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my baby has suspected ringworm :( help please!

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mstori

mstori

Adult Guinea Pig
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Been to the vets today with one of my babies, and he has suspected ringworm. He has been put on a course of medication (the bottle says itrafungol 5ml 0.15ml once daily)
Question though... vet gave me loads of advice, but said he didnt need to treat my other pets (3 piggies, 2 rabbits, cat and dog) but since reading up on it when ive got home, I'm seeing that its soo easily caught, is there anything I can do to try and stop it spreading to them?
The babies are in an indoor cage and the older boys and rabbits are outdoors. I have bought some mild cleaner (especially for pets) for the run, paving etc, and will get some gloves and an apron, for when I am handling Neo the infected piggie, but is there anything else i can do because stupidly (my fault) they have all had some contact with each other :(
 
As Sophie said about her boys with ringworm - treat them like lepers! Handle them last of all your animals, wear an apron and gloves, wash your hands every time you handle them, and change your clothes if necessary. I'm sure others will give you much more advice.

I've not heard of Intrafungol being used to treat ringworm, I've only got experience/knowledge of it being used for systemic fungal infections. Usually ringworm treatment is along the lines of Povidone Iodine baths, or topical treatment of some kind.

In any case, the Intrafungol dose is too low. The effective dose is 0.5ml.
 
As stated on other thread you need an antifungal disinfectant jeyes fluid is great but must be rinsed well and the hutch aired before use. Mild cleaner will not shift fungal spores sadly the stronger cleaners are needed.

Be sure to read the label and follow the advice of any of the products you buy, having a fungal infection is a bit like a mass cleaning operation for a while best to clean housing/paving/pets etc all in one day then keep up cleaning and treatment as often as advised on the labels. If the animals are outside and away from the two guineas one of which has ringworm then the only cross contamination to the others will be you if you have them quarantined so It is essential you have different clothes to handle them in appropraite aprons etc.

I know it all sounds daunting but as long as you are careful and observe quarantine practice it should not spread.

If you are worried that other animals have come into direct contact with them then you could give them an anti fungal shampoo bath either a gorgeous guineas product or nizoral from the chemists, also others are available from your vet.

I would just blitz everyone cleaning hutches, paving, shampoo animals in one day then your mind can be put at rest you have done everything possible to limit spread and keep them seperated from any infected animal -Anti fungal sprays are also available if you do not fancy bathing a cat!

Edited to add........ how old/ what weight is the affected piggy? maybe that is why less intrafungal has been prescribed, I would check with your vet whether bathing the affected piggy in antifungal medications would be a good idea to attack the fungus from the outside too?)
 
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My itrafungol is the 10mg oral solution and I syringed 0.25ml once daily, these were babes approx 14? weeks old. I never treated my other piggies, cat, dog, self or husband! Just practised good infection control measure. x
 
I think I would bltiz once as we have so many animals here luckily as we quarantine on arrival any new guinea so are well away from the other guineas and bunny but as our dogs might get close enough for an airborn infection and I am directly contacting the pig we just switch to anti fungal shampoos while showering and bathe the dogs just incase.

Good infection control measure is great I may go a bit overboard but with so many manky piggies coming through but have never had a spread of any infection beyond the piggies who originally came in with it I would rather err on the OD side of things to be sure.

Ringworm can exist in hutches on the wood and in the environment for 18 months and know of several cases where people think they have shifted it only for it to reoccur. Best to blitz and be sure if the infected animal has been about without quarantine being present from the moment it had the infection. Animals can be asymtomatic carriers and have the infection without showing symptoms and be shedding spores into their direct environment which is why I would advise to treat the others, any where the piggies has been in the house should be thoroughly cleaned.

Working as a rescue I have had experience of people thinking they have rid themselves of ringworm only to have it come back as they did not deal with it thoroughly on the first sign of infection.
I am not trying to be overdramatic about things but if the situation is dealt with thoroughly now then there should be no further problems along the road.

Some vets will treat a mild case with intrafungal but in my experience bathing is recommended also or just bathing on its own plus topical creams on area of active infection.
 
How long are you giving it for Mstori? My vet advised a five week program. Ringworm visually cleared up after 2 weeks with considerable hair re growth, but carried on for the further 3 to ensure completely gone. I threw away all wooden toys, logs etc. and kept piggies in separate room on their own. Fortunately they were in a plastic indoor cage which was a lot easier to clean than a wooden hutch. Vikki is right about hutches remaining infected for ages. I think it may be something to do with spores? x
 
Spores can exists in the environment for up to 18 months but can be particularly hard to shift from wood.

Jeyes fluid or bleach left to soak into the wood, then thoroughly rinsed ( a lot!) and left to air well before using again for animals should get rid of the spores. A good steam clean is a great idea too :)

mstori I am aware all this must be freaking you right out but having been in personal contact with several fungal piggies if you are careful and observe good quarantine and cleaning it is unlikely it will spread to yourself or your family.
 
