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Cut on bottom and hair loss when brushing! :(

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klee

klee

Adult Guinea Pig
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I have just been brushing Rosie and as I got closer to her bottom she started fidgeting and complaining. I lifted up some of her hair and found a cut, it is straight and narrow ( like a paper cut) and is not bleeding. I gentle cleaned around the area with some dilute salt water and gave her a gentle brush. Some of her hair around the area came out whilst I was brushing and some of it had what looked like bits of skin on it.

Here is a picture showing the cut and area around. To put it into perspective the cut is about 1cm long. The hairloss isn't as much as it looks, as her hair has been pushed back.

20120812_190954.jpg


It is just in this one area.
Let me know your thoughts. x
 
I would be inclined to think the cut is probably where she has scratched herself?

My first thought is it could be mange mites, the fur loss is similar to what it looks like on my piggy. Best to get her to a vet for a check up I would say just in case, & take any others that live with her to be checked at the same time. Have you had a look to see if her cage mate has any hair loss too?
 
Worth a trip to the vet to check if it maybe something fungal or mites as it looks as if she's been scratching it.
 
I have looked at the others and there is no hair loss or scratch marks. I will get to the vets on Tuesday morning as I am out at work from 7:30- 7PM tomorrow, the rest of the family have gone on holiday today so can't help out.

I will have to choose what vets to use though, I have been to so many. The small animal surgery I went to last time was quite a way to get to and the vet suggested that there is a exotics vet a lot closer to home, and gave me the phone number. However there is also Rose cottage which I've been to before, if I go to Ken he is specialised in dermatology and is on the recommended vets list.
 
I have just got in from work and have made a vets appointment for tomorrow morning 9.40. I will let you know what they say.
 
Hope it's nothing to worry about. Lots of love to one of my favourite forum piggies. Let us know how you get on x
 
I will do, I think I will ask them about her weight gain. I didn't think older piggies normally put on weight and maintain it. I began weighing and recording her weight properly in May when I got Ruby; between May and the end of June she fluctuated between 750 and 770g, but since July she has gone upto 820g and fluctuates between this and nearly 850g. I know it's not a lot but whilst I'm there I will mention it. Come to think of it, it seems like she is drinking more water than usual, but then again I spend alot more time watching them now as I am in uni most of the time, then again it has been hot. Better safe than sorry though. x
 
A minor wound that you've cleaned so I wouldn't worry with that now :)
Once you've gotten a correct diagnosis at the vets you can make the necessary measures, good luck :)
 
awwww good luck with little Rosie at the vets x>>x>>x>>x>>

HEALING WHEEEEEEEEEEEEKS FROM US ALL XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
 
The vet thinks its mites aswell, so we have some xeno 450 to treat all of them, and a good disinfect of the hutch!
 
klee said:
The vet thinks its mites aswell, so we have some xeno 450 to treat all of them, and a good disinfect of the hutch!
Click to expand...

Oh I am sorry, poor Rosie, just realised which one she is & she is adorable :) Funny cos my Aby piggy was unaffected, yet Daisy <<<<< (pic) she's a Rex & she had them worse than the other 2 :(

However 2 weeks on & she is much better, I kept them all on newspaper & chucked it out daily & threw all the cardboard tubes out too.

Hope she feels better soon :)
 
Poppy'sMum said:
Oh I am sorry, poor Rosie, just realised which one she is & she is adorable :) Funny cos my Aby piggy was unaffected, yet Daisy <<<<< (pic) she's a Rex & she had them worse than the other 2 :(

However 2 weeks on & she is much better, I kept them all on newspaper & chucked it out daily & threw all the cardboard tubes out too.

Hope she feels better soon :)
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He said to treat all as a precaution. Do you know if you can buy xeno without a prescription? The vets only had one pack in stock so will cover only 2 for a top up dose, plus if i can get it a little cheaper that would be great! Am i right in thinking you treat them all 3 times? i.e. now, in 2weeks and in 4 weeks! thanks x
 
klee said:
He said to treat all as a precaution. Do you know if you can buy xeno without a prescription? The vets only had one pack in stock so will cover only 2 for a top up dose, plus if i can get it a little cheaper that would be great! Am i right in thinking you treat them all 3 times? i.e. now, in 2weeks and in 4 weeks! thanks x
Click to expand...

Hay experts sell it. Not sure how reasonable the price is but I can highly recommend the company. I placed an order at 3pm when Theo was in the final stages of lymphoma. I asked them to prioritise it and offered to pay special delivery. They refused payment, sent well wishes via email and my package was in my hands before 12pmt he next day. AMAZING service.

Hope she gets better quickly x
 
hazeyg said:
Hay experts sell it. Not sure how reasonable the price is but I can highly recommend the company. I placed an order at 3pm when Theo was in the final stages of lymphoma. I asked them to prioritise it and offered to pay special delivery. They refused payment, sent well wishes via email and my package was in my hands before 12pmt he next day. AMAZING service.

Hope she gets better quickly x
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Aww that was so lovely of them! I don't mind paying for treatment but if I can get it a bit cheaper than the 30 pounds the vets charged i would be very grateful ;)
The gingers look so funny as they all have a stripe down their back where the xeno has been.
I will have a shop round see where i can get it cheapest :)
 
Hope you get it cleared up soon, lots of love to all your girls and healing vibes x
 
klee said:
Aww that was so lovely of them! I don't mind paying for treatment but if I can get it a bit cheaper than the 30 pounds the vets charged i would be very grateful ;)
The gingers look so funny as they all have a stripe down their back where the xeno has been.
I will have a shop round see where i can get it cheapest :)
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My vet treated mine with Stronghold, she charged £20 to treat all three of them. I only need to take mine back for treatment if any new lesions appear, which they haven't, so mine was a one off treatment. Not sure how Xeno works, I think you have to re-treat 2 weeks after the initial one. My vet weighed all mine & dosed each pig accordingly :)
 
Quick query...

