Hair loss around eye

[WinterAddams]

Hi,
I noticed a few weeks back that my piggy Nymeria had a watery right eye, she tends to have that some times so I didn't really worry too much though I'd still check to see if she had a URI or something like that every day.
Today I picked her up and the skin around her eye had lost a bit of hair. Barely noticeable but it did and it had a bit of crust. Her black fur has spots all over like dandruff but she has had this for a while and the vet said it was normal and that she had no other worrying symptoms. I see no open sores, scabs or anything like that.
Also when I looked at her bum it had a bit of poop coming out but it was soft and mushy, her poops seem to have been fine lately though.
I'm worried if it is a fungal infection or a parasite but I don't know if that hair loss is just from her scratching her eye because of it being runny.

 

[Millie Moo]

Hi, I have no experience on this so I recommend going to the vet but I will link some people I think might be able to @Merab's Slave @Wiebke @Betsy

 

[Wiebke]

Hi,
I noticed a few weeks back that my piggy Nymeria had a watery right eye, she tends to have that some times so I didn't really worry too much though I'd still check to see if she had a URI or something like that every day.
Today I picked her up and the skin around her eye had lost a bit of hair. Barely noticeable but it did and it had a bit of crust. Her black fur has spots all over like dandruff but she has had this for a while and the vet said it was normal and that she had no other worrying symptoms. I see no open sores, scabs or anything like that.
Also when I looked at her bum it had a bit of poop coming out but it was soft and mushy, her poops seem to have been fine lately though.
I'm worried if it is a fungal infection or a parasite but I don't know if that hair loss is just from her scratching her eye because of it being runny.

Hi!

Can you see a better vet?

- Your guinea pig has got an advanced case for hay/fur mites (chirodiscoides caviae) by the sound of it and needs urgently treatment with a good quality ivermectin or selamectin product (advantage UK/revolution (US) at least 3-4 times at the recommended interval. Please do NOT buy a low dosed pet shop brand that can only temporarily suppress the mites but is not strong enough to cure!
Hay mites manifest as tiny dark dots are fixed to the hairs and look like somebody has turned a peppermill over your cavy. The black dots are actually the egg cases as he mites are too small to be seen by the naked eye.
If the infection is severe (like yours, if you are reporting have egg cases all over the body and not just at the bum end), on top of the invermectin to catch the living mites, I would strongly recommend to give your piggy a strong haircut to remove as many egg cases mechanical from the body as possible. That means a lot less hay mites are going to hatch.
They usually come with the hay, so you may want to change the brand.
You also want to give the cage and any hard furnishings a very thorough deep clean with a vet grade disinfectant and wash any soft furnishing at a minimum of 60 C/140 F. Shop brands are mildly antibacterial, but nothing else.

- Has your vet checked for something stuck in the eye or mild conjuctivitis? Constant/frequent weeping can cause hair loss. Watery fluid is a sign of an irritation in the eye. The normal clean fluid is milky.

- Please take your piggy off any fresh food and start weighing daily at the same time to monitor the food intake. If the poos do not firm up within 24 hours and the weight loss continues, please see a vet (with some experience with guinea pigs if you can!)
The symptoms (smaller/thinner poos = decreased food intake and soft poos = not enough dry fibre in the diet) are typical for your piggy not eating enough hay, which makes over 80% of the daily food intake and which can only control by weighing.
If the weight loss has reached 50g/2 oz you need to step in with top up support feeding and see a vet.

All the best!

 

[Betsy]

Thank you for your confidence in me @Millie Moo I am not an expert unlike @Wiebke who is!

 

[WinterAddams]

Hi!

Can you see a better vet?

