My piggie has a fungal skin problem

Well any information you can find at all would be brilliant! I have spent so many hours searching to find out what it is, without luck.

many thanks!

I'm sorry I have nothing of any value to offer only that the wee mite is sorted in the end.

The nose problem does not look quite like the problem found on body skin.
The nose area looks like thin, spikey warts*, rather than being flat on the surface.
*I use that as a description not as a diagnosis of warts.

alcesterpigs said:

The nose problem does not look quite like the problem found on body skin.
The nose area looks like thin, spikey warts*, rather than being flat on the surface.
*I use that as a description not as a diagnosis of warts.

Click to expand...

Yes! That's exactly what it looks like and how I described it to the vet. Pale flesh coloured warty things.
Very weird! Will be very interesting to find out exactly what they are.

Very relieved guinea pig mummy!

Hi everyone I'm new here and very relieved to find this forum.

I have two teddy boars who I love very much but I've had an awful time since I got them from a breeder last July and they brought with them a fungal infection. We've had endless trips to the vets and several bottles of Imaverol, the hutch has been scrubbed and their toys replaced and I cannot get rid of the infection. My local vet doesn't seem to be very clued up on guineas and I always leave the vets feeling that they don't really know what they are dealing with so just send me away with more Imaverol. I've even had what my GP diagnosed as Ring Worm on my neck where Tobi likes to snuggle. That was back in August and was successfully treated.

Both piggies live separately in a two tier wooden hutch in my shed. The symptoms seem to be dry flakey skin under their fur but with no fur loss. Alfie goes through phases of not liking to be touched near his hip area, which breaks my heart. Although he usually gets so scared at the vets that he doesn't flinch whilst there! Tobi is a white teddy so I didn't realise until recently he too has dry flakey skin towards his back / hips. He also has the teddy bear nose described on this thread. It's like a cream vertical band and his fur sticks in spikey clumps around it.

Today I've decided enough is enough with the endless trips to the vets. I've had guinea pigs since I was 4 and my last pair lived 7 and 8 years with no vet trips apart from a check up and a nail trim! I've been to pets at home and replaced all their toys and hidey homes with plastic ones until we can erradicate this problem. I also bought some Beaphor Deep Clean spray which states on the bottle it gets rid of ringworm and other fungal infections. I also bought some Beaphor anti-fungal spray. I hadn't seen it before but I wondered if would be worth a try? Tomorrow I will scrub the hutch and switch their toys and try this spray on them. I also plan to order some products from Gorgeous Guineas. Suggestions as to the best ones would be helpful if anyone has any recommendations?!

I'm sorry if this is very long and if it's in the wrong place. I just love my boys very much and want to do my very best for them. I'm going to switch vets but as I have a disability and don't drive I need to find one relatively close to my house. Also I need to get on top of this problem as I take immunosuppressants for a health condition which makes me susceptible to catching fungal infections myself.

Sorry for the long post, I look forward to getting to know lots of other fellow guinea pig parents!

Lucy

Hi and welcome to the forum - you may be better off copying that into a new thread in the Health bit so that it gets seen.

Ringworm (if it IS ringworm!) is notoriously difficult to eradicate as the spores live in wood etc. for a long time and take some killing off. If it is ringworm, you should be wearing gloves and be careful of any other pets as it spreads through the air with the spores.

Are you able to post any pictures of the condition?

Chrissie at Gorgeous Guineas is very good and has often helped me with fungal rescue piggies in the past. Or you might need something stronger!

Sophie
x

Hi Lucy, welcome to the forum. I know you're quite sure it is a fungal problem, but have your boys been treated with Ivermectin at all? I second Sophie's suggestion of contacting Chrissie at Gorgeous Guineas - she's good with piggie skin stuff!

Hi Luce,

Welcome to the forum, good to see you over here. I know you love your boys to bits and it obvious that you are doing all you can to give them the best possible care. I think some one suggested Gorgeous Guineas Lavender and Mryhh lotion/shampoo but as others have said might be an idea to give them a ring.

A wooden hutch is so much more difficult to keep clean than a plastic cage, any chance that you can make the change to plastic?

Hello

Thank you for your replies, it's just so reassuring to be able to speak to other guinea pig parents who understand what I'm talking about, at work everyone thinks I'm a bit mad about my boys. Maybe that's because they haven't ever been greeted by their excited squeaks morning and night!

Sophiew - thank you, I'll copy the message into the main health section too so it gets seen a little more. Is it ok for there to be duplicate messages though? I know some forums don't like that kind of thing.

With regards to whether it is or isn't ringworm... I don't think even the vet is sure. I definitely had ringworm on my neck, it was the classic round circles and cleared up straight away with a weeks treatment with some cream on prescription. My GP was very definite with his diagnosis. It never has come back and I don't wear gloves to handle my boys except when they are treated with Imaverol from the vets. I wonder if maybe they have had ringworm and something else which is why it's so stubborn?

What Tobi and Alfie have is more just widespread white flakey skin without any hairloss or rings. I'll try to take some pictures tomorrow and if I get some good shots I'll post them here. It's mainly just dandruff like flakes. Although what has made me worry is the description on Gorgeous Guineas where it says "if you touch them around the hip area they will often turn round and try and bite you." Alfie goes through phases of this and it breaks my heart to see him like that. When he's in this kind of phase he likes nothing more than cuddling up on my lap in the warm and having his chin stroked. Poor baby. It was reading that on Gorgeous Guineas that made me decide enough is enough with the back and to from the vets all the time. I want my boys to be happy and I'm going to do my very best to clear the hutch of the infection.

Laura my boys haven't ever been treated with Ivermectin. Am I right that its one of the 'spot on' treatments for paracites etc? I have seen them and wondered whether it's something I should be doing for my boys but I've never needed to use it on my previous pairs of guineas and they all lived healthy long lives without it. I'm wondering if it would be worth a try but maybe I should try one thing at a time for now?

This is the spray I bought today http://www.beaphar.co.uk/productdetail/anti-fungal-spray-for-small-animals/1487/

I'm going to throw away / recycle their wooden toys and their Chubes. As much as they love them it might just help to get rid of this once and for all. Plus someone at work has been saving huge cardboard tubes for me so I have a ready made supply of toys waiting at the office. I bought some new plastic igloos and jingle balls today so their hutch isn't too empty.

I think I will call Chrissie from Gorgeous Guineas too. I'd do anything for my boys as Tommies Mam knows!

Thank you from a worried mummy!

P.S. I'd better get to bed, I have a lot of cleaning to do tomorrow!

I could possibly make the change to plastic but as I'm in a rental property they have to be kept in the shed and I worry they wouldn't be warm enough in the cages that are designed for indoors? I do bring my boys in to the house when it is very cold but they usually are toasty warm in their hutch with a cover over it inside my shed. I have been offered one plastic cage from a friend and would just need to buy another one from The Range as my boys just cannot get on together.

Right time to make the attack on the hutch...

Good luck