If indeed the vet was right and Rosie does have mites (He did say he could see something moving) how long is it likely to be before I see hair regrowth?
All the girls have been treated with Xeno450 on Tuesday so are due another dose in just over a weeks time.
Also the skin around the hair loss is quite dry, presumably from scratching- is there anything I can get to put onto it?

The vet said I can go back after 3 weeks to see if there was any improvement, however I don't think I will be going back there. It was a exotics vets recommended to me by the previous vet I went to, as it was alot closer to home. However the vet I saw wasn't too knowledgable about guinea pigs, so I think I will be going back to Andale even if it is a little further away- serves me right for not sticking with what I know!
 
klee said:
If indeed the vet was right and Rosie does have mites (He did say he could see something moving) how long is it likely to be before I see hair regrowth?
All the girls have been treated with Xeno450 on Tuesday so are due another dose in just over a weeks time.
Also the skin around the hair loss is quite dry, presumably from scratching- is there anything I can get to put onto it?

The vet said I can go back after 3 weeks to see if there was any improvement, however I don't think I will be going back there. It was a exotics vets recommended to me by the previous vet I went to, as it was alot closer to home. However the vet I saw wasn't too knowledgable about guinea pigs, so I think I will be going back to Andale even if it is a little further away- serves me right for not sticking with what I know!
Click to expand...

It took about 10 days for my piggies' fur to start to regrow, the little bits of dandruff were still there until I bathed them today, no hair loss anymore, mine are much better now. Have you got any new photos? My vet said if there were no new lesions then that was good.

I'm not sure mange mites can be seen moving, my piggies have dark dense fur though. Rosie's hair loss looked very much like mine did though.
 
Poppy'sMum said:
It took about 10 days for my piggies' fur to start to regrow, the little bits of dandruff were still there until I bathed them today, no hair loss anymore, mine are much better now. Have you got any new photos? My vet said if there were no new lesions then that was good.

I'm not sure mange mites can be seen moving, my piggies have dark dense fur though. Rosie's hair loss looked very much like mine did though.
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I have a few photos taken tonight but they're not too clear (the light in the kitchen isn't very good)

20120819_205903.jpg


I don't think it has gotten any larger or that there are any new lesions. I have noticed a few other little scratches but no more hair loss. x
 
I think it looks better in than picture than it does in real life. Hopefully its starting to grow back though!
 
I have just bathed my three using Gorgeous Guinea products, Chrissie advised me as 2 of mine are Rex piggies with flaky skin you could try the same.

First I used Aloe melt followed by Manuka & Neem shampoo :

http://gorgeousguineas.com/index.html

I am hoping it will calm their skins a bit :)

If you do bath her make sure you leave 48 hours after any spot on treatment though.
 
Poppy'sMum said:
I have just bathed my three using Gorgeous Guinea products, Chrissie advised me as 2 of mine are Rex piggies with flaky skin you could try the same.

First I used Aloe melt followed by Manuka & Neem shampoo :

http://gorgeousguineas.com/index.html

I am hoping it will calm their skins a bit :)

If you do bath her make sure you leave 48 hours after any spot on treatment though.
Click to expand...

The vet has advised not to bath her until after the spot on treatment is finished, I have used lice 'n' easy before and posh n go. Rosie is a swiss cross we think, well that's what we have been told. She has had quite dry skin in parts before.
 
klee said:
The vet has advised not to bath her until after the spot on treatment is finished, I have used lice 'n' easy before and posh n go. Rosie is a swiss cross we think, well that's what we have been told. She has had quite dry skin in parts before.
Click to expand...

She is cute whatever she is :))

Yes wait 48 hours at least after her last treatment then you can shampoo her. Chrissie at Gorgeous Guineas said because mine have scurfy skin they would benefit from the Aloe melt first then the Manuka & Neem. Apparently floofy piggies can have scurfy sensitive skin lol rolleyes
 
Just a thought. I know they can get hay mites, but do you think the 'mites' Rosie has may be from the hay?
Just having a mild panic as I'm thinking should i get rid of the hay they've got and buy some new hay or should it not matter?
 
klee said:
Just a thought. I know they can get hay mites, but do you think the 'mites' Rosie has may be from the hay?
Just having a mild panic as I'm thinking should i get rid of the hay they've got and buy some new hay or should it not matter?
Click to expand...

No, Mange/Selnic mites are a bit like having Scabies for humans, they can appear when the piggies are stressed but are usually dormant under the skin:

http://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html

Whereas static lice (hay lice) are caught from hay they don't usually cause hair loss, on Rosie they will be seen easily as black specks close to the skin on the hair shaft (like human headlice) they are too small to be seen moving unlike running lice :

http://www.guinealynx.info/furmites.html#furmite

If you lift a bit of fur up on her rump near her back legs & just above her grease gland if you use a piece of sellotape & stick it near the hair roots then examine itunder a microscope or a magnifying glass you will see them waving at you rolleyes If you do find black specks then a bath in Gorgeous Guineas Lice n Easy followed by another a week later will clear them. Make sure you leave 48 hours after any spot on treatment before bathing. :)
 
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