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Bad bumble foot advice

E

emmaross

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
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Location
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Hi Everyone

This is my first time writing but I have used previous conversations over the last few years to help with the care of my piggies

Minnie is a 5/6 year old sow who is long haired. She has always had dry flaky skin but in the last week she has developed bad bumble foot. I felt so bad because it mainly says it’s due to bad mucky cage and I put in so much effort to keep it good. She is an old guinea though and I’ve read they are more prone to it. I suspect it happened when she had a little poo stuck in both her front feet so I gently removed it and accidentally removed a little bit of a scab that was underneath that I didn’t know was there. A week later they got bad quickly and have had vetinary help. Had a 5 day course of baytril and a much longer course of meloxicom.
It wasnt an exotic vet and they didn’t mention anything about topical treatments but I have been doing Epsom salt bath twice daily and fully drying her off afterwards.
Spot cleaning cage twoce daily and fully cleaning every two days. C and C cage with fleece liners.

They have made improvements but the scabs are still there and one came off partly after the bath last night and it was clear it still needed to be there. I did an impromptu bandage with some leftover sealed medical grade manuka honey over the half open scab.

I guess my question is am I doing the right stuff? We are trying to get a longer course of antibiotics today because it’s helped but still signs of infection and it’s a long term condition. Should I keep going with Epsom salt baths and then try to do manuka honey and bandages as well?
I can’t get photos of the feet well but they are red, a bit swollen, and have a scab covering roughly a third of the front paw.

Keeping her comfy and her welfare is top priority as she is an older pig.
She is well in herself running still eating, walking round cage, demanding veggies etc

Thank you for your help, this is an amazing place.
 
Welcome to the forum

Bumblefoot is caused when bacteria get into cracks into the skin: it isn’t always about a cage being unclean, it can purely be down to old age and dodgy circulation.

When it comes to dealing with bumblefoot, keeping her dry is a priority - you may need to do cage cleans more often while she heals as you don’t want her sat on any damp bedding.
Otherwise it’s literally a case of doing what is working in helping it heal - some things may work for one piggy but not another.

Make sure her dose is meloxicom is good enough (non knowledgeable or non exotic vets may prescribe too low a dose for piggies).

I would also recommend you switch from the routine weekly weight checks and instead weigh her daily so that you can monitor hay intake more closely (hay intake can’t be monitored by eye)

Guinea Lynx :: Pododermatitis
 
Hi and welcome

It depends on what kind of germ gets through tiny cracks in the footsole, so like with the equivalent in the lips (cheilitis), there is not one ideal treatment that necessarily works for all cases. Frailty (especially reduced blood circulation in the elderly) /sitting in their pee in one spot or even over-creaming of the feet softens the hard skin on the soles and can promote cracks.

The one big disadvantage with fleece bedding is that tiny pee particles tend to collect on the surface, so vetbed bedding patches for the denning areas which you can exchange daily or more often can help with the frailer piggies.
Looking After Guinea Pigs With Limited or No Mobility

Unfortunately for you, bumblefoot is not an area in which I have personal expertise, so I am leaving that to other members who have and you can answer any questions you will have.

@Viennese Furbabies @Freela
You have extensive practical experience with advanced bumblefoot.
 
Unfortunately bumble foot will require a long term treatment in many cases. I would definitely ask the vet about a long term treatment with baytril.
My late Billie suffered from bumble foot for quite some time and she was on long-term baytril. Of course pain management is also essential. As well as keeping the cage extra clean and dry.
This is Biilie's story: Billie's paw

We have tried a lot and only managed to keep the situation from getting worse but bumble foot can also heal completely.
If you need any tips about bandaging the paw, have a look here: - YouTube
It is in German but YouTube will probably translate it for you.
 
Thank you so much. I have already read through billies paw journey a few days ago briefly but I will take the time to fully read it.
We have managed to get an extra 5 days currently of baytril so that’s 10 days total. The vet prescribed 0.3ml meloxicom, dog strength 1.5mg/ml once daily but I upped this to twice daily given their metabolism speed.
I’m going to continue with Epsom salt baths and start doing manuka honey now that I have vet wrap to aid in bandages. I was thinking almost doing this once daily to allow the body to heal between and not interrupt it too much. I could be wrong though.

