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Itching worse than ever!

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LordBernieBouffant

LordBernieBouffant

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Sorry don't know how to update my previous message.

Lord Bernie and Holly are really scratching like mad tonight - they almost can't stop :0 and although they are popcorning around, between the itching, which makes me wonder if they are popcorning because they are itchy, they are fine in themselves and eating well.

They will have their 3rd soak in the Imaverol tomorrow, but I'm so upset that they seem worse (although the skin is OK - no more outbreaks for Bernie - but Holly didn't have any).

Both are greasy and the hair limp but that must be the Imaverol.

I am at my wits end tonight. The only things I have changed recently:

1. The Hay - they are on a new bag of HayforPets stuff - perhaps not quite as good smell wise as my local supplier, but the local supplier's hay is really stiff - good for their teeth, but not for burrowing under.

2. They had a small piece of sweetcorn last night - first for a week.

I'm totally at a loss.

What does anyone think to me:

1. Putting hay in a hay rack only - no laying on it - other peoples piggies seem fine to do that though without problems.

2. Cut out ALL veggies and introduce one at a time each day and monitor.

3. Feeding only hay in a rack and Excel nuggets only

4. Giving low grade hay - the dusty stuff you buy from Pets@Home because all my friends piggies who are in perfect health seem to thrive on it.

4. Giving up on the Imaverol, which they hate - they love baths, but this is horrible because you can't keep the water warm.

I'm so fed up I feel that I shouldn't have guinea pigs 8...
 
Have they been seen by a vet and have you treated them only for fungal or for mites, too?

It sounds like they have probably mites. You will need to with an proper ivermectin product (which depends on their weight) and a full course of 3-4repeated treatments. Considering that they may have a more severe case now, you may wnat to consider having them injected by a hopefully piggy savvy exotics vet - that is the quickest and most effective way compared to topical treatment.
http://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html
 
You are treating your pigs for lice aswell as mites right? Ivomec only kills blood sucking mites and internal paracites. it does not kill lice.

You can get various sprays and/or powders for lice, but only do it at the earliest 24 hours after treating for anything else.
 
Sorry I can't help much but just wanted to add that I've heard of people giving hay a quick blast in the microwave to kill off nasties before giving it to their pigs. This is usually mentioned in relation to mites so I'm not sure if it'd kill off any fungal spores but could be worth a try perhaps?

What temperature are you washing your towels and fleece at? And what are you using to clean out their cage? I've heard that F10 veterinary disinfectant is the best thing to use in fungal cases.

I really hope you manage to get a grip on this soon. Good luck x
 
Bernieskin.jpg


Now I look closely at it, the hair is growing back big style and there are no new erruptions or signs of any bleeding spots at all.

He was completely bald 3 weeks ago and had open sores, so it is a great improvement, but even just touching the area makes him squirm with the itchies.

There is nothing to see on Holly at all - no dandruff, nothing.

Gosh never heard of the microwave thing - will it be safe :{

I wash the fleece by hand in very hot water first, then shove it in the machine on a 40 degree wash again. I clean the rest of the cage with Formula H which is also kills all skin fungal conditions.
 
The imaverol should take care of any fungal outbreaks and as you say, it does seem to be working. The pic looks good so how to explain the scratching?

Two thoughts...one is that a mite infection may be rearing its head now that the fungal has been cleared (this is not unusal even if it was negative first time around)....second, the disinfectant you are using contains the active ingredient glutaraldehyde which is very harsh and irritating to skin and causes allergic reactions/eczema in humans.

Can I suggest you try F10 as this is kinder and is the only one I have found that has demonstrated activity against fungal spores as well as the vegetative forms of fungi ..it may also help reduce the scratching!

Ivermectin by the way WILL kill lice if applied topically (eg Xeno or Easimec) - it is only ineffective if given orally/by injection because lice do not feed on/suck blood.

HTH
x
 
We are off to the vets again this morning rolleyes

After reading the Guinealynx info I really do believe they have mites now.

They are still itchy and always have been - I only started using Formula H a couple of weeks ago after boarding a rabbit (unknowingly :... ) with E. Cuniculi Previous to that I used Virkon tablets. I will certainly get some of the F10 stuff now for my piggies.

