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Mites on pregnant sow

  • Thread starter Thread starter Lenethren
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Lenethren

I rescused a pregnant guinea pig and a baby (few weeks old) about 10 days ago from a bad, outside situation. I did notice they both scratched a fair bit but they are scared of people and I worried about causing stress (and starting her labour) so I have avoided handling them. However, I finally noticed when Momma turns her head enough you can see she has scratched huge areas behing both ears. They areas are rather long, lots of fur missing, looks like maybe a couple white looking sores although very small ones. I don't know if its part of it but her fur is coarse instead of soft, and it looks like she has mild dandruff on her behind. I checked baby out and although shes scratching there is no signs yet of fur loss, etc. Mommas about to give birth any day now. She is huge and you can see the babies moving in there. My question is what is safe to give to her in her condition? If there is no safe medicine to give is there something to help ease her discomfort until she gives birth? Do I have to worry about the medicine going into her nursing milk? The babies will certainly get the mites so how old do they need to be for medicine? I do go to an exotic vet but he is away until next week.

Thanks in advance for any advice. I was trying to help but I think I might have gotten in over my head this time!
 
i do know that fur dosen't grow behind piggies ears they have bald patches,

but it sounds like there could be a problem best to let someone who knows

more about it to tell you the causes - sorry can't help more!
 
Hi...thx for the reply.

Its more then just the usual bald areas. I can see where she has scratched from behind her ears to down her neck a ways. She must have had for awhile as I can see where fur is growing back that she must have scratched off.
 
Update

I found an exotic vet in another town. I phoned as soon as they opened and explained the situation. The receptionist spoke to the vet who recommended I find a mite shampoo safe for kittens and give my piggies a bath. Normally they are given a med called Revolution (I live in Canada) that gets into the blood stream and when the mites bite they are poisoned. It may not be safe for the babies so the recommendation is shampoo for now...Revolution later if things aren't cleared up by it. I'm off to the pet store to find some shampoo!
 
Good luck for poor mummy and all the babies!

If you don't mind getting thoroughly wet, you cant try and wash her holding her on your arm, so she doesn't get so panicked about drowning. If she starts jumping, the bathtub might be the best place.
 
I don't know alot about pregnant guinea pigs but she is huge, you can see the babies moving if you watch long enough. I assume she'll give birth any day now. I went to the department stores for the shampoo and couldn't find it. So then I went to the pet stores and had no luck there either. Then I went to a vets office just to ask if they sell the shampoo and they said it has insecticide and I might not want it. So I came home and phoned the vet again (who recommended this shampoo) and now he says wait till the babies are born then bring in momma and he'll give her Revolution. He says it will get into the babies via the nursing milk but that it's a good thing as it will kill any on the babies too.

I'm not a vet but I'm uneasy about the idea of the babies nursing contaminated milk. Would the medicine really get into the babies bloodstream that way?
 
Gorgeous Guineas do some shampoos which can be used on pregnant sows with skin problems - http://www.gorgeousguineas.co.uk/p/category/0611119298-Pregnant+Sows/ but if a bath would stress her out, it might be better to wait.

I've found that a good way to bathe guinea pigs without causing too much stress is to put them in a small bowl/tub on top of a thickly folded towel, and pour the water over them. This way, the water goes straight through the towel so they won't be standing in the water (and the bowl stops the water from getting all over the floor/you), and you can usually rinse the shampoo out quite thoroughly without too much fuss. I've just started using this method with my girls (who hate bath time) and it keeps them a lot calmer than putting them straight into the water does. They're also quite happy to stand still while I lather up the shampoo.

The Gorgeous Guineas link also lists creams and lotions which you can rub on to soothe the skin - these would probably be better to use until she's had the babies, as you don't have to worry about getting her wet or the extra stress of a bath.
 
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She sounds like she will pop the babies in the next few days, perhaps as soon as tomorrow, so I would wait with treating her until she's had the babies.

All the best to you - it's not easy to step back and watch her being so uncomfortable!

And I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything goes well with the birth. If you have concerns about that you can always ask in the pregnancy section.
 
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