It hasn’t got any worse since the antibiotics started which is very good and is showing a few signs of improvement. Now on day 5 into antibiotics. Once the extra course finishes if they start getting worse at all I’ll get her booked into a specialist exotic vet to help us.
 
If you see any improvement, that's a very good sign.
As long as the bandage stays in place and is reasonably dry, it should be enough to change it once a day. You just have to be very careful not to make the bandage too tight because the damage can be quite drastic. If the healing process continues, it could be better not to use the bandage for too long.
 
Please try not to beat yourself or feel guilty. Bumblefoot can happen even with good care, particularly with older pigs whose circulation may not be as good as it was. I've had it happen with a couple of older pigs.

A trip to the vet is in order, as often antibiotics help. Topically speaking, the best thing I've found for bumblefoot is Betadine soak or Betadine ointment. It worked far better for my pigs that the prescription med that the vet gave us initially. It's also important to keep things dry, with fleece I would recommend buying some little pee pads, putting them where your guinea pig is most likely to sit or most often goes pee, and changing them often- something like twice a day- to help keeps paws dry. Just get enough that you can wash and rotate the pee pads once or twice a day.

Hope this helps and hope it improves quickly for you!
 
Thank you both.
She isn’t moving around quite as much and during the bandage change this morning one of the scabs was half coming off but looked nasty underneath. She is an older pig with lots of health issues so I don’t know how much she will manage to ever fully get rid of it.
I am going to very very closely monitor her and if she is showing more signs of pain then back to vets for more meds.
It could be her tummy is a bit upset from antibiotics so have probiotics coming today as well.

All the information on here is so amazing and helpful. Thank you for making all of it available
 
Since the morning I thought it would be go to vets and probably a pts because under the scab looked like a bit of exploded bone or hardened pus and I didn’t want to poke around and cause pain. This was also only seen today after the scab partly came off. I also didn’t say all this in the earlier post as I couldn’t get myself to if that makes sense and even though I know you won’t judge my brain still told me that.

We have an amazing friend who is a vet and I have done lots of stuff with him in the past as work experience and he was happy for us to come down for him to have a look. Because he does lots of ortho ops in cats and dogs he wasn’t scared to have a look and feel around. He debrided the foot and what was a query bone was some hardened pus and the scab was just dead skin. She has perked up massively and the foot it looking much better now. Underneath was healthy ish tissue and not nearly as deep as I first feared. We are to clean it with iodine once daily and then replace a special foam bandage thing and secure with vet wrap.

I am just writing this as an update mainly so if others like me are reading through every single thread about bumble foot they can get another story if that makes sense. If you are reading this they can still get bad bumblefoot with proper care. You are not a bad owner! If you are reading and trying to help you are a good owner. (Now I just need to tell my Brian that part)

Not closing thread as still a long way to go with healing and will add photos once I can show progression better for others to see.
 
Your guinea @Merab looks a little like Minnie!
Thought I would share some photos of my girls. They are Minnie and coco. I think you can guess which is which! Coco died late June 2025 and I miss her a lot.
Also these photos are from a few years ago when I knew quite a lot about care and what they need so a large c and c etc but didn’t know how the coloured chews weren’t recommended! They were rehomes and at least 1 year when we got them but could be a lot older. They came in a small pets at home style cage which was to small. I got a nice big c and c cage a few months later for my Christmas present including all the fleeces and have always worked hard to provide enrichment, veggies and stuff. I was 14 years old when I got them but I have always had responsibility for all their care, but my mum has provided the money for food and vet when needed. I’m so lucky my mum understands the importance of proper diet and the need for them going to the vet as I know many don’t so the times we have needed to go she has taken me and piggies and payed always ok with it and making sure they were ok and had good quality of life.
Just thought it would be nice to share a success story on younger owner and a parent who understands the needs of the animal too.
 

