Baths after Cyst removal?

[Piggielove121]

Hi there!
My boyfriend and I recently adopted a 2 year old guinea pig, who apparently had some sort of cyst removal surgery. And the previous owner said that she was too scared to give her baths after the surgery because she thought baths would dry out her skin?
I was wondering what your opinion on this is. Is it safe to bathe a guinea pig after a cyst removal? If using the correct shampoo (and we only bathe our guinea pigs maybe once a month - not excessively at all), her skin should not dry out right?

Please let me know what you think!

 

[Lady Kelly]

I don't understand why she needs bathing at all. I only ever wash one of my guinea pigs because he gets a dirty bum but generally they don't require bathing

 

[Wiebke]

Hi there!
My boyfriend and I recently adopted a 2 year old guinea pig, who apparently had some sort of cyst removal surgery. And the previous owner said that she was too scared to give her baths after the surgery because she thought baths would dry out her skin?
I was wondering what your opinion on this is. Is it safe to bathe a guinea pig after a cyst removal? If using the correct shampoo (and we only bathe our guinea pigs maybe once a month - not excessively at all), her skin should not dry out right?

Please let me know what you think!

Hi and welcome!

Baths are only necessary if they are part of medical treatment or if the piggy is very greasy from an over-active grease gland (which can actually be stimulated by too much bathing!), is very dirty or no longer able to clean their genitalia. In most cases, a gentle bum bath with elbow-warm water is sufficient.

Too many baths dry out the skin and make it more vulnerable to further problems. There has been a strong shift away from frequent bathing in the last decade, and it is no longer recommended unless necessary. For most piggies bathing is very stressful anyway.

You can bathe any operated piggy once the surgery scar has fully knitted at 2 weeks after the op if there is a good reason for it.

 

[Betsy]

The only time I have ever fully bathed my Piggies was when they had mite. Betsy gets bum baths as she has a beautiful long skirt that needs a trim every so often and it is so much easier to do if her fur is clean.