I get good results with Intrafungol at the dose rate of 0.4ml, twice daily for at least 3 weeks.
I do not quarantine infected pigs. Some pigs get infected, others don't, for no apparent reason. Since they are all in the same conditions, food, bedding etc I reason that putting them into quarantine only to put them all back into identical conditions at the end is counter-productive, unless I am missing something very obvious. I shall await enlightenment (as usual)
 
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Neo (my affected piggy) is only a baby about 6 weeks. he was weighed yesterday. I'm no good at weights. Does 250g sound right? thats what sticks in my mind. I need to get some scales. He is about the size of a hamster. His cage mate is 275g (if grams was the right weight)

When I got him, I thought it was a white patch on his nose, it was only the next day I realised it was actually a tiny bald patch (as i didnt really handle that first day, to give him time to settle in) then by day 5 it turned into a crusty circle. He has been snuffly and sneezing a lot also.

Ive been recommended Virkon, to clean everything with, when ive looked you can buy sachets and bottles? also Jyese seems similar.. any suggestions on what is best? Id prefer to do everything to be on the safe side. Also, what shampoo is best to use? The only shampoo I have is a primrose oil one, so obviously not going to be very effective.

I feel really bad that I may have contaminated them all. Already feeling guilty that my girl rabbit may have got pregnant a day before she was due to go in for her spaying :( We had her in the conservatory while my boy was in the garden and the door blew open in the wind (dodgy door) and she ran out! i think i caught them in time, but dont know? My boy is now booked in on may 6th and I'm having to wait another 2 weeks for her.

Feeling like a really bad mammy at the moment.
 
nutmeg said:
How long are you giving it for Mstori? My vet advised a five week program. Ringworm visually cleared up after 2 weeks with considerable hair re growth, but carried on for the further 3 to ensure completely gone. I threw away all wooden toys, logs etc. and kept piggies in separate room on their own. Fortunately they were in a plastic indoor cage which was a lot easier to clean than a wooden hutch. Vikki is right about hutches remaining infected for ages. I think it may be something to do with spores? x
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the babies are in a plastic cage too luckily! but i just bought a £25 log cabin for them :(

He has given me a 2 week supply and told me to ring if i have any problems at all.. and luckily he is a piggy vet, with piggys of his own, so he was lovely.
I'm just sooo annoyed at myself that I may have spread it :(
 
Vikki said:
Spores can exists in the environment for up to 18 months but can be particularly hard to shift from wood.

Jeyes fluid or bleach left to soak into the wood, then thoroughly rinsed ( a lot!) and left to air well before using again for animals should get rid of the spores. A good steam clean is a great idea too :)

mstori I am aware all this must be freaking you right out but having been in personal contact with several fungal piggies if you are careful and observe good quarantine and cleaning it is unlikely it will spread to yourself or your family.
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Thanks.. I'm going to do that..

Ive been really careful since yesterday, keeping things seperate. Even moved the babies away so they are away from us which i feel bad about, and I am the only one handling them.

I did feel quite proud though that when we were at the vets, Neo was scared and he ran to me for comfort! I almost cried! I just love them so much (my friends think I'm mad) and would feel sooo bad If ive infected any of the others.
 
You DO need to quarantine your pig! Ringworm is highly contagious and to put your other pigs at risk of getting it would be very unfair in my opinion. If you employ safe methods and other pigs still get it, at least you can say you tried!
Keep him in a plastic cage, with his own bowl and water bottle, and keep these away from your healthy pigs. You aren't a bad mum, just a worried mum, like anyone else would be.
I have only ever had one guinea with this and the treatment was lengthy but successful. Buy some rubber gloves and an old jumper and wear them when handling your pig. As has been said, handle them last of all your animald and wash thoroughly. My dad did the treatment for my pig since I handle my other guineas so often. Ringworm spreads so easily so be really vigilant with handwashing. I'd say wash your hands and then use an alcohol gel to be safe. Don't worry - he'll be fine in no time!
 
Tracy is right, some good advice there. I'm not sure bathing as well is necessary, especially as they are so young. I never bathed mine, no one suggested it and the medicine worked great on its own. Can't really say which is better to use Virkon or Jeyes although both would be good. I hadn't heard of those, and used dettol which worked well. x
 
I see why the dose is so low, the low dose sounds much better for a pig so young and of such a small size. I've found that 2-3 week old pigs weigh 250-300g, but there is the possibility that your pig is just smaller than average, or was the runt of the litter.
 
Tracyxx said:
You DO need to quarantine your pig! Ringworm is highly contagious and to put your other pigs at risk of getting it would be very unfair in my opinion. If you employ safe methods and other pigs still get it, at least you can say you tried!
Keep him in a plastic cage, with his own bowl and water bottle, and keep these away from your healthy pigs. You aren't a bad mum, just a worried mum, like anyone else would be.
I have only ever had one guinea with this and the treatment was lengthy but successful. Buy some rubber gloves and an old jumper and wear them when handling your pig. As has been said, handle them last of all your animald and wash thoroughly. My dad did the treatment for my pig since I handle my other guineas so often. Ringworm spreads so easily so be really vigilant with handwashing. I'd say wash your hands and then use an alcohol gel to be safe. Don't worry - he'll be fine in no time!
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The vet told me to keep the babies together? so you think i should remove him? oh! ive got cages everywhere! cos the rabbits are indoors at mo due to their hutches drying out.. dont know where to put the baby!