- Your guinea pig has got an advanced case for hay/fur mites (chirodiscoides caviae) by the sound of it and needs urgently treatment with a good quality ivermectin or selamectin product (advantage UK/revolution (US) at least 3-4 times at the recommended interval. Please do NOT buy a low dosed pet shop brand that can only temporarily suppress the mites but is not strong enough to cure!
Hay mites manifest as tiny dark dots are fixed to the hairs and look like somebody has turned a peppermill over your cavy. The black dots are actually the egg cases as he mites are too small to be seen by the naked eye.
If the infection is severe (like yours, if you are reporting have egg cases all over the body and not just at the bum end), on top of the invermectin to catch the living mites, I would strongly recommend to give your piggy a strong haircut to remove as many egg cases mechanical from the body as possible. That means a lot less hay mites are going to hatch.
They usually come with the hay, so you may want to change the brand.
You also want to give the cage and any hard furnishings a very thorough deep clean with a vet grade disinfectant and wash any soft furnishing at a minimum of 60 C/140 F. Shop brands are mildly antibacterial, but nothing else.

- Has your vet checked for something stuck in the eye or mild conjuctivitis? Constant/frequent weeping can cause hair loss. Watery fluid is a sign of an irritation in the eye. The normal clean fluid is milky.

- Please take your piggy off any fresh food and start weighing daily at the same time to monitor the food intake. If the poos do not firm up within 24 hours and the weight loss continues, please see a vet (with some experience with guinea pigs if you can!)
The symptoms (smaller/thinner poos = decreased food intake and soft poos = not enough dry fibre in the diet) are typical for your piggy not eating enough hay, which makes over 80% of the daily food intake and which can only control by weighing.
If the weight loss has reached 50g/2 oz you need to step in with top up support feeding and see a vet.

All the best!

Hi,

Sadly this is the only exotics vet in my area, it's very hard to find vets here in Portugal. She does have experience with guinea pigs.
These dots on her fur have been there for months, they are really small and don't seem to cause her any distress. They aren't black though, you can only see them in black fur, they are white. She barely scratches and has absolutely no hair loss anywhere else but the eye area. Also the fluid is milky, not runny and watery. She has had conjunctivitis once and the vet said she might have it again.
I'll keep checking her poo and will weigh her tomorrow as I don't have a scale here.
I'm going to the vet tomorrow.
I'll keep you posted, thank you for your answer.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi,

Sadly this is the only exotics vet in my area, it's very hard to find vets here in Portugal. She does have experience with guinea pigs.
These dots on her fur have been there for months, they are really small and don't seem to cause her any distress. They aren't black though, you can only see them in black fur, they are white. She barely scratches and has absolutely no hair loss anywhere else but the eye area. Also the fluid is milky, not runny and watery. She has had conjunctivitis once and the vet said she might have it again.
I'll keep checking her poo and will weigh her tomorrow as I don't have a scale here.
I'm going to the vet tomorrow.
I'll keep you posted, thank you for your answer.

If the dots are whiteish, then they are likely tiny skin flakes. What breed is your piggy and how dry is your climate?

If it is milky fluid, then it can be an issue with partly blocked tear duct which prevents the cleaning fluid from draining away properly.

With your additional information, your vet's decisions are making a lot more sense.

All the best!

 

[WinterAddams]

If the dots are whiteish, then they are likely tiny skin flakes. What breed is your piggy and how dry is your climate?

If it is milky fluid, then it can be an issue with partly blocked tear duct which prevents the cleaning fluid from draining away properly.

With your additional information, your vet's decisions are making a lot more sense.

All the best!

She is an American piggy, it is pretty humid here at the moment and tends to be so.
I will se what the vet says about the eye and will keep cheking on her.
Thank you

 

[Wiebke]

So it is not likely to be a dry skin problem, which is especially typical for teddy breeds.
It doesn't sound fungally, either, though, even though heat and moisture are an ideal breeding ground for that.

White cleaning fluid spilling over is not a worrying problem, so take a deep breath in that respect!

 

[WinterAddams]

So it is not likely to be a dry skin problem, which is especially typical for teddy breeds.
It doesn't sound fungally, either, though, even though heat and moisture are an ideal breeding ground for that.

White cleaning fluid spilling over is not a worrying problem, so take a deep breath in that respect!

I really do hope its not fungal...

 

[Wiebke]

I really do hope its not fungal...

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