White Specks On Fur

[WinterAddams]

Both of my guinea pigs have very soft fur, it has been so for months. They have no bald spots but do scratch themselves some times. My vet told me that it is normal, especially in the summer.
Today I was clipping their nails and noticed that Nymeria had white specks on her fur (shes mostly black so you can see it clearly). I dont know if Bubbles has it too since she has lighter fur.
I don't think it is mites but I am a bit worried.
Also Nymeria, even though she is an American piggy, has very matted fur on her bum, which is also yellowish because of pee (I assume. They were living in a bathroom during holidays so her bum got wet some times).
I am planning on giving them a bath but here in Portugal it's really hard to find shampoo for guinea pigs, I was gonna buy kitten shampoo instead since I was only gonna wash them this time.

 

[Wiebke]

Both of my guinea pigs have very soft fur, it has been so for months. They have no bald spots but do scratch themselves some times. My vet told me that it is normal, especially in the summer.
Today I was clipping their nails and noticed that Nymeria had white specks on her fur (shes mostly black so you can see it clearly). I dont know if Bubbles has it too since she has lighter fur.
I don't think it is mites but I am a bit worried.
Also Nymeria, even though she is an American piggy, has very matted fur on her bum, which is also yellowish because of pee (I assume. They were living in a bathroom during holidays so her bum got wet some times).
I am planning on giving them a bath but here in Portugal it's really hard to find shampoo for guinea pigs, I was gonna buy kitten shampoo instead since I was only gonna wash them this time.

You can use just hand warm water for a bath if necessary; even a shampoo won't get those urine stains out of white fur.

The white specs can be just bits of dead skin; they are usually more visible on dark fur.

Have a look out for hay mites whose tiny egg cases are sitting on hairs around the bum area. The mites themselves are invisible. But it could be just some dry skin flakes.

 

[WinterAddams]

You can use just hand warm water for a bath if necessary; even a shampoo won't get those urine stains out of white fur.

The white specs can be just bits of dead skin; they are usually more visible on dark fur.

Have a look out for hay mites whose tiny egg cases are sitting on hairs around the bum area. The mites themselves are invisible. But it could be just some dry skin flakes.

Okay, I will use warm water, just to soften the clumps of matted hair.
I don't think I can see any big specks though, they are all so small and kind of look like regular human dandruff.

 

[Wiebke]

Okay, I will use warm water, just to soften the clumps of matted hair.
I don't think I can see any big specks though, they are all so small and kind of look like regular human dandruff.

As I said, it could be just dry skin; but we cannot diagnose it for you online.

 

[Wiebke]

PS: I would cut off any badly matted bits if necessary; the hair will grow back.

 

[WinterAddams]

As I said, it could be just dry skin; but we cannot diagnose it for you online.

Yeah I know. Sadly the vet is on holidays and getting them to an exotic pet vet in Portugal is extremely diffucult. They don't seem to be in any pain or discomfort though.

 

[Wiebke]

Yeah I know. Sadly the vet is on holidays and getting them to an exotic pet vet in Portugal is extremely diffucult. They don't seem to be in any pain or discomfort though.

As it stands, I would just keep an eye on it and see whether it gets worse or disappears again. You can give them a bath if you wish to. If you find dark dots fixed to hairs, then you are dealing with hay mites, if not, it is most likely simply dry skin.
How To Bathe Guinea Pigs - Including Ears & Grease Glands

 

[WinterAddams]

As it stands, I would just keep an eye on it and see whether it gets worse or disappears again. You can give them a bath if you wish to. If you find dark dots fixed to hairs, then you are dealing with hay mites, if not, it is most likely simply dry skin.
How To Bathe Guinea Pigs - Including Ears & Grease Glands

Thank you so much for your replies. I will be bathinh them in some warm water. I don't think using kitten shampoo would be a good idea if they have dry skin.