I'm allergic to rubber/latex i have some plastic gloves, (the type you get when dying hair) but he was biting them. so ive just been scrubbing and then using a gel antiseptic wash after. I have been handling him last and putting a different top on.

They are such a worry arent they! lol.. thanks
 
CCC4 said:
I see why the dose is so low, the low dose sounds much better for a pig so young and of such a small size. I've found that 2-3 week old pigs weigh 250-300g, but there is the possibility that your pig is just smaller than average, or was the runt of the litter.
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I thought they seemed really small for 6-8 weeks too.. they literally fit in my hand. Ive never had piggies before, and my 2 rescue piggies are 2 years old and MASSIVE! lol
 
They look a bit on the small side; but can recover quickly with good food and tlc!

All my best wishes - keep a clear head and don't let it all get to you!
 
Vickyt said:
They look a bit on the small side; but can recover quickly with good food and tlc!

All my best wishes - keep a clear head and don't let it all get to you!
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thanks <3 its so hard isnt it! i think of them like my babies. Think i over worry cos ive never had to deal with this sort of thing.

how do i get pictures on? do you know? my profile pic is my older boys?


Thanks Tori
 
neosface.jpg


hoping this pic works. This is the best i could get of the ringworm

and this is of the 2 babies:

babyneoand.jpg


My beautiful boys :)
 
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Aww, they are lovely.
It's hard to say whether or not to seperate them. They're so young, probably still quite nervy and would most definately miss each other's company. But from friends' experiences, once you have two pigs with ringworm (or any fungal infection) it's harder to combat, since it spreads backwards and forwards from each pig. Is there any way you could seperate them but still keep them so they can see and smell each other? I seperated my six week old baby when she had ringworm. She was very lonely but I had to consider the health of other pigs too.
 
You could treat all of the pigs in the group, in case one or more of them is a carrier, ie has the ringworm infection but shows no clinical signs of skin problems.
 
alcesterpigs said:
You could treat all of the pigs in the group, in case one or more of them is a carrier, ie has the ringworm infection but shows no clinical signs of skin problems.
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how would i do that? just ask the vet for some of the same medication?

there are the two babies in the group. The vet checked both over, and only Neo (the black one) showed signs. They have been together for at least a week (thats how long I have had them, and I think they are brothers?) so I presume he would have come out with symptoms but I presume you are right and he could be a carrier.
 
Tracyxx said:
Aww, they are lovely.
It's hard to say whether or not to seperate them. They're so young, probably still quite nervy and would most definately miss each other's company. But from friends' experiences, once you have two pigs with ringworm (or any fungal infection) it's harder to combat, since it spreads backwards and forwards from each pig. Is there any way you could seperate them but still keep them so they can see and smell each other? I seperated my six week old baby when she had ringworm. She was very lonely but I had to consider the health of other pigs too.
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They are in a ferplast cage. I have a nero4, but the lid is badly damaged. (the trampoline fell on it.. no there wasnt anything in at the time! i was juggling the garden round and had been using the top as a temporary run.lol) I havent the room to put them side by side, dont know if it is safe to maybe put the nero on top of the ferplast? They squeel until they are back together whenever one is removed which is why the vet told me to keep them together. When he was checking them over, he did them 1 by 1 and they were getting really upset. I wonder if he would give me medication for the other just in case.. do you think that would help?
Also, do you think the snuffles and sneezes are connected? cos the brown one (we are still arguing about a name for him..haha) sneezed today. I have only heard him do this once though. Neo sneezes so violently that he literally falls over :(

Thanks everyone for all the advice! x
 
Sounds like a respiratory problem. I'd get them to the vet ASAP if I were you and read on GuineaLynx.info about URIs. :)
 
Is it just one sticky eye? Breathing okay, nose clear? As well as a respiratory problem being possible, an allergy or injury to the eye is also something to consider.
 
CCC4 said:
Is it just one sticky eye? Breathing okay, nose clear? As well as a respiratory problem being possible, an allergy or injury to the eye is also something to consider.
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I phoned vets and they are phoning me back. His breathing seems fine, apart from his sniffle. It isnt rattling. His nose is still runny, and also crusty and scabby where the ringworm is. I tried to show it on the pic. The top pic was 2 days ago and the bottom pic the day I got them. Do you think it is connected to the ringworm?
His eye looks like conjunctivitis (sp?)
 
breathing problems shouldnt be connected to ringworm as ringworm is a fungal infection which only affects the skin.

As for the others it would be a good idea to treat especailly if hes got any cage mates, something like malasab(sp?0 shampoo would be idea.
 
If it is chloramphenicol ointment you can buy it over the counter. Don't say it is for gp use.
 
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