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Potential lice and fleece question

Katie A

Katie A

Junior Guinea Pig
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Jun 10, 2021
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Hi! Last night I noticed these white looking specks on the hair part near my piggies bum. On closer inspection I could see they were moving. Eek! After looking at forums I'm guessing they are walking lice? I plan on calling my vet tomorrow to take my boys in. My main question for the forum is about the hay and fleece. Can they get these from hay? Do I need to throw all the hay out? And I read to wash all the fleece in hot water, but I use Guinea dad liners that can't be washed in hot water. What do I do for those? And what is the best way to sanatize the coroplast and everything? Do I need to throw out all the pellets and food and the broom and everything too? Sorry for so many questions. First time dealing with piggie parasites. Thanks! :)
 
My piggies all had lice within a short time of being home with us. I didn’t get rid of the fleece, hay or pellets though. You can get some F10 on Amazon (or elsewhere) to clean the correx. Get the undiluted one as that lasts a lot longer.

I’m not sure what you can do with the liner though…
 
The fleece liner really needs a hot wash at 60 degrees but failing that if you pop it in a carrier bag in the freezer for 24 hours that will also kill lice.
As @Siikibam says, F10 disinfectant is pretty essential, you can use it in your cage and also wash your broom with that.
The pellets are unlikely to be a source of lice but until you are sure these are lice I might personally ditch the hay as sometimes hay can be a source of incoming nasties- you never know how it has been stored, what other animals may have been around... best of luck!
Your vet should be prescribing prescription strength Xeno treatment, an ivermectin product applied to the back and neck that is absorbed through the skin, they will calculate how much to use and what strength formulation based on piggy weights. 3 treatments, 2 weeks apart, are usually needed to fully get rid of skin parasites.
 
Thank you guys so much! I just purchased some F10 on Amazon which should be here tomorrow. I'll go ahead and start hot washing some of their fleece and beds and such that they aren't using currently. Can you freeze hay? I have like $100 worth of hay right now so I'd hate to throw it all out, but will if I have to. And is there anything that I should be on the watch for in what my vet tries to prescribe? Like anything dangerous? Still trying to find the right exotic vet. Was hoping for a bit more time before off to the vet again. LOL. One of my piggies is only 2 months old if that makes any difference. The other is 7 months.
 
Thank you! Oh, and does freezing the liners kill the lice eggs too? I only have one non guinea dad liner which I just put in the wash now so it will be ready after the vet. If I freeze and leave my guinea dad liners out of the cage for a few days will that be good? How long does it take for any eggs to hatch?
 
I know freezing hay does do the rounds on the internet, but its not something I would do. they shouldn't eat frozen and defrosted foods, plus there is a chance it would get damp/condensate, then go mouldy
 
Ohhhhh okay, thats a good point! Can running lice actually come in hay or only mites? I adopted my 2 month old from a rescue about a month ago so I'm wondering if maybe he came with the lice.
 
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