Mother And Baby Fight/agression

[Emily.k123]

i have 3 female guinea pigs ones about a year 1/2 old in August of 2014 i bought a guinea pig that turned out to be pregnant she have the babies and i kept one female. Now the baby is about 6 1/2 months old and about month ago one of the pigs (i don't know which one) bit the baby and punched a tooth shaped hole in her ear (it eventually closed up) and now the mom have 3 teeth marks on her back and a few tuffs of fur missing around the bites and i don't know who did it. The eldest pig and the mom get along but both of them snap at the baby and rumble/puff up at her They will also go into the same house as the baby and push the baby out (she squeals when this happens). Please help i don't want them to hurt each other anymore!

 

[Wiebke]

I would strongly recommend to have mom checked for mange mites by a good vet. You will need to treat all guinea pigs living together with a course that includes three treatments at the product specific interval. Please do not use low dosed pet shop products, as they are only geared towards the prevention, but not the effective treatment of infected guinea pigs and can easily make the problem worse instead of better. The alternative diagnosis would be a fungal issue, but that is for the vet to decide.
Fights with bites in sows are pretty rare, but the beginnings of mange mites can often be mistaken for fighting wounds as the piggies themselves bite or scratch the painful skin.
http://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/fungus.html
http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/photogallery.html
http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/indentification.html
Here is a list of recommended US vets: http://www.guinealynx.info/cabinet/index.php/Veterinarians

The other behaviour is fairly typical dominance behaviour. Please make sure that all three sows have a hidey and a bowl for themselves. How big is their cage and can they get away from each other? Punch holes are - again - usually not due to a bite but rather a paw swipe that could not be evaded due to lack of space if it happens in a confined hidey for instance.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/cage-size-guide.120795/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/sow-behaviour.38561/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/dominance-behaviours-in-guinea-pigs.28949/

 

[Emily.k123]

I would strongly recommend to have mom checked for mange mites by a good vet. You will need to treat all guinea pigs living together with a course that includes three treatments at the product specific interval. Please do not use low dosed pet shop products, as they are only geared towards the prevention, but not the effective treatment of infected guinea pigs and can easily make the problem worse instead of better. The alternative diagnosis would be a fungal issue, but that is for the vet to decide.
Fights with bites in sows are pretty rare, but the beginnings of mange mites can often be mistaken for fighting wounds as the piggies themselves bite or scratch the painful skin.
http://www.guinealynx.info/mites.html
http://www.guinealynx.info/fungus.html
http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/photogallery.html
http://www.gorgeousguineas.com/indentification.html
Here is a list of recommended US vets: http://www.guinealynx.info/cabinet/index.php/Veterinarians

The other behaviour is fairly typical dominance behaviour. Please make sure that all three sows have a hidey and a bowl for themselves. How big is their cage and can they get away from each other? Punch holes are - again - usually not due to a bite but rather a paw swipe that could not be evaded due to lack of space if it happens in a confined hidey for instance.
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/cage-size-guide.120795/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/sow-behaviour.38561/
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/dominance-behaviours-in-guinea-pigs.28949/

they are in a 6ft by 2 1/2ft cage and yes they have room to run away. they have three houses, three food bowls, one hay rack, and one bottle

 

[Wiebke]

they are in a 6ft by 2 1/2ft cage and yes they have room to run away. they have three houses, three food bowls, one hay rack, and one bottle

thanks for clarifying this aspect.

How is the back looking today? Have you noticed any increased itching or biting the back?

 

[Emily.k123]

thanks for clarifying this aspect.

How is the back looking today? Have you noticed any increased itching or biting the back?

when i found it (yesterday) i immediately put Neosporin on it (to help it heal) and now it looks a little better but a little more hair is missing i read the articles you suggested and i think it is early stages of mites and i'm looking to set up an appointment with one of the recommended vets and now that i think of it in the past i have seen her bitting her back (that explains a lot) . Should i take the other two in to get checked for them as well?

 

[Wiebke]

when i found it (yesterday) i immediately put Neosporin on it (to help it heal) and now it looks a little better but a little more hair is missing i read the articles you suggested and i think it is early stages of mites and i'm looking to set up an appointment with one of the recommended vets and now that i think of it in the past i have seen her bitting her back (that explains a lot) . Should i take the other two in to get checked for them as well?

You will need to treat all three - the other two to prevent them from coming down with mange mites as well in the next week or two. As long as you treat promptly with a good quality ivermectin product, mites should not get past the nuisance stage. The first couple of days usually are a bit worse while the mites are being killed, but latest after the second round the itching should stop. The third round is to round up any emerging eggs from the skin and to prevent a return. I would always recommend to take your other piggies as "paw holders" anyway, as that is generally a lot less stressful for the piggies. Please be aware that an ultraviolet light test is not conclusive.

 

[Emily.k123]

You will need to treat all three - the other two to prevent them from coming down with mange mites as well in the next week or two. As long as you treat promptly with a good quality ivermectin product, mites should not get past the nuisance stage. The first couple of days usually are a bit worse while the mites are being killed, but latest after the second round the itching should stop. The third round is to round up any emerging eggs from the skin and to prevent a return. I would always recommend to take your other piggies as "paw holders" anyway, as that is generally a lot less stressful for the piggies. Please be aware that an ultraviolet light test is not conclusive.

okay thank you so much and i was wondering how do they even get mange mites?

 

[Wiebke]

okay thank you so much and i was wondering how do they even get mange mites?

Many piggies carry mange mite eggs in their skin already, but they are also in the environment or can come with the hay. Mites often hit when a guinea pig has got a lowered immune system after an illness or from stress (this is why they are not at all rare in young shop piggies or backyard breeder piggies), but they can happen anytime to any piggy.

As there are first signs of mites adapting to ivermectin, I would advice against trying to protect your piggies via regular preventative treatment through low dosed product and rather concentrate on treating any piggies promptly with high dosed products when they come down with them. Before ivermectin, mange mites could only be managed at best, but not killed.

The initial stages of fungal and mites can look very similar and they are not always textbook cases, so it is advisable to get a proper diagnosis from a good vet if that is an option.

 

[Emily.k123]

Many piggies carry mange mite eggs in their skin already, but they are also in the environment or can come with the hay. Mites often hit when a guinea pig has got a lowered immune system after an illness or from stress (this is why they are not at all rare in young shop piggies or backyard breeder piggies), but they can happen anytime to any piggy.

As there are first signs of mites adapting to ivermectin, I would advice against trying to protect your piggies via regular preventative treatment through low dosed product and rather concentrate on treating any piggies promptly with high dosed products when they come down with them. Before ivermectin, mange mites could only be managed at best, but not killed.

The initial stages of fungal and mites can look very similar and they are not always textbook cases, so it is advisable to get a proper diagnosis from a good vet if that is an option.

would it be okay if i gave her Beaphar antiparasite spot-on for small animals it has ivermectin in it. its a topical medicine and comes in pipettes

 

[Wiebke]

would it be okay if i gave her Beaphar antiparasite spot-on for small animals it has ivermectin in it. its a topical medicine and comes in pipettes

No - beaphar is unfortunately not high dosed enough to really do the job; pet shops are only allowed to sell products that are geared towards the prevention but not the treatment of skin parasites.

 

[Emily.k123]

No - beaphar is unfortunately not high dosed enough to really do the job; pet shops are only allowed to sell products that are geared towards the prevention but not the treatment of skin parasites.

can i use it on the other two for prevention? And i don't want to spend money i dont have on a vet apponintment, even though that would be the best thing to do :'(