Eye Discharge And Lump

[Cookiepeace]

Hello piggy lovers,

My guinea pig Princess has had this lump under her eye for quite some time. I've had a couple guinea pigs and seen lumps before, her daughter had lumps on her back and I drained one myself so I'm familiar with what they are and know that they are common. Princess is almost 7 years old, still hanging in there and seems very happy. The lump has been there for about 2 years, it's never seemed to bother her but now I have noticed in the eye that the lump is near is creating a lot of discharge, like she has an eye infection. I'm concerned it's the lump creating this. She itches her eye too, and I've noticed scratch marks in her eye, which could be a cause of the eye goo. She's eating and drinking fine, has a good weight of about 950 grams and doesn't seem to have any problem functioning. I'm just concerned about her age and that this eye issue could take her down.

I'm not fond of the vet, she is nearly 7 years old and what the vet would propose is surgery to remove the lump which is not something I am willing to do. I don't want to torture her with needles or surgery, I was wondering if there was anything I can help do to clear her eye up, or if I should even worry about this.

She's never been to a vet and there are no close by small animals vets near me, so I am wondering if I can do anything myself.

Any help appreciated (-:

 

[VickiA]

Sorry to hear this. I know she is an old lady but I still think you should take her to a vet, get it diagnosed properly and then decide upon a course of treatment.

 

[GPTV]

Aww sorry to hear she's not her usual self
Have u tried lookin on the recommended vet tab on the bar at the top?
I don't think any of us are keen on taking our beloved furballs to the vets but if you can find a good one it can make the difference between life &death.
Hopefully its just something easy like a sebaceous cyst that can be diagnosed by putting a clean needle in the lump &all according to the type of contents of it can be diagnosed by an experienced vet quickly. If it turns out to be an abcess a culture can be taken to work out the best antibiotics to give. A removal may be needed, which although sounds drastic can cure her completely &if she's in any pain with it, this will also be addressed at the same time. There have been a lot of posts on here lately referring to abcesses&on the whole have all been with positive outcomes... Even with older piggies like yours
One of my girls is 6 &had a sebaceous cyst diagnosed & drained a few weeks ago. She had a bit of a squeak at the needle going in but has been so much more comfortable since. I was glad I had it done. It was 90% drained &healing up by the end of the same day
Think I would take her to a vets just to give myself peace of mind though.
Might be something simple that a prescribed medication can clear up swiftly

Good luck with your girly &congratulations on getting her to such a fabulous age
Xx

 

[Wiebke]

Hi! If the lump is causing her constant discomfort and distress, then a vet trip is unfortunately on the cards. A good vet should be able give you an option that does not necessarily include anaesthetics.

We have got a piggy savvy UK vets locator on the top bar. It would be very helpful if you added your country, state (US/Aus) or general area (UK) to your details, so we can tailor our advice and recommendations accordingly.