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Abscess/Bite Wound Biscuit

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Caviesgalore (EPGPR)

Caviesgalore (EPGPR)

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Hi all I have just had a call from a friend who is concerned about one of her piggies. The pigs live outside in a hutch housed within a playhouse and whilst they are taken very well care of, cuddles at this time of year are obviously limited as they don't want to take the piggies into the house thus exposing them to temperature changes.

These are my friends first pigs so she is very inexperienced. She got in touch because she has found a sore area just to the side of the top of the front leg of one of her girls. I have just popped over to see Biscuit and was surprised by the "crater" I was faced with. My friend found it yesterday and initially thought she had some poo stuck on her fur on closer inspection they found the wound. I have no first hand experience of bite bounds or abscesses however I am guessing it is more likely to be the latter. It has healed over, giving the impression of having been like this for a couple of days and is quite deep looking with one side looking slightly "yellowish" ? maybe pus stuck under the initial scab? It also seems a funny place to be a bite wound, I would normally have expected to find these on ears, face or rump not top of the leg?

We have made an appoitment to take Biscuit over to our vets this afternoon to get the area checked out. If it is an abscess that has burst is the advice still to keep it open/flushed out for a few days? Should Debby expect to be given Baytril for Biscuit, obviously we will also ask for a pro-biotic if this is the case. Any advice before our visit would be helpful thank you.
 
Hi Sandra, I'm probably a bit late but hoping all goes well.

Sebaceous cyst is a possibility (it may have ruptured then become infected), or there is the chance it's an abscess. For an abscess, keeping it open and flushing it three times daily is a good start, then let it heal once it's been free of pus for a good couple of days. Use of systemic (oral) antibiotics is debatable.

For an infected cyst, the wound will need cleaning with saline around twice daily. Baytril will more than likely be prescribed. Treatment of infected/ruptured cysts isn't something I've come across so can't help much more with that!

Good luck, let us know how Biscuit gets on.
 
If it's an infected abcess then they are likely to give you something to flush it out with - can't remember for the life of me what I was given for Zippy but it was a pink liquid that you dilute and then flush the wound with. He was also given Baytril but as Laura says, it's dubious whether it will help if given orally. Interestingly I then took him to Vedra who advised syringing a bit of Baytril into the site of the infection twice a day.

Others recommend Manuka honey as a miracle worker!

Hope the piggy gets better soon

Sophie
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Metronidazole is 'often' used for flushing abscesses......I think.
 
Hydrogen Peroxide is sometimes used, although it's perhaps not the "best" one to use. Is that pink? :))

Povidone Iodine is another, although it's a "cup of tea" colour.
 
In my experience of removing sebaceous cysts the vast majority have not become infected neither does the area become infected post op.
I tend not to suture across the cavity which is formed when a cyst is removed, that is, I leave it open to the air. The speed at which the area heals is remarkably quick, 10-14 days.
Metronidazole is used by some people for flushing out an infected cyst but I would prefer to use sterile saline solution.
Hydrogen peroxide was widely used for many years then it "fell out of fashion" in favour of more "glamorous" drugs. However, it is now being used in head and neck cases (human) to treat infections following surgery/radiotherapy for cancer. The idea is that the flushing action causes less damage than having to remove "mechanically" any infected tissue.
 
Thanks for your replies Laura and Sophie - I was taking my friend and her pig to the vet!

Unfortunately my usual vet is still on maternity leave (fingers crossed she is back next month!) so we saw one of the other ladies. She ruled out mites as the rest of the hair is clean and clear and no obvious scratching plus this wound looks much "nastier" than any mite infection I have ever seen. She gave the area a really good squeeze, which was a bit grim, and nothing came away from the area.:( She seemed to think it was a scratch/wound that had become infected. 0.2ml Baytril prescribed twice daily (she is a diddy girlie) and I also got Debby to get some Biolapis. She has also been told to bathe the area daily with warm salt water.

When we got home I had a good look at Biscuit only to find another smaller sore area behind her ear on the opposite side to the original sore. We bathed both areas which don't seem to bother her and I showed my friend how to administer the Baytril. I also made up some of the Biolapis and told her how to give this via a syringe in a couple of hours time. I also took the opportunity to give her cage mate a thorough check over and there isn't a mark on her, in fact, both girls are beautifully clean. Of the two Biscuit is the more dominant piggy, her sister Fudge is much quieter so I would be surprised if she has gone for her.

Debby has decided to keep the girls inside now until spring arrives so that it makes it easier for her to carry out her nursing duties, and also she can keep a close eye on how the girls are interacting, so at least some good has come of this. Both Deb and her daughter have proved to be highly allergic to the piggies, hence they are in a play house, but they are both desperate to do the best they can for the girls.x)

I have had a quick look on GL and here for fungal infection posts and again, the wound just doesn't look right? Biscuit is on the Baytril for 5 days and if there is no improvement or if Deb is concerned at any time she needs to go back to see the vet.

Thanks again for your input, I will keep you posted. Sandra
 
The advice I was given by Vedra was that giving Baytil orally won't help a wound as the two aren't linked, if you see what I mean (not explaining too well there am I!) but I hope you manage to get to the bottom of it all, poor piggy. It's amazing how easy it is to miss signs when they're living outside - I'm much more aware of my indoor piggies when something is wrong, and I have to try twice as hard to be observant with the outdoor ones

Sophie
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sophiew said:
The advice I was given by Vedra was that giving Baytil orally won't help a wound as the two aren't linked, if you see what I mean (not explaining too well there am I!) but I hope you manage to get to the bottom of it all, poor piggy. It's amazing how easy it is to miss signs when they're living outside - I'm much more aware of my indoor piggies when something is wrong, and I have to try twice as hard to be observant with the outdoor ones

Sophie
x
Click to expand...

I know exactly what you mean Sophie, in some ways it would make more sense to apply something directly to the area involved. Funnily enough I did mention Manuka honey to my friend this morning (prior to bet visit), I gave it to Monty my Cocker Spaniel when he had kennel cough last year and it helped a treat.
 
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