Off to pack up all 5 piggies - as they share the same funtime space it could be all over now :{

Thanks for all you help and suggestions :)

Jo x
 
oh nooooooo whee hope that it's not spread thru them all :(


to update your thread you just keep posting but you can in the 'title' area put a different message :)

healing wheeeeeeeeeeeeeks loves to LB and Holly XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX from us all xoxoxoxo
 
You can also put the hay in the freezer overnight - that'll kill any bugs.

We had a mite infestation a few weeks ago so I bathed my pigs in Johnson's insecticidal shampoo (which I have now permanently switched to) and chucked out the old hay and everything and put in the new stuff that had been in the freezer overnight...

So far, no more mites.

Good luck :)
 
Well here goes for an update on the itchies:

Have treated all of them with Ivermectin on Saturday and all the lot of them seem better. Lord Bernie is really strutting his stuff with Holly (his girl), running and popcorning and although they scratched Sunday and yesterday, today seems like a half hearted attempt - in fact I haven't seen Lord Bernie scratch other that when hay got stuck to him :) Holly just had a little one and cleaned her nails after - something I've never seen before - almost like she was just cleaning herself.

We have another 2 treatments to go (10 days apart), but I, and more so, my piggies, are so much happier than 5 days ago so here's hoping it's the end of a long lasting saga.

I'm still not sure that they didn't have the fungals to start and, as Pebbles said, the mites came along afterwards, but his lordship's hair is growing fabulously now and no new outbreaks so far :)

Jo x
 
Hoorah! This is all sounding very positive....

Can I also suggest you give them extra VitC - grind up tablets in water and syringe feed 50mg per piggie each day.

Although they get VitC in veggies and pellets I have found that as the food bag gets older, the vits degrade and the first sign in my pigs is skin issues including scurf and then scratching/possible mites.

It won;t harm them to have extra vit C and will definitely give them a boost to resist further challenge by any nasties.

My vet too suggested freezing my hay to reduce mite issues - but he said you need to do two freeze-thaw cycles to ensure you get rid of the blighters. (Luckily I have a chest freezer!)

Have you found a suitable "anti-mite" method of cleaning the cages and furniture? If not, PM for some suggestions

Looking forward to seeing LBB's magnificent (fully restored) locks soon!

x
 
Wiiiiieek! said:
You can also put the hay in the freezer overnight - that'll kill any bugs.

We had a mite infestation a few weeks ago so I bathed my pigs in Johnson's insecticidal shampoo (which I have now permanently switched to) and chucked out the old hay and everything and put in the new stuff that had been in the freezer overnight...

So far, no more mites.

Good luck :)
Click to expand...

Johnsons shampoo and/or spray does not kill mites, it kills fleas and lice. Ivomectin kills mites.
 
WillowDragon said:
Johnsons shampoo and/or spray does not kill mites, it kills fleas and lice.
Click to expand...

This is not quite correct.

There are two types of mites that infest guinea pigs:
Static mites are on the surface of the skin and by far the most common problem. They appear as flecks/walking dandruff and are comonly caught from hay. These CAN be killed by Johnsons insecticidal shampoo and also by topical ivermectin

The second, more serious, burrowing (or sarcoptid) mites burrow into the skin and are the ones that can cause seizures and lots of itching/scratching. Johnsons won;t kill these because they are hidden below the skin surface. The best way to deal with these is either oral or injected ivermectin (in preference to topical ivermectin which is not as efficient for the same reason as why Johnsons doesn;t work)

There is some debate on the forum about whether Johnsons should be used at all in view of the fact it contains permethrins. Thee chemicals are deadly to cats but other animals are far less sensitive and toxicity sheets are available from the manufacturers for you to make your own decision. Personally I think the safety or otherwise depends upon how frequently you use it on your animals.

I use Johnsons ONLY when I have a confirmed case of mites or lice to bathe the rest (less than once a year) and not part of a regular preventative routine. The ones with the active infection are treated with ivermectin (by injection) and, as with the Johnsons, I treat the remaining pigs with ivermectin spot-on after their bath but do not use it as a routine preventative measure.

On a cautionary note to everyone who uses spot-on: Just as with the antibioitic-resistant superbugs, too much use of ivermectin will in time produce drug-resistant mites...something the veterinary industry is becoming increasingly aware of...so please only use it if there is a real possibility of an infection rather than as part of a regular preventative routine.

HTH
x
 
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