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Abscess/cyst

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Pearlsie 86

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi all,

My male guinea pig of 1 1/2 years, Moogle had surgery just after Christmas after a discovered a marble size lump under his left ear. This was removed and the wound left open to heal, he was on Baytril for approx ten days.

It appeared to have healed well until the other day when I discovered another lump in exactly the same place, this evening I noticed he had scratched it and there was milky (not toothpaste consistency) pus and the hair surrounding it had stuck together. As he is very docile and friendly I have shaved the fur around it and i have squeezed what I can out of it. I have also noticed his eye on the same side of his face has sunken.

He is eating as per usual, he has lost a bit of weight since last summer but he is steady at the moment and I am weighing him every day. At his heaviest last summer he was 3lb 3oz and he now weighs 2lb 14oz. I am also giving him critical care in the evening to try and help bulk him up.

Please can I have advice with regards to what I need to do next (my vet is not very GP savvy) and I have spent an absolute fortune on vet bills recently -

1. Maybe the Baytril had not got rid of the previous infection? If so, what else can the vet prescribe and for how long?

2. Is it possible the sunken eye is linked to the infection if so, what can the vet prescribe for this and for how long?

3. How can i clean the wound with out it getting further affected?

4. Do I need to separate Moogle from his other GP friend?

Any other advice is greatly appreciated and if anyone knows of any GP savvy vets in the Suffolk/Essex area details again will be greatly received.

Claire
 
I've had a bit of experience with piggies who have had abscesses or sebaceous cysts removed but someone else with more knowledge might help you further. I'll answer your questions in order:-
1. The Baytril would have been used to protect against infection but sometimes the abscess will just come back as in the case of my Minky who had 3 removals before it was gone forever.
2. The sunken eye is possibly as a result of pressure. Both Minky & Mousey who's also currently recovering from removal last Tuesday had eye problems at the same time.
3. Best way to clean it is with water that's been boiled and allowed to cool down. I also use Manuka Honey on the wound. Honey was used on wounds for 100s of years before Penicillin was discovered.
4. I'd only separate if the other piggy is picking at the wound area. Generally poorly piggies are better with a companion.

I would also advise to ring vet & get appointment tomorrow. If you've got any Baytril left you could start using now at doseage vet stated last time.

Regarding nearest piggy savvy vet. I think this may be the nearest:-
Vets & Pets LTD
Amir Kashiv
Unit 11 Nazeing Industrial Estate
Nazeing New Road
Borxbourne, EN10 6SU
01992 478657

It's possible if Sue G is looking in she may know of another in that area.
 
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Ah yes, i can see it now :) Thank you for your response.

I will ring the vet tomorrow and try and get more Baytril. How long and what dosage have you been prescribed for your two?

The 'lump' that Moogle scratched at today and what I helped get puss out of earlier on has near enough gone, so I'm thinking it's just an infection from the last?

How are Minky & Mousey, are their eyes recovering from the Baytril?
 
Hi my GP daisy has had an abcess on her face, after surgery you must syringe the wound twice daily with hibiscrub dose 1 /10 using a small syringe, cold camomile tea bathed on the wound is also good

Hope this helps :)
 
Thanks Sue. He had surgery late December but the infection has only just started in the last week I.e puss from the old wound. I've ordered baytril and hibiscrub from the vets today. Fingers crossed.

Any further posts of your experiences/recommendations will be much appreciated.
 
Pearlsie 86 said:
Thanks Sue. He had surgery late December but the infection has only just started in the last week I.e puss from the old wound. I've ordered baytril and hibiscrub from the vets today. Fingers crossed.

Any further posts of your experiences/recommendations will be much appreciated.
Click to expand...
Hi

Daisy had her surgery last August and it is still open slightly I am taking her on Wednesday for a check although she is fine I just want to make sure

Will let you know :)
 
sue simcox said:
Hi

Daisy had her surgery last August and it is still open slightly I am taking her on Wednesday for a check although she is fine I just want to make sure

Will let you know :)
Click to expand...
I have added a picture soyou can see her face after surgery
 
We just went through this issue with an abscess on my guinea pig Sundae. I got some really good advice here, so hopefully someone else can chime in as well. Essentially, she had her surgery around Halloween. The vet put her under and lanced and drained the abscess. She was on an antibiotic called chloramphenicol (seems to be more common here in Canada for piggies) although I have been told that Zithromax is probably the best one for abscesses. Baytril is not the strongest med for abscesses, so you may need to look into another antibiotic. Post-op, we had to continue to open up the wound and flush it out to aid drainage. My vet gave me an antiseptic flush for it, as well as a syringe to use. We did this once and twice a day for months, until it began to heal from the inside out. Even now, about 3 months later, there is still a small opening that I rinse with antiseptic every couple days or so, but it is 90% done healing now and the vet is satisfied with her progress. I would guess that the underlying infection was not completely cleared by the first surgery and the pocket has started to refill. Since he has managed to open it himself, I would begin flushing it with something antiseptic, and touch base with your vet about more or different antibiotics. Hope this helps a bit! Abscesses are a major pain in the butt, I feel your pain!
 
You could ask about Zithromax as it is really effective on abcesses. If you go to Vets and Pets I know they do stock it and Amir has prescribed it for a lady I was helping, though that was for a URI.
 
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