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Mite spotting?

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teabag

Hi all,

Just looking for a bit of advice about spotting mites. I know this may sound like the most obvious question in the world, but we've only had our piggies for 10 days and need a bit of reassurance. How can you spot if a piggy has mites? I know about the more advanced symptoms like hair loss and scabbing, but in the early stages what are the signs?

Our boar Teabag seems to scratch quite a bit. I had him inside yesterday as the weather was horrible, so was obviously watching him a lot more than if he was in his run. He seemed to be really scratching a fair bit. I had a good look under his fur and couldn't see any redness or irritation. So am assuming that he doesn't have mites? What is a normal amount of scratching?!

Help!
 
Laska had mites when I first got her and they manifested themselves in the form of dandruff and small scabs in the baldy area around the ear. Don't know what a normal amount of scratching is but mine never really sit and scratch, more just the occasional scratch when grooming.
 
Hi,
Very light scurfing aand thinning of the hair are symptoms of mite infestation.Piggies do scratch,some more than others.It does not sound as if your piggies have mites at the moment.

Have a look at WWW.GORGEOUSGUINEAS.COM there is a very good section on it about the difference between fungal and mite infestation.It would also be worth buying some of Chrissies shampoos,they are highly recommeded by members of this forum.A regular 4-6 week shampoo in one of the conditioner shampoos could help keep nasties at bay.
 
maryh said:
Hi,
Very light scurfing aand thinning of the hair are symptoms of mite infestation.Piggies do scratch,some more than others.It does not sound as if your piggies have mites at the moment.

Have a look at WWW.GORGEOUSGUINEAS.COM there is a very good section on it about the difference between fungal and mite infestation.It would also be worth buying some of Chrissies shampoos,they are highly recommeded by members of this forum.A regular 4-6 week shampoo in one of the conditioner shampoos could help keep nasties at bay.
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Thanks maryh, very useful! The sow defo doesn't sratch so much and i'm sure if one had it they both would! I've already bought them some conditioning shampoos and creams for minor irritations etc so hopefully that will keep their skin in good nick! Good to know about the care articles tho, I hadn't noticed them... :)
 
They can also squirm when you hold them if they have mites, or if you rub their backs they want to join in and scracth with you. I had a piggy with them and as soon as I picked him up he just stretched right out in my lap to try and avoid my touch and when I took him to Ann she rubbed along his fur and he tried to join in! Bless!
 
Hello, I'm a newcomer to guinea pigs and 2 of mine have mites. I discovered the mites as small patches on their backs that looked like dandruff, the guineas didnt appear to be scratching much so I took them to the vets and they both had an injection. I have to take them back for a further 2 injections each. When I asked the vet how often did they need this treatment the vet said that this is probably all they will need to keep the mites at bay, she said after one course of injections she doesn't usually see them again, so hopefully once Daisy & Honeys are cleared they'll be O.K. Where do they come from I wonder?
 
You can see them. Tiny greeny-orangey things :tickedoff: :tickedoff: :tickedoff:

Part the fur gently and look at the roots
 
If you can see them they are lice not mites. Mites are invisable to the naked human eye.
 
Mary is right, you cannot see mites with the naked eye. They also live under the skin and not on the surface. Apparently piggies always have mites and they live in harmony with one another but the mites can become troublesome if the piggy gets run down or off-colour for any reason. When a piggy starts scratching and causing itself harm, it isn't the actual mite thats bothering them, it the mite's poo. Some piggies just have bad reactions to the mites poo and so Ivomec is used to kill the mites.

Believe it or not but I read somewhere a while back that humans can have mites as well and never know about them.

Kat
 
Oh right O0

I'd always wondered what the diff was. Mine usually have the ones I can see. Lice then :tickedoff: :tickedoff: :tickedoff:
 
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