Mites or a fungal infection?

[anniejane100]

My lovely English Crested, Pippin, has been scratching frequently for the last few weeks. I am treating with Ivermectin once a week but, if anything, it seems to be getting worse. Her coat now looks dull and she has thinner, lighter sections around her shoulders where she has been scratching. You can see it fairly well in the first picture.

Tonight I found a little clump of her hair on the fleece flooring of their cage - second pic. When I looked closely it was matted with slightly waxy, dusty stuff. I'm guessing dead skin but wondering if it could be mite poo or something like that? Since the Ivermectin doesn't seem to be working I'm wondering it could be some kind of fungal skin infection, rather than mites. Very happy to take her to the vets if necessary but she is pretty chipper in herself and I'd prefer not to put her through the stress of that if it's something I can treat at home. I do have some shampoo from Gorgeous Guineas that I was thinking of using this weekend, although I've never bathed my piggies before!

Any guidance gratefully received. Thanks.

(PS Both my girls' nails look long in this pic, I realise - I am just about to clip them! Not that that will be easy... phew).

 

[Lady Kelly]

To me it looks like the telltale v on the back that indicates mites. You need to be aware that any ivermectin product you can buy without a prescription may not be strong enough to combat the problem. I would visit a vet for a product strong enough to kill the mites

 

[anniejane100]

Thank you, that's really helpful. The animal shelter where we adopted them told me to buy Ivermectin online as both had mites at that time. I didn't realise you could get a stronger version from the vet. I will make an appointment today.

 

[Lady Kelly]

Thank you, that's really helpful. The animal shelter where we adopted them told me to buy Ivermectin online as both had mites at that time. I didn't realise you could get a stronger version from the vet. I will make an appointment today.

It depends which product you purchased. My vet has recommended xeno online before rather than them prescribing because its cheaper but a lot of the other spot on treatments are just too weak to combat the issue. It's also worth a vet check to ensure it is definitely mites you are dealing with.

 

[anniejane100]

That makes sense. Thanks again, I've booked her in at the vets tomorrow. Hopefully we can get this sorted out quickly, poor thing.