Skin Issue - Guinea Pig Scratching Himself Red Raw

[Sophie]

Hello! Not posted on here for a while so I hope everyone and their piggies are doing well!
I'm looking for some advice because i'm out of options! My piggie Pebble is a male approximately 1 and a half years old. He used to live with my other boar Forest Gump, I noticed they were bickering a bit but left them as they hadn't had any proper fights and were still seeming to be enjoying each others company however I then noticed a large wound on Pebbles back one day so I immediately separated them and took him to the vets who said it was a bite wound and told us to put sudocrem on it. A week later it still hadn't healed up and more began appearing so i began to think it was mites or some other lice so back to the vets we went. They said they couldnt see anything but prescribed some medicine and he was on that for a further two weeks. It still wasn't getting any better and he was constantly squealing in pain as he scratched so he went back to the vets and they took a skin scraping and looked under the microscope, again they couldn't see anything. The vet prescribed a steroid then rang the next day to tell us to not put it on him as he had second thoughts and thought it was too strong and dangerous for him. However he didn't prescribe anything else.

So then I took matters into my own hands, did some research and decided its most likely mange, treated him with ivermectin but he wouldn't stop the scratching so I have been putting him in bandage socks and this did the trick as he couldnt access the wounds. He's been wearing them for about two weeks and it has really healed him up so I took it off him today thinking he was all healed and none itchy! Just got home and he was squealing again and he's scratched his skin red raw! I just don't know what I can do to stop the itching when noone knows whats causing it.
Thank you if you've stuck with me and read all this! Please let me know if anyones experienced any thing similiar or got any advice!

 

[Tiamolly123]

Hello! Not posted on here for a while so I hope everyone and their piggies are doing well!
I'm looking for some advice because i'm out of options! My piggie Pebble is a male approximately 1 and a half years old. He used to live with my other boar Forest Gump, I noticed they were bickering a bit but left them as they hadn't had any proper fights and were still seeming to be enjoying each others company however I then noticed a large wound on Pebbles back one day so I immediately separated them and took him to the vets who said it was a bite wound and told us to put sudocrem on it. A week later it still hadn't healed up and more began appearing so i began to think it was mites or some other lice so back to the vets we went. They said they couldnt see anything but prescribed some medicine and he was on that for a further two weeks. It still wasn't getting any better and he was constantly squealing in pain as he scratched so he went back to the vets and they took a skin scraping and looked under the microscope, again they couldn't see anything. The vet prescribed a steroid then rang the next day to tell us to not put it on him as he had second thoughts and thought it was too strong and dangerous for him. However he didn't prescribe anything else.

So then I took matters into my own hands, did some research and decided its most likely mange, treated him with ivermectin but he wouldn't stop the scratching so I have been putting him in bandage socks and this did the trick as he couldnt access the wounds. He's been wearing them for about two weeks and it has really healed him up so I took it off him today thinking he was all healed and none itchy! Just got home and he was squealing again and he's scratched his skin red raw! I just don't know what I can do to stop the itching when noone knows whats causing it.thoughthough I
Thank you if you've stuck with me and read all this! Please let me know if anyones experienced any thing similiar or got any advice![/ hi mine did that but mine was put on antibotics, although I put mine on XEON 450 although it did take a long time to clear up. But to be honest l'd take him to a new vet. Congratulations on keeping a sock on Tia kept pulling it off. Let us know how you got one

 

[Tiamolly123]

For some reason my reply has mixed in your post, it's right at the end, hope it helps

 

[helen105281]

How many rounds of Ivermectin did he have? was it spot on? if so and it is mange mites you are dealing with, Ivermectin injections can be more effective as it goes straight into the blood stream. That would involve persuading your vet.

To break the itch scratch cycle sometimes an anti-histamine can work, you could speak to your vet about that? Also is he on any type of anti-inflammatory like Metacam?

Have you considered fungal at all? With mange mites the hairs tend to look broken halfway down the shaft, whereas with fungal the hair comes out easily when tugged and tends to have debris on the ends. It can also look greasy and if you rub it the wrong way it doesn't fall nicely back into place. The skin would also look very pink.

