Guinea health problems

[Jen_blue]

hello,

I think I may have been a bad guinea piggie Mummy

I have two guinea pigs and today I have noticed while trimming their nails (badly I must add) that Augustus has some green scab-like stuff which isnt for coming off between his front paws. He also seems to have a wonky front nail...

Leo seems to have some matting which I have noticed before but decided its where he has been scratching himself/from going to the toilet, however I'm a bit worried now as its still there.

I have never bathed them as I thought they would find it too stressful but would doing this help at all?

Is it cause for a visit to the vet?

Jen

 

[Wiebke]

The green scab could be just muck, so I would recommend a bath first.

Here are tips: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=47314

 

[Jen_blue]

Thank you! Maybe Leo's thing is his grease gland..... I will buy the GP shampoo, degreaser and ear drops tommorrow at PAH.

Jen

 

[missy]

Thank you! Maybe Leo's thing is his grease gland..... I will buy the GP shampoo, degreaser and ear drops tommorrow at PAH.

Jen

Hi,

Just a friendly tip....

You'll be able to find a piggy shampoo at PAH but you may struggle with the other stuff.

Swarfega is available from hardware stores, DIY stores and places like Halfords as it's designed for degreasing human hands. Although not specifically for removing grease on guineas, many people (including myself) use a little every now and again for cleaning grease glands.

If you're looking for the Otodex eardrops which Laura mentions in that thread, then I'm not sure PAH do those either. I get mine in my local independent pet shop (on the dog & cat meds shelf) or you can get them online. PAH will have other dog/cat ear drops but Otodex are the only ones I've heard recommended for guineas so I personally wouldn't try anything else unless recommended by somebody suitably qualified.

If you're ever unsure of what to use then I've always found that this is a great place to ask! Hope you get your piggies' problems cleared up soon

 

[Jen_blue]

hi again,

Yes I managed to get shampoo and some Herbal ear drops in a independant pet shop, the lady in the pet shop said she uses for her piggies and work very well. I bathed them both on Sunday and it went really well although I dont think Leo or Augustus is looking forward to the next one. I managed to sort out the majority of Leo's grease gland and whatever it was between Augustus's toes seem to have passed mainly.....

I really wish they would litter train as spending time standing on *** and No2's cant be good for them. I have tried and tried to train them but now I just try to clean up after them regularly but I just cant keep on top of it.

Jen

 

[Wiebke]

Most piggies do not not litter train well - sadly!

I spot clean usually twice daily, but if we are very busy or away, it can be day until I do it. I brush the poo together by using a latex glove and then chuck it into a little waste paper basket with a lid, which I have baught specially for that purpose. It takes me about 10 mins for doing a two storey cage.

 

[missy]

I'm glad that you've managed to bathe them without too much trauma. It's not easy at first!

It's not completely impossible to litter train guinea pigs but very difficult, I'm afraid. If you're trying to get them to do all their poos and wees in one dedicated place then good luck to you! I think you'll find most people's cages/hutches get covered in poos and this alone doesn't really cause any major problems as long as the bedding is spot cleaned daily (poos & soiled hay removed) and the bedding is completely changed regularly.

How big is their cage/hutch and what type of bedding do you use? Perhaps you could start a new thread in the Housing or Behaviour section to see if others can share tips on litter training etc? Just a thought, as it's something lots of us will have tried, with various levels of success!