wee and poo is the first stage to fighting maggots, then treating with a maggot repelant, then treating the mess they have left behind.
 
First and foremost this pig needs to get to a vet, the mess can be cut off and her skin examined.

The agony of flystrike is not to be ignored. I hope that any other member reading this will not make a pig wait for treatment.

When advice is given to see a vet immediately this does not mean wait til the morning, wait til you speak to your friend, wait til you see a reply to your post that says wait some more. YOU MUST NOT WAIT.

I hope that this pig is lucky and that no maggots have got in through her anus and are eating her from the inside.
 
Look if I did not care I would not be on here - the bottom line is it is not my decision whether to have her put down or not and I don't think the vet would suggest keeping her alive in her paralysed condition regardless of fly strike?
I don't know I have not come across a paralysed guinea before but once she stops cleaning herself and just lies in her toilet then the signs are not good...

Anyway I have an appointment this morning.

The vet said keep moving her, and checking her for maggots and apparently bathing her in warm water is good too. She said that the eggs are laid on the skin and fur so bathing helps get them off.

Thanks for your advice - it's nice to see that some people care.
 
We all care around here :) Please let us know how you get on at the vets
 
Hope all goes well at the vets but sadly if something isn't done immediately, the damage can be irreversable.:(
I had a rabbit with fly strike many years ago, and although i went to the vet at the first sign of trouble, the maggots had already eaten into her insides and caused too much damage to save her. :(
It only takes HOURS, not days, for that to happen.
 
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