Hi, my guinea pig had flakey dry skin, loss of fur on it's back & he doesnt like walking sometimes. He sometimes makes noises like he's in pain & when he itches (not recently) he sometimes had a fit . I was using long grass strands as a base in their cage ...but after this symptom I've stopped & now it's sugar cane mulch again. I've been using mite spray, I think it works but I feel bad spraying him because he has'nt much fur & might catch a chill. Recently washing him once a week (I use the Guinea Pig Shampoo & Pinetarsol). Is Pinetarsol ok to use for bathing guinea pigs? For the past week I've used used Coconut Oil with the Guinea Pig Shampoo but no Pinetarsol & it's seemed to have stopped the dry skin problem. I've always let my guinea pigs run outside on the lawn & put them in the cage (indoor) at night. Currently his skin is looking better apart from a few sores near his neck from scratching. Is there anything (like a cream) I can use for those sores? Stuff that is definitely safe for guinea pigs. What should I do to avoid these problems from happening again . I'm from Australia.
Hi and welcome!
How long have you had your guinea pig?
Please do not home treat on spec with stuff that does not help and prolongs the suffering. In the worst case, you are condemning your guinea pig to a slow and agonising death! Access to medical care is one of the basic rights that every animal in human care has. Here in the UK it is a legal obligation. Unfortunately, by home treating incorrectly you not only make the suffering worse, you create more expense for yourself as any proper treatment will take longer and cost more in an advanced case than if you had seen a vet straight away at the beginning when it would have been comparatively easy to get on top of it.
If your guinea pig is fitting, it means that he has got either advanced mange mites or fungal skin infection. These issues require
different treatment with good products - not cheap low dosed broad spectrum shop products that won't cure through it.
Your guinea pig urgently needs to see a vet and by now requires proper high quality medication to get on top of its problem!
Mange mites can kill because the pain in the inflamed skin is so intense that a piggy itches or bites itself raw. The fitting from the intense discomfort in the skin is very hard on the heart and can damage it in the longer term. Loss of appetite is also a result because of the constant pain and discomfort.
Ideally your vet does inject ivermectin to minimise the impact as you need to be extremely careful to avoid fitting as every touch on the skin directly can set off another fitting episode.
If your vet diagnoses mange mites (which are invisible but burrow their eggs in the skin), then your guinea pig will require more than just the three normal rounds of treatment by now because of the advanced state. The treatment will take as long as it takes to get on top of it, which is likely several weeks.
Guinea Lynx :: Mange Mites
These symptoms can also apply for advanced fungal infection. In that case, a course of oral fungicidal medication (active ingredient itraconazole) is the most effective and the kindest treatment. Especially ringworm is painfully itchy and a piggy often scratches and bites itself raw with large open sores.
If you are dealing with a severe fungal skin infection, you need to be very careful with hygiene. Fungal spores are shed in their thousands and can cause a re-infection. If you are dealing with ringworm, the most aggressive and transmittable from of fungal skin infection, you need to be extra careful that you do not catch it yourself and then pass it onto other people or pets. It takes 10-14 days between infection and outbreak.
Ringworm: Hygiene And Pictures
If the outbreak of the skin problem has happened within 2-3 weeks of your guinea pig being bought from a pet shop, then you can reclaim the cost by presenting the vet bill with the diagnosis at the shop together with the sales receipt. If you have waited for too long, the shop will likely refuse to honour it even if the exposure and infection has happened at the shop.
Here are lists of recommended vets in several countries. We have got members from all over the world, so it would be helpful if you please added your country, state/province or UK county to your details for us to help you better. For that you need to click on your username on the top bar, then go to personal details and scroll down to location. this makes it visible with every post you make. Thank you!
Recommended UK vets:
Guinea Pig Vet Locator
Recommended vets in some other countries:
Guinea Lynx :: GL's Vet List