 

[Wiebke]

Hello! Not posted on here for a while so I hope everyone and their piggies are doing well!
I'm looking for some advice because i'm out of options! My piggie Pebble is a male approximately 1 and a half years old. He used to live with my other boar Forest Gump, I noticed they were bickering a bit but left them as they hadn't had any proper fights and were still seeming to be enjoying each others company however I then noticed a large wound on Pebbles back one day so I immediately separated them and took him to the vets who said it was a bite wound and told us to put sudocrem on it. A week later it still hadn't healed up and more began appearing so i began to think it was mites or some other lice so back to the vets we went. They said they couldnt see anything but prescribed some medicine and he was on that for a further two weeks. It still wasn't getting any better and he was constantly squealing in pain as he scratched so he went back to the vets and they took a skin scraping and looked under the microscope, again they couldn't see anything. The vet prescribed a steroid then rang the next day to tell us to not put it on him as he had second thoughts and thought it was too strong and dangerous for him. However he didn't prescribe anything else.

So then I took matters into my own hands, did some research and decided its most likely mange, treated him with ivermectin but he wouldn't stop the scratching so I have been putting him in bandage socks and this did the trick as he couldnt access the wounds. He's been wearing them for about two weeks and it has really healed him up so I took it off him today thinking he was all healed and none itchy! Just got home and he was squealing again and he's scratched his skin red raw! I just don't know what I can do to stop the itching when noone knows whats causing it.
Thank you if you've stuck with me and read all this! Please let me know if anyones experienced any thing similiar or got any advice!

Please see a competent vet. What kind of ivermectin have you used? It sounds like a serious case of mange mites which will need several rounds of ideally ivermectin injections (at least 3-4 rounds), which are more efficient than topical high dosed ivermectin. Your vet also needs to check whether a fungal skin infection is mixed up in it. A diluted gentle dab with F10 can help with disinfecting the open wounds, but you need to be extremely careful to not trigger fitting.

It may be worth contacting Cavy Corner sanctuary, which is local to you and has got lots of experience with this kind of issue, so they could help you with the care side. They can also help you see their local vet, who should also have got guinea pigs experience looking after the sanctuary piggies. They are the safest hands for you locally.
Guinea Pig Vet Locator
Cavy Corner

 

[Sophie]

How many rounds of Ivermectin did he have? was it spot on? if so and it is mange mites you are dealing with, Ivermectin injections can be more effective as it goes straight into the blood stream. That would involve persuading your vet.

To break the itch scratch cycle sometimes an anti-histamine can work, you could speak to your vet about that? Also is he on any type of anti-inflammatory like Metacam?

Have you considered fungal at all? With mange mites the hairs tend to look broken halfway down the shaft, whereas with fungal the hair comes out easily when tugged and tends to have debris on the ends. It can also look greasy and if you rub it the wrong way it doesn't fall nicely back into place. The skin would also look very pink.

Thank you for your reply, I think it's mange rather than fungal by what you've said but I'll get the vet to double check. He's not currently on any medication. We did ask the vet about an antihistamine but he didn't seem to think it would do any good. He's had two rounds of spot on ivermectin

 

[Sophie]

Please see a competent vet. What kind of ivermectin have you used? It sounds like a serious case of mange mites which will need several rounds of ideally ivermectin injections (at least 3-4 rounds), which are more efficient than topical high dosed ivermectin. Your vet also needs to check whether a fungal skin infection is mixed up in it. A diluted gentle dab with F10 can help with disinfecting the open wounds, but you need to be extremely careful to not trigger fitting. if necessary, contact Cavy Corner sanctuary, which is local to you and has got lots of experience with this kind of issue and can help you with the care side.They can also help you see their local vet, who should also have got guinea pigs experience looking after the sanctuary piggies.
Guinea Pig Vet Locator
Cavy Corner

I'm a volunteer at cavy corner and I use their vet surgery however I wasn't able to see either of the particularly Guinea savvy vets I'm going to go back to the vets with all this information you've given me and hopefully get him sorted. Do you know How far apart the ivermectin injections will be? Thank you!

 

[Wiebke]

I'm a volunteer at cavy corner and I use their vet surgery however I wasn't able to see either of the particularly Guinea savvy vets I'm going to go back to the vets with all this information you've given me and hopefully get him sorted. Do you know How far apart the ivermectin injections will be? Thank you!

It depends on the specific product, but the interval is between 1-2 weeks, depending on how high dosed the product is. I would ask Sue and Winston for more tips; I am sure that they will help you with their own vast experience.

 

[Tiamolly123]

Just thought have you introduced a new bedding, changed the hay, put in new toys etc. Could it be he's allergic to something in the cage? Just a thought