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Does Orea have ringworm?

orea&bicoff

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Jan 30, 2026
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I'm fairly sure this little girl has ring worm. I'm treating with a spray but its still getting worse. She is the least dominanent in the pair so I'm wondering if some grooming/ barbaring is making it worse or is this something else entirely?

Any experience welcome.
 
I’m sorry to hear this

You will need to have your piggy seen by a vet for a diagnosis and the correct treatment - you can add a picture once your registration is fully complete on the forum but we are not able to make a diagnosis.
Unfortunately if you have been using home treatments and pet shop products then they can hide markers required for a vet to make a diagnosis - we always advise going to vet straight away - but they can also be ineffective as treatments.

Ringworm needs to be treated with an oral prescription medication from your vet. Spores are shed from a wide area (much wider than any areas of crusting) and can live in the environment for up to two years. Thorough disinfection of the cage and its items (along with the correct systemic medication) using F10 is also vital to ensure ringworm is stopped in its tracks and doesn’t become a continual cycle of reinfection. it is also highly contagious to her cagemate, humans and any other animals you may have.

I have added our ringworm guide below for further information on all the medication and disinfection steps which are needed

Ringworm: Hygiene, Care And Pictures
 
I'm fairly sure this little girl has ring worm. I'm treating with a spray but its still getting worse. She is the least dominanent in the pair so I'm wondering if some grooming/ barbaring is making it worse or is this something else entirely?

Any experience welcome.
 
Looks very circular. Will get her in to see the vet asap.
 

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Looks very circular. Will get her in to see the vet asap.

Hi and welcome

I am very sorry.

Unfortunately, with you home treating on spec, a diagnosis is very difficult to impossible right now. From the location, it could be either mange mites or ringworm.

Please be aware that in ringworm the time between infection and outbreak is 10-14 days. Like with skin parasites, you will have to treat all companions as well.

In ringworm, it is the spores, which are invisibly tiny, long-lived and species jumping that are the real problem, so a little spraying won't prevent ringworm from spreading and coming back via secondary infections.

Please read our comprehensive step-by-step ringworm guide link as it shows you how to get on top of ringworm without turning it into an exasperating long running saga. In 20 years of forum existence, we have pretty much tried it all and have had time to find all possible transmission routes and how to get on top of them. It is really worth it.
New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights

For mange mites etc. please read this link here:
New Guinea Pig Problems: Sexing & Pregnancy; URI, Ringworm & Parasites; Vet Checks & Customer Rights
 
Thank you.

I cannot see a vet until Monday, would you advise continuing treatment with a spray for her comfort or stopping knowing that this risks a faster spread?

Emma
 
Ive only had her for 11 days so not yet registered at the vet :(
 
Stop the spray
Stopping the spray isn’t going to cause a faster spread because the spray isn’t going to work to stop the spread at all. Therefore there is no benefit in using it.
 
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