Scabs on back

[Kpiggysandb]

Hiya, I’m a New Guinea pig owner and bought 2 male piggies from a seller yesterday after further inspection, I noticed that one of the boys had scabs all over his back. I asked the original owner and she said that they are old wounds from another male the pair used to be housed with. Is there anything I can do for him to help the wounds heal and could this be a sign of something deeper?

 

[Piggies&buns]

It would be best to have a vet check them to determine the cause - whether they are bites from another piggy (keeping three boars together usually does end with fights) or whether there is a possible active skin parasite issue which requires treatment.
If they are determined to be bites from another piggy and are old, healed wounds then there probably is nothing to do be done.
If they are fresh bite wounds from another piggy then I would be watching them to ensure they are not fighting with each other.

Given they come from, presumably, a private seller, a general vet check would be advised in any event

 

[Wiebke]

H

It would be best to have a vet check them
to determine the cause - whether they are bites from another piggy (keeping three boars together usually does end with fights) or whether there is a possible active skin parasite issue which requires treatment.
If they are determined to be bites from another piggy and are old, healed wounds then there probably is nothing to do be done.
If they are fresh bite wounds from another piggy then I would be watching them to ensure they are not fighting with each other.

Given they come from, presumably, a private seller, a general vet check would be advised in any event

Hi and welcome

If you rehome piggies privately, please always have them vet checked. The scabs could be bites (new or old) but they could also be from mange mites. Only a hands-on examination can tell. What you can never count on is whether your piggies have had a good home and whether the owners are telling the full truth (or even the truth at all).

The following very practical guide links give you more in-depth information and understanding of various aspects you are currently dealing with.

Here are the most common health pitfalls that can come with new guinea pigs: New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

How a new pet home looks from the perspective of new piggies: Arrival in a home from the perspective of pet shop guinea pigs

Especially coming out of a dysfunctional boar quartet, your two boys not only need to create a new working group socially but also territorially. That is a big change. It takes about two weeks on average. How old are your boys? I suspect that they are teenagers (4-14 months, with a hormone high around 6 months). How old are they exactly? That would help us with tailoring our advice more precisely.

Please make sure that your boys only have housing with two or more exits, ideally at different ends of the cage, that they have two water bottles at different and and that you ideally sprinkly your veg and the 1 tablspoon of pellets per piggy per day around the cage; this will not only remove some of the most common flash points for fights, it is also mimicking natural browsing behaviour and counts as enrichment. Make sure that hay access cannot be blocked off and if necessary have another hay tray in a different area. Hay/fresh grass should make over three quarters of what a piggy eats in a day. Veg, pellets and any healthy treats all together only replace the supplementary role of wild forage in the diet that guinea pigs have evolved on.
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?

You may want to bookmark this link here, browse, read and re-read at need. It is our very helpful and practical New Owners Collection that deals with basic care and all the unforeseeable little practical issues and how-to questions that have come up most frequently with thousands of new owners joining our forum over the last over 15 years: Getting Started - Essential Information for New Owners

 

[Kpiggysandb]

I’ve rehomed a Guinea pig and he has these sort of scabs on his back. Was wondering if anyone had any advice on what to do or what it could be ?

 

[ScrufflesRules]

Is this the same piggy as the one you mentioned in your other thread?
If so, you've been given some great advice over there. We recommend keeping all health and illness posts to one thread as it makes it a lot easier for people to see your guinea pig's history.

 

[Claire W]

Hello and welcome. Aw bless him, he does look sore

The wounds could be bites from another piggy especially if he was previously housed with males or they could be self inflicted if he has mites / mange mites / fungal

Either way, he will need to see a vet and then take any treatment plan from there depending on the vets evaluation and findings x

 

[Kpiggysandb]

Thanks for the advice. I have attached an image of this helps ?

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks for the advice. I have attached an image of this helps ?

That should definitely be vet checked after the weekend!

 

[ScrufflesRules]

It's probably worth phoning the vets today in advance for an appointment, as the bank holiday might mean appointments are harder to get hold of unfortunately.

 

[Wheekallweek]

Ouch, looks very sore. I agree with the others, definitely a vet visit in order.

 

[weepweeps]

Poor boy. Good luck at the vets. I hope it’s something easily treatable.