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Bandages and Bumblefoot?

Julia_P

New Born Pup
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Hello. I am new here although I have been lurking a long time. I have 9 guinea pigs and my oldest is Oscar. He is a 6 year old boar and has developed bumblefoot. I've kept piggies for around 30 years and only had one case before and that sadly was lethal.

We have been to the vet and he has been on Baytril for around 10 days now. I started with Epsom salt foot baths and bepanthen but it didn't seem to be improving, so I tried manuka honey under bandages. Since that, his foot has got more swollen. We were back at the vet yesterday as his foot is now very sore - we have more Baytril to extend the course and also some Metacam. I was also given some Animalintex poultice which I applied last night, overnight. This morning, his foot seems more painful and swollen than it did yesterday. I have been careful not to make it too tight.

I just wondered what others' experience was with bandaging bumblefoot infected feet - can bandages make it worse? Or is this a normal first step in the healing process? If others have had experience, should I continue with the bandages, or should I leave his foot unbandaged to air, with Bepanthen etc.? Or any other suggestions? I have some Abidec arriving today to increase his Vitamin C levels.

Thanks for any advice!

Julia
 
Supplementary vitamin c is necessary unless the vet said they’re deficient, so I’d say don’t give it to him. As far as I remember it’s also not recommended you use the bath salts. Were these additional things (including bepanthen) recommended by the vet?

Have a read of the link below. And I’ll also tag other more knowledgeable members.
@Wiebke @VickiA @Piggies&buns

Guinea Lynx :: Pododermatitis
 
Hello. I am new here although I have been lurking a long time. I have 9 guinea pigs and my oldest is Oscar. He is a 6 year old boar and has developed bumblefoot. I've kept piggies for around 30 years and only had one case before and that sadly was lethal.

We have been to the vet and he has been on Baytril for around 10 days now. I started with Epsom salt foot baths and bepanthen but it didn't seem to be improving, so I tried manuka honey under bandages. Since that, his foot has got more swollen. We were back at the vet yesterday as his foot is now very sore - we have more Baytril to extend the course and also some Metacam. I was also given some Animalintex poultice which I applied last night, overnight. This morning, his foot seems more painful and swollen than it did yesterday. I have been careful not to make it too tight.

I just wondered what others' experience was with bandaging bumblefoot infected feet - can bandages make it worse? Or is this a normal first step in the healing process? If others have had experience, should I continue with the bandages, or should I leave his foot unbandaged to air, with Bepanthen etc.? Or any other suggestions? I have some Abidec arriving today to increase his Vitamin C levels.

Thanks for any advice!

Julia

There is no one ideal way of treating bumblefoot unfortunately. I can't give any personal recommendations as I have never had to deal with a serious case.

Some rescue people bandage severe cases. I would however recommend to firstly follow your vet's advice and see whether it works or not for your piggy.

Here is more information on various approaches: Guinea Lynx :: Pododermatitis
 
I’m really sorry I’ve no personal experience to share with you about this. I hope that with your vets help you can get him comfy again.
 
I’d be inclined to ring up Cavy Corner, a rescue in Doncaster. I believe they’ve dealt with severe bumblefoot cases (though I could be wrong). They always have people ringing asking for advice, so don’t feel as though you’d be bugging them - Sue would be happy to answer any worries you have and advice accordingly best she can. You could even try messaging them on their Facebook page and attaching photos. You’ve nothing to lose by doing so. They deal with a lot of neglect cases so have experience with stuff like this.
 
Supplementary vitamin c is necessary unless the vet said they’re deficient, so I’d say don’t give it to him. As far as I remember it’s also not recommended you use the bath salts. Were these additional things (including bepanthen) recommended by the vet?

Have a read of the link below. And I’ll also tag other more knowledgeable members.
@Wiebke @VickiA @Piggies&buns

Guinea Lynx :: Pododermatitis
Thank you. I got the info about Epsom salts from Guinea Lynx and Bepanthen is something that’s been recommended to me in the past, by the CCT among others. I have seen others mention it in forum posts. The manuka honey was also mentioned in posts and my vet approved me using it.
 
There is no one ideal way of treating bumblefoot unfortunately. I can't give any personal recommendations as I have never had to deal with a serious case.

Some rescue people bandage severe cases. I would however recommend to firstly follow your vet's advice and see whether it works or not for your piggy.