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Minnie looks even more like Tamar who was Merab’s mother, apart from the nose colour

C3C90F5A-FE7E-4B56-9284-8FA3C4B89F46.webp

Minnie is beautiful 🤩
 
Would someone be able to pos the link to the thread about euthanasia? I read it yesterday but can’t find it now.
I think she just temporarily perked up and is a lot more sore, less mobile and falling around as not wanting to put pressure on front feet. After this bandage change it not any better and just worse. It’s very helpful having this close family friend as a very experienced vet as he is helping us make decisions but very much looking at pts in the next few days.
I’ve made sure the foam bandage is on to try relieve some pressure and pain meds twice daily. She is struggling to get round her cage so I popped her under her favourite blanket hide with a good supply of hay, water and nuggets so she doesn’t need to try and get them from somewhere else.
 
morning update
She is in pain, not wanting to move round her cage really but she was still perky when she saw me and trying to lean over to say hi. Happily took her pain relief and ate a few nuggets I fed her.
Think I’m in the hard grey zone because she still has fight and is eating and moving a bit. But she isn’t able to move much due to the pain her feet are causing her. She is still perky though.
I don’t know it’s so so hard. I feel like if she was in horrible pain she wouldn’t still be eating little bit of hay and then nuggets and veg. This is also her 12/13 hours post pain meds so hopefully that will help her feel more comfortable
 
Sorry to hear Minnie is struggling 😔 Wishing you comfort 🙏
 
I am so sorry she is still in pain can any more pain relief be prescribed? 💐
 
Oh poor Minnie. What pain meds/dose is she on? There’s a few they can take at the same time as the usual loxicom/metacam.

I agree with you that if she’s still interested in eating then she wants to go on (for now). If we had a poorly foot we wouldn’t necessarily want to give up. You know her best and will make the right decision for her. Sending you hugs and healing vibes to Minnie ❤️
 
Not an expert at all but did I once read that bepanthen and epsom salt soaks help bumblefoot don't do any until an expert confirms or puts me right, sorry if I cause problems 💐
 
Just to update everyone she passed away during the day. It was in her cage in under her blanket hide i make for her and she looks very peaceful now. This was the nicest option for her. The vet thinks it was her body slowing down which caused the feet to get this bad if that makes sense due to her age.

I don’t know how to live without them because Coco died a few months ago and now Minnie today. My bedroom floor is still covered in hay, blankets, table covered in bandage materials, medicines and syringes and the cage. I have always know after Minnie died that I wouldn’t be getting any more guinea pigs but it feels so so hard now. They were my first pets and now both of them are gone but hopefully they are having fun together again and now Minnie is fully pain free. I don’t even know what I’m trying to achieve with this reply. Does anyone have any advice for clearing the stuff and cage away? My bedroom doesn’t feel like my bedroom anymore. I don’t want to take the cage out as that feels wierd and wrong but I don’t want to leave it in there without any guineas pigs.
We will head to a really nice cremation place where we went with Coco tomorrow morning.
 
I so sorry to read this. It sounded like a peaceful passing over the bridge. In her own home under her blankie. She’s pain free with Coco now. Eating the greenest grass. ❤️

There’s no right or wrong time to clean away their home. Don’t rush. If you want to leave it a few days that’s ok. If you want it gone this evening, that’s ok too. Just do what feels right. Sending you hugs. ❤️
 
I am so very sorry to read this and I'm sending you a virtual hug. It's heartbreaking when they leave us 💔
Reunited with Coco over The Rainbow Bridge 🌈 pain free in fields of all of their favourite treats. They will always be with you in your heart but as we all know this doesn't stop our tears or hearts breaking 😥
 
Thank you. It feels so hard and heavy right now and having points of horrible intense emotions and then numbness. I think having to now pack up my guinea pig stuff makes it worse but also the fact it’s my bedroom.
 
Is there anywhere I can put the crematorium place for others to know about it? It’s independent and last time with coco they were so lovely and even though out of hours have already arranged us an appointment for tomorrow.
 
Morning..
I think you can copy their link and paste it on here 💐
 
emmaross said:
Thank you. It feels so hard and heavy right now and having points of horrible intense emotions and then numbness. I think having to now pack up my guinea pig stuff makes it worse but also the fact it’s my bedroom.
Click to expand...
Do you feel that you want to move their things now? 🌈
 
I am so sorry that you lost Minnie.
What a lovely way for her to go, in the home where she knew so much love and so peacefully.
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve.
Hugs 🤗
 
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