Ivermectin, xeno, panacur?

[Choccy]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and have our first guinea pigs - Patches and Choccy. I'm trying to give them all the best and make sure they're receiving the right treatment. I recently read the forum thread about worming guinea pigs, and I was wondering as a preventative, what would be the best option in your opinion?

I've been using Beaphar in the past, but I heard that the dosage is quite diluted and Xeno 450 is a better option. On the other hand, I was going to pick up some panacur, but thought that might be overkill if using ivomectin as a topical treatment... Any ideas?

 

[flintstones]

Worms are very rare in guinea pig's so I wouldn't bother worming. I would use Xeno 450 for parasites but only treat when necessary.

 

[Wiebke]

I would use any ivermectin only in case you actually have mites. In this case go for xeno50 (for piggies under 800g) or xeno450 (for adult piggies).

Please see a vet anyway, as sometimes fungal complaints can look similar, but need different treatment; not every fungus is ringworm! Don't home treat when you are not absolutely sure that you know what you are treating - you can easily make things worse than better.

Guinea pigs generally don't suffer from worms; occasionally there can be a build up of bacteria in the guts, but you won't find that in young piggies. It makes more sense to treat piggies that are out on the lawn a lot.

 

[Abi_nurse]

Ivermectin (Xeno) is best used to kill external parasites when you see them as weibke has said.

I do worm my piggies, but you dont have to. Not many do. The Cambridge Cavy Trust recommend worming but many do not and never have any problems. My herd are outside on the grass all summer and there are a lot of slugs in my garden, plus hedgehogs and foxes bringing worms and parasites in. So i do it because i feel the need. Probably because ive had worming drummed into me at vet nurse school.

x.

 

[Poppy'sMum]

Worms are very rare in piggies but they can pick up giardia which is a nasty parasite. If you intend to let your piggies graze on grass it may be worth worming them, as most animals pick up parasites from grazing, hence horses etc usually need regular worming.

http://www.guinealynx.info/antiparasitics.html#panacur

Some people feel they don't need to worm if their piggies never go outside on grass. It's personal preference really!