Here is more information on various approaches: Guinea Lynx :: Pododermatitis
Thank you. I’m just concerned about the swelling increasing since I bandaged it a and wondered if it could be a contributing factor.
 
I’d be inclined to ring up Cavy Corner, a rescue in Doncaster. I believe they’ve dealt with severe bumblefoot cases (though I could be wrong). They always have people ringing asking for advice, so don’t feel as though you’d be bugging them - Sue would be happy to answer any worries you have and advice accordingly best she can. You could even try messaging them on their Facebook page and attaching photos. You’ve nothing to lose by doing so. They deal with a lot of neglect cases so have experience with stuff like this.
Thank you for the advice, happy to try 😀
 
Thank you. I’m just concerned about the swelling increasing since I bandaged it a and wondered if it could be a contributing factor.

It could be a contributing factor. I second contacting Sue at Cavy Corner for more practical advice as rescues have the experience you are after. Bumblefoot in a severe form is rather rare in well kept pet guinea pigs, so it is not something that comes up on here all that often.
 
We've dealt with severe bumblefoot and have never bandaged. We use the antibiotic Zithromax to deal with bumblefoot, with very good results.
Thank you for this. Can I ask what you do about decreasing the swelling, or is that something that Zithromax deals with? Also, what do you use to keep the feet clean? Thank you for any help :-)
 
It could be a contributing factor. I second contacting Sue at Cavy Corner for more practical advice as rescues have the experience you are after. Bumblefoot in a severe form is rather rare in well kept pet guinea pigs, so it is not something that comes up on here all that often.
Thank you, I shall ask her. I do try my best to look after my piggies properly, I have had half my living room made into bespoke guinea pig accommodation so that they have lots of room to move (their home is around 2m x 3m with different levels); their bedding is cleaned every day; they get veg every day as well as unlimited hay and water. I also check their feet, eyes, ears, skin etc on a weekly basis and weigh them as well. I am always open to advice, so if there is something you think I am doing wrong, or have any suggestions how to improve their lives, I would be more than happy to implement them. I have no human family at all, my guinea pigs are my only family, so it is of paramount importance to me that they have the best life possible and if you have any suggestions for enhancements to their wellbeing, I would be grateful.
 
We use Metacam too, as the anti-inflammatory properties of Metacam help bring down the swelling. If a piggy has very sore feet, we keep on vet bed and just wash the feet if they get dirty.
Thank you, that's really helpful - he has only been on Metacam since Monday, so hopefully that will kick in soon. I have been keeping him on soft bath mats and changing and washing them twice a day but am expecting a delivery of vet bed today, so hopefully we might see some improvement. I think I will keep the bandages off for a couple of days since it seems to have got worse since applying them.
 
Thank you, I shall ask her. I do try my best to look after my piggies properly, I have had half my living room made into bespoke guinea pig accommodation so that they have lots of room to move (their home is around 2m x 3m with different levels); their bedding is cleaned every day; they get veg every day as well as unlimited hay and water. I also check their feet, eyes, ears, skin etc on a weekly basis and weigh them as well. I am always open to advice, so if there is something you think I am doing wrong, or have any suggestions how to improve their lives, I would be more than happy to implement them. I have no human family at all, my guinea pigs are my only family, so it is of paramount importance to me that they have the best life possible and if you have any suggestions for enhancements to their wellbeing, I would be grateful.

Bumblefoot can happen in piggies with mobility issues and/or older piggies whose blood circulation is no longer working well; often it is a combination of both. Nothing to do with your care as such!

That is also the only time I have had to deal with it myself in my nearly 8 year old Nerys after she temporarily lost use of her back legs and never regained full mobility back.

If you are looking at bumblefoot in that context, then this guide here may contain some helpful general care advice: Looking after guinea pigs with limited or no mobility
 
Bumblefoot can happen in piggies with mobility issues and/or older piggies whose blood circulation is no longer working well; often it is a combination of both. Nothing to do with your care as such!

That is also the only time I have had to deal with it myself in my nearly 8 year old Nerys after she temporarily lost use of her back legs and never regained full mobility back.

If you are looking at bumblefoot in that context, then this guide here may contain some helpful general care advice: Looking after guinea pigs with limited or no mobility
Super, thank you so much, I will certainly give that a look - he is 6 now and he doesn't move nearly as much as he used to, so I suspect that is a factor. He also lost the use of his back legs a few months ago but after a course of osteocare, he made a full recovery. I am so grateful as he is my best friend ❤
 
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