Piriton use

[Piggy-Wig]

Hi, my boy was diagnosed with mites by the vet yesterday, have ordered Xeno 50 and bought Piriton for relief as reccommended by her. However, after researching this a lot (had no idea just how harmful mites were, my boy was convulsing) I am querying the dosage she suggested - 0.6ml twice a day. I have seen other posts where they've only given 0.2ml so this seems a lot? Is this neat or diluted? I'm starting to think I must have really misunderstood her?

 

[Siikibam]

Which type of mites was he diagnosed with? And how old is he? Did the vet not provide you with xeno? If he’s convulsing it’s quite a bad case. I would hold off the portion unless you were recommended to use it by the vet.

I’ll tag @Piggies&buns @VickiA @PigglePuggle @Wiebke
Have a read of the guide below as well.
New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites

You will need to buy some F10 disinfectant and clean the cage thoroughly. Any fleece bedding needs to be washed at a high temp. Any cardboard in the cage needs throwing away. Wooden items can be soaked in F10 solution.

 

[Piggy-Wig]

Which type of mites was he diagnosed with? And how old is he? Did the vet not provide you with xeno? If he’s convulsing it’s quite a bad case. I would hold off the portion unless you were recommended to use it by the vet.

I’ll tag @Piggies&buns @VickiA @PigglePuggle
Have a read of the guide below as well.
New guinea pigs: Sexing, vet checks&customer rights, URI, ringworm and parasites

You will need to buy some F10 disinfectant and clean the cage thoroughly. Any fleece bedding needs to be washed at a high temp. Any cardboard in the cage needs throwing away. Wooden items can be soaked in F10 solution.

She suggested I order Xeno online as it would be cheaper, and recommended Piriton to help ease the itching. She said to give 0.6ml twice a day, I gave one dose last night which stopped him itching till tonight. While I was researching about mites I saw somewhere that they had been told 0.2ml which got me worried. He is 5 1/2 years, 773g. She didn’t say what type of mites. The itching has been relieved loads already so have only given one 0.3ml dose tonight. Thank you for info on F10, can I use this on a seagrass hideout or should I throw that? No fleece. I just mainly wondered if the dosage sounded about right or rather high? Thank you.

 

[Siikibam]

I don’t know about the dosage. I’ve tagged some others above. You’ll have to throw the seagrass away. Did the vet tell you how many pipettes and how often to administer the xeno?

 

[Piggy-Wig]

I don’t know about the dosage. I’ve tagged some others above. You’ll have to throw the seagrass away. Did the vet tell you how many pipettes and how often to administer the xeno?

Yes she said 4 pipettes every two weeks for two months, then 4 once a month for up to three months. Oh, he loves that hideout! One more thing on the shopping list, this is turning into an expensive month!

 

[Siikibam]

Why the once a month up to three months? And have they booked him in for a review? Is the vet experienced with treating guinea pigs?

Sorry last questions. Does he live alone? How old is he? And where did you get him from?

 

[Piggies&buns]

You normally use the xeno every two weeks for a few weeks and then stop once the problem has been resolved. Being told to continue to use it once a month for three months is odd - we dont recommend any routine treatment as it can lead to resistance to the medication forming.
Mange mites are the more serious, can cause serious problems if left untreated, advanced cases fitting can occur. Hay mites are irritating but less of a problem.
I cant answer the question about piriton

 

[PigglePuggle]

There seems to be a bit of a trend in the USA for vets to be suggesting human allergy medicines for guinea pigs... personally I havent seen any evidence that its a safe or recommended thing to do, especially the suggestion that you buy it yourself over the counter- I myself would be asking to see some scientific studies about this, if not in piggies then at least in cats or rabbits, to demonstrate that it is safe and effective, before agreeing to give off-label medicines like that to a piggy.

 

[Piggy-Wig]

Why the once a month up to three months? And have they booked him in for a review? Is the vet experienced with treating guinea pigs?

Sorry last questions. Does he live alone? How old is he? And where did you get him from?

No review booked. A Vets4Pets at Pets@Home, supposedly experienced. Said it could take that long to totally clear up. He’s in his own cage, two boars together in another cage across the room, they don’t mix. He’s 5 1/2yrs, had him 16mths, adopted from his owner as she went to uni.

 

[Siikibam]

Please put him next to the pair. Interaction through the bars is still better than nothing. Their eyesight isn’t great hence needing to be near to see body language etc.

I would strongly suggest you see another vet to be honest.
Vet Locator

 

[Guinea-pigGaga]

Will refrain from commenting on your veterinarian's choice of treatment, which seems appropriate, albeit a little unconventional.

However, I am concerned by your guinea pig's weight, which is on the low side for a five-and-a-half year old/ fully-grown adult boar…

Has your guinea pig always been this weight/size?

 

[Piggy-Wig]

Please put him next to the pair. Interaction through the bars is still better than nothing. Their eyesight isn’t great hence needing to be near to see body language etc.

I would strongly suggest you see another vet to be honest.
Vet Locator

Sorry, badly phrased. They normally live side by side but moved them apart when saw signs of itching, they usually sit right beside each others cages when they have free time. Piggy-Wig has always lived alone since before I got him and seemed quite stressed when I got Sammy and Snuggles (adopted as a pair through P@H) and tried introductions, however when he's in his cage and they are out and sit by him he totally ignores them. I was just worried that the mites could transfer from one to the other if they were kept close by?

 

[Piggy-Wig]

Will refrain from commenting on your veterinarian's choice of treatment, which seems appropriate, albeit a little unconventional.

However, I am concerned by your guinea pig's weight, which is on the low side for a five-and-a-half year old/ fully-grown adult boar…

Has your guinea pig always been this weight/size?

He started to noticeably lose weight a while after I adopted Sammy and Snuggles so in the last three months, but I confess I wasn't regularly weighing him. He drinks plenty and likes his pellets, although he is really picky about veg. I have also started giving him a small portion of rolled oats a couple of times a week which he loves, but he has NEVER been a huge hay eater! I have tried several different types/brands and he will scoff it the first few days then he just picks at it, but it didn't seem to impact him before. I have read/watched a lot about impaction recently and believe that this might also be an issue as he does get quite bunged up. Trying to unblock him has proved quite painful for him at the moment because of his sore skin so I want to limit handling but obviously still deal with the rear end, so it's a fine line. I'm just realising how adept they are at hiding illness/problems and it feels like this has all happened at once but also that I've kinda dropped the ball on this one as well, so feel doubly rotten. Sorry for long response.

 

[Siikibam]

Boar trios have the highest failure rate. That’s likely why it didn’t go well when you tried to bond the pair with him.

Pellets should be limited to a tablespoon a day. I would try and mix his hay up. Hopefully cutting back on pellets (not sure how much you feed him) will lead to an increase in his hay intake.

The pair have already been exposed to the mites. If they’re healthy then they should hopefully be able to fight it off.

How has his weight been the last few days?