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Help we've got lice.

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Piglady

Piglady

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Just had my Lilly to the vet as i noticed that she has been pulling the fur from around her backside and has quite a bald patch. We had thought Lilly was pregnant but it turns out that she's not [phew]. The vet gave her a jag but now says that the rest of my piggies will probably need treated as i do swap their cages around sometimes.
Georgina has just finished a course of injections [2 weeks ago] as a precaution as she had been itching incessantly though they didn't find any mites or anything on the scrape, it was done as a precaution. So she should be okay as she's not been near Lilly again.
Zack and Gabriella should be okay as they are always in the big cage, but i often swap truffles and Lillys cages as one is far bigger and i give them turn about.
The vet let me see a louse [in the microscope] that she had scraped off Lilly and it was horrible. We don't know who has infected who but i suspect it was Lilly, as i have only had her about 8 weeks.
She has had her treatment but i forgot to ask the vet[as i was so traumatised] if there was anything that i could use to bathe her in to relieve the itching until the jag has done it's work.
 
Even a normal bath will help alleviate the itching for a couple of days. Otherwise you can order lice'n'easy shampoo for gorgeous guineas which gives a nice shine to piggy hair, so quite a few member like to use it as a normal shampoo, too.

Here is more about lice: http://www.guinealynx.info/lice.html
 
Many thanks for that link Weibke. What i have learned from that is that, whereas i thought Zack and Gabriella would be okay as they had been entirely separate from Lillys cages etc, it appears that i may have transferred these lice on my clothes. They will have to be treated too.
I can't believe this is happening....my whole herd upset.
I was so careful when i got Lilly as i had seen the place she came from but after about 4 weeks i tried her in with Georgina. Alas Georgina didn't want Lillys company and made this quite clear, but two weeks later Georgina was itching and though nothing was found on her she was treated. Lilly just started itching a few days ago.
Oh my god i've just remembered that they were all in the pet shop while i was away on my holidays in July. Could that be where they've gotten this?
 
Lice can also come with hay... like mites, they just come along at one point or another. And it is often difficult to find out where they have come from.

The main point is to treat them early on; best give all guinea pigs a bath with lice shampoo and you should be perfectly OK. Lice are not as aggressive as mites, so the wait for the lice shampoo is worth it. Even the best owner can't protect their piggies from parasites at all times! mallethead
 
Will see what i can get tomorrow when i'm out. I'm calming down now after my initial panic. Many thanks for your help.
 
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