Is my guinea pig hurt?

[bluetrooth]

Hey!

So my two little guinea pigs seem to be behaving perfectly fine, active, playful, healthy and friendly - but I just noticed this strange, dark spot under the eye of one of them.

It looks like it could be a wound, and I've seen him scratch in that vicinity. It's hard to see much on the pictures, I couldn't make it clearer, but any ideas?

Could his brother have bitten him? They really seem friendly.

Edit: this picture is slightly bigger: http://i39.tinypic.com/307wwa1.jpg

 

[Wiebke]

Have you had a closer look at the skin yourself?

 

[bluetrooth]

Yes, and I've done some research online; I'm afraid it might be a fungal infection.

I'm taking him to the vet tomorrow. The problem is that I have two guinea pigs, only one cage, and all their hideys are wooden - so if it turns out to be fungal, does that mean I have to discard all their houses, disinfect everything and separate them?

 

[piglet_and_rogers_mama]

If it's fungal, then you definitely need to throw out any wooden items in the cage; the spores get deep into the wood making it really hard to clean. Also the whole cage will need disinfected, and both pigs will need treatment. Good luck, and remember fungal is extremely contagious.