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Bald patch on face and black scabs/pitts?

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Zofia

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Babe is off to the vet tonight as she has a bald patch on one side of her nose.. the skin is scurfy and there are black marks that actually look like little dents in the skin, but they could be scabs. The bald patch is about the size of the end of a pencil. I just noticed it yeterday when she came to collect a raisin - I noticed the black mark first and when I inspected was alarmed as it looked like a little hole.

Any idea what this is? Fungal? Mites? Something more sinister?

The other pigs have no similar symptoms and she's not acting strangely.
 
Does it look like somthing like this? Fungal is more likely to start on the nose than mites.
http://www.guinealynx.info/fungus.html

This website here does not only sell skin products for guinea pigs, but are also good at helping to identify them: http://www.gorgeousguineas.com

It is still better to go to your vets and get appropriate treatment from him, anyway! I hope that you can get to the bottom of it quickly!
 
Does it look like somthing like this? Fungal is more likely to start on the nose than mites.
http://www.guinealynx.info/fungus.html

This website here does not only sell skin products for guinea pigs, but are also good at helping to identify them: http://www.gorgeousguineas.com

It is still better to go to your vets and get appropriate treatment from him, anyway! I hope that you can get to the bottom of it quickly!

It does look like that actually. Is it difficult to treat? I wonder why the other pigs haven't got any symptoms?
 
Looks like you've got ringworm, then.

It is very infectious, so be on guard with the others, or even quarantine your piggy. Be aware that ringworm is one of the few things that can be transmitted between piggies and humans, so wear gloves when touching your piggy, serve/groom/treat it always last and ideally wear an apron or old pullover only when you are handling it, so the ringworm can't be transmitted.

It is pretty straight forward to treat, especially as you have caught it early - the infectious side of it is the tricky bit.
 
Ringworm is contagious but not to the extent that you need to get dressed up as though you are involved in biological weapons!!
You will find that some pigs are more likely than others to get the problem.
 
They have apple every day in their salad - i wonder if she's one of the ones intolerant to the acid in apples and that's let in a fungal infection? Maybe that's why it's just her that has the problem?
 
I have had ringworm in some of my rescues before and it doesnt always show in the others until a few weeks after,treat all for it i bath mine in nizoral shampoo once a week for 3 wks and apply canerstan 1% twice a day to the affected areas for around 4 wks to be safe also treat the ears on the other guineas with the cream xx
 
Vet prescribed Daktarin. I have bathed them all in Seleen solution as well on Saturday.

The patch went from white and flaky to red and sore looking to skin coloured with dark red scabby bits following several applications of cream. Is this a normal change? How do I tell when it's starting to get better?
 
Oh dear I hope Babe is all healed up and feeling better soon.
My boys had a bad attack of mites when we first had them which showed itself with black scabs. We too were given a cream/gel to apply directly to the scabs. I know you aren't dealing with mites but the blackish scabs sound similar so I thought I would share.
When I began to apply the cream (despite a lot of protests!) the first thing that happened was that the scabs turned from blackish to a brighter red and were softer. This enabled the skin underneath to begin to heal I think. They scratched the scabs off themselves once or twice, which left horribly sore looking raw patches. However, we persisted with the cream (even though I felt like a monster applying it to raw areas) and they both healed perfectly and the fur grew back.
It was traumatic for both them and me I think! The cream I had was called Fuciderm.
The scabs you are dealing with may or may not be of a similar nature, but if they are then you know what to expect :)
Anyway I hope that the treatment Babe has been prescribed sorts out the sore patch x
 
Hi,

Have been applying Daktarin for about 10 days now. Scabs have gone. Skin looks healthy now but a little scurfy. I was just wondering how long I continue to apply the cream? Is it until the hair regrows?
 
Continue to apply the Daktarin for a minimum of another 10 days and then an extra 5 days, 25 in total from the start.
The problem should be cured by then.
 
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