Rosemary has some 'passengers' !

[Qualcast&Flymo]

I think! It seems that she has become jealous of all the extra attention Squeaks has been having recently, especially the Metacam, and has decided she wants a vet visit or two too!

I was doing health checks during hutch cleaning at the weekend, and noticed some rough feeling bits in her coat and could see white specks. I checked again today when I had better light and more time, and there defintely was a sprinkling of hard white bits stuck to her dark hair from about her middle towards her bum. Having had a look at the relevant guide, I hope I am correct in assuming they are hay mite eggs.

I'm going to book a vet trip tomorrow, but I just wanted to check what the treatment should be for hay mites. I understood the guide to say that I will need to chuck any open bags of hay (whether local meadow hay or Oxbow Orchard Hay) and also wash all the fleecey stuff currently in the hutch. Treatment should be Ivermectin spot-on 3 times. Have I missed anything? I'm a bit concerned about washing my fleecy stuff at 60 degrees, I'm worried it will cause it to shrink as I usually wash at 40 degrees. And do I need to take all three piggies and/or give them all spot-on? I don't think either Squeaks or Winifred have any noticeable eggs, though I'll check tomorrow.

Thanks in advance for any advice

 

[Wiebke]

I think! It seems that she has become jealous of all the extra attention Squeaks has been having recently, especially the Metacam, and has decided she wants a vet visit or two too!

I was doing health checks during hutch cleaning at the weekend, and noticed some rough feeling bits in her coat and could see white specks. I checked again today when I had better light and more time, and there defintely was a sprinkling of hard white bits stuck to her dark hair from about her middle towards her bum. Having had a look at the relevant guide, I hope I am correct in assuming they are hay mite eggs.

I'm going to book a vet trip tomorrow, but I just wanted to check what the treatment should be for hay mites. I understood the guide to say that I will need to chuck any open bags of hay (whether local meadow hay or Oxbow Orchard Hay) and also wash all the fleecey stuff currently in the hutch. Treatment should be Ivermectin spot-on 3 times. Have I missed anything? I'm a bit concerned about washing my fleecy stuff at 60 degrees, I'm worried it will cause it to shrink as I usually wash at 40 degrees. And do I need to take all three piggies and/or give them all spot-on? I don't think either Squeaks or Winifred have any noticeable eggs, though I'll check tomorrow.

Thanks in advance for any advice

Hi

You will need to treat all three piggies but unless you prefer 'paw-holding' company on your vet trip, it will be enough to let your vet know about her companions.

Personally, I recommend to give any hay mite infested piggies a very short hair cut or close shave of the infected areas - that is a lot of future multiplying mites taken care of that you do not have to treat with chemicals and that won't go and infest any companions. Ivermectin works on the emerged mites but not on the eggs. Never underestimate the power of mechanical measures - the same goes for hand washing or mask wearing with Covid. Don't worry, the hair will grow back to its genetically determined length.
New piggy problems: URI - ringworm - skin parasites

With hay mites, I think a normal wash will do but if possible go for a longer cycle and not just a quick wash and still deep clean the cage.

All the best!

 

[Bill & Ted]

Aw so sorry you’ve got extra “guests” why is it everything always comes at once

 

[piggieminder]

Sorry you're having these problems, I hope your visitors are easily and quickly got rid of.

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

Hi

You will need to treat all three piggies but unless you prefer 'paw-holding' company on your vet trip, it will be enough to let your vet know about her companions.

Personally, I recommend to give any hay mite infested piggies a very short hair cut or close shave of the infected areas - that is a lot of future multiplying mites taken care of that you do not have to treat with chemicals and that won't go and infest any companions. Ivermectin works on the emerged mites but not on the eggs. Never underestimate the power of mechanical measures - the same goes for hand washing or mask wearing with Covid. Don't worry, the hair will grow back to its genetically determined length.
New piggy problems: URI - ringworm - skin parasites

With hay mites, I think a normal wash will do but if possible go for a longer cycle and not just a quick wash and still deep clean the cage.

All the best!

Thanks. I have got an appointment for later this afternoon so hopefully can get on top of the problem quickly.

Is F10 necessary for a deep clean? I don't have any, but can ask the vet dispensary if they have any of the right stuff. Is there an alternative if they don't have any?

Also, what is the best way to give Rosemary a short hair cut? I've never cut piggies' hair as mine have always been short haired. I could borrow my son's electric razor perhaps ...

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks. I have got an appointment for later this afternoon so hopefully can get on top of the problem quickly.

Is F10 necessary for a deep clean? I don't have any, but can ask the vet dispensary if they have any of the right stuff. Is there an alternative if they don't have any?

Also, what is the best way to give Rosemary a short hair cut? I've never cut piggies' hair as mine have always been short haired. I could borrow my son's electric razor perhaps ...

A pair of scissors and a thorough normal clean with a disinfectant should hopefully do the trick.

F10 is antifungal in addition to the normal antibacterial in regular products so it is crucial for getting on top of ringworm spores. For skin parasites the extra fungal angle is not relevant.

All the best!

 

[Merab]

Sorry to hear that there are hay mites.
Hope you can get them dealt with quickly

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

We saw the vet, he also noticed that Rosemary had a weepy eye - dye showed a small ulcer, so she must have poked herself since yesterday evening...
So I have Isathal for that as well. He has given us 6 pipettes of Xeno 450, for the mites, I have to give all 3 half a pipette each (10 drops). I'm doing the first dose tomorrow as there wasn't sufficient time or light after my return to do a full hutch clean before dosing them. I'll get the third dose from the vet when I take R back for a recheck in 2 weeks. Hope it works quick so R doesn't get all itchy.

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

Cleaned out the lower section of the hutch this morning and washed all the fleecy things as well. Once the hutch was dry and ready the piggies all had their ivermectin before going back in. Ivermectin isn't the easiest thing to administer to a guinea pig that doesn't want to sit still... I parted the hair on the back of the neck to get a patch of visible skin, a couple of times I had to do that more than once as the piggie moved... and then even only 10 drops makes quite a big puddle that tends to run off the fur before it's absorbed. So I hope they all got enough in the end!
I couldn't see or feel any mites on Squeaks, and only one or two on Winifred, hopefully I've got to it before it can get really bad for any of my piggies

Rosemary is having her Isathal twice daily which she doesn't like at all. At least Squeaks is now happy to take his Metacam for his dental problems without having to be picked up - almost a Metacam junkie!