First and foremost O am not a breeder but I do have a sow who I found out is pregnant and has a patch of ring worm on her nose area. It seems to be getting worse /bigger.She is eating well and seems well I herself.
Could anyone recomend safe treatments ,I do have some F10 shampoo to hand ,any help appreciated
Thanks
Hi
Please read our very detailed and practical ringworm guide and see your vet. For the sake of a proper diagnosis
do not step in with any home treatment like creaming, as much as you are itching to do so. It is like wiping a crime scene, as far as any vet is concerned and it will not prevent the shedding of spores re. secondary infections from picked up spores.
Because your girl is pregnant, she may not be able to have oral systemic treatment (that is for your vet to deliberate) and you will have to do with medicated baths every three days. It is not quite as effective but it does work - I have done it with 16 piggies at one point before oral treatment came on the block. We have found imaverol/enilconazole the most efficient of the dips but malaseb will also do the trick - the first is prescription-only in the UK as well as any oral treatment.
Please keep in mind that you will also have to bathe any companions at least twice - once at the start of treatment to catch any spores they may have picked up in the 10-14 days gap between infection and acute outbreak and once at the end of any treatment to do the same again for any spores potentially picked up in the interim and to prevent them carrying forward any spores sitting loosely in the coat. If your girl's ringworm hasn't got on top of by 7-10 days, you will want to conduct a third bath for the companions to ensure that the latency period between infection and outbreak stays broken.
Once you are dealing with an acute spore-shedding patch, it has to run its due course with any topical treatment (i.e. external treatment). We have included pictures of how an infectious outbreak runs at the end of our ringworm guide. The acute outbreak is over when no new white fungal exudate crusts form.
Ringworm can only be spread through spores; if a piggy is not showing any signs of it, they may be infected but they are not infectious themselves. But because invisibly tiny ringworm spores are so highly infectious to lots of species - including humans - and so long-lived, the battle to prevent more acute patches and to get on top of any spores as effectively as possible is paramount for the longer term.
Please leave any young piggies together as much as possible; they do not deal well with separation at that age and it is another major stress (i.e. immune-system lowering) factor for them.
Pregnant and nursing sows have an immune system that is running on overload and they are less good at fending off/controlling opportunists like ringworm and skin parasites they have been exposed to. In view of this, I would also recommend to discuss with your vet whether a three week booster with additional vitamin C may be something to consider. It is important that you try to keep on top of any spores as much as possible and that you are very diligent with your hygiene measures because newborns do not yet have a working immune system and are liable to get it really badly, the same as human children do.
However, with the correct care, they will all make a full recovery. My Manon had ringworm when she was rescued highly pregnant from a horrible place and unfortunately passed it onto her baby daughter who got it much worse, so I had to wait a month longer with my adoption. Both Manon (Welsh name meaning 'Queen') and her daughter Maelona ('Princess', or rather 'She-Prince') have been ringworm-free for the nearly two years they have been with me and they are both thriving.
Ringworm: Hygiene, Care And Pictures
Bathing (including cleaning grease glands)
PS: You are welcome to open an ongoing support thread in our Pregnancy and Baby Care section, which is only visible to fully registered members who have accepted our explicit no breeding forum rules during the signing up process for any questions, concerns and updates you may have along the whole period until weaning and sorting out any babies' futures. The section is specifically monited by me and experienced rescue fosterers (with the badge in their signature) so any posts will get an answer as soon as one of us comes on. Is any companion an unneutered male?
I hope that this will help you get through this as best as possible under the circumstances. We will provide ongoing practical and moral support in this thread for as long as needed, so please bookmark this thread in order to pick it up easily again. Because we are not part of social media, we can provide longer term support but it is much easier for us to support most effectively you in your individual situation when we can keep all the information of each case together.
