My guinea pig's scratches have a bit of yellow now. Do i need to take him to the vet?

[IamcalledElle]

hello! So my Guinea pig Bobby has scratches on his back (either from fights or him scratching it himself) and now a bit of it (near his bum) looks yellow. Is this a concern to take him to the vet for? My mums willing to pay to take him to the vet because she knows how much I love him, just dont wanna go for it to be for no reason. Thank youu

 

[Piggies&buns]

Its always a good idea to have them vet checked. If he is scratching himself, then he may have parasites which need treating.
If he has had a fight with his cage mate, then you still need to have the wounds checked in case of infection.
If he is fighting with his cage mate, then you may need to take steps to separate them if their bond has failed.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Ive just seen on your introduction thread that you have three guinea pigs. Are all of these piggies male? If so, then this is why there could be fights occurring. Keeping three boars together almost always fails with fights occurring - boars do much better when kept in pairs. To attempt to keep three boars you need a cage of three square metres but if they dont have character compatibility (which most boar trios dont), then no amount of space is going to make any difference and they will need separating.

 

[IamcalledElle]

Its always a good idea to have them vet checked. If he is scratching himself, then he may have parasites which need treating.
If he has had a fight with his cage mate, then you still need to have the wounds checked in case of infection.
If he is fighting with his cage mate, then you may need to take steps to separate them if their bond has failed.

Ive just seen on your introduction thread that you have three guinea pigs. Are all of these piggies male? If so, then this is why there could be fights occurring. Keeping three boars together almost always fails with fights occurring - boars do much better when kept in pairs. To attempt to keep three boars you need a cage of three square metres but if they dont have character compatibility (which most boar trios dont), then no amount of space is going to make any difference and they will need separating.

Okay, thank you! I'm sure we are going to take him to the vet, and I'm going to consider this

 

[Wiebke]

Okay, thank you! I'm sure we are going to take him to the vet, and I'm going to consider this

It sounds like the scratches/bites could have abscessed.

Please take the time to read these guides here. You should find them very helpful:
A Comprehensive Guide to Guinea Pig Boars
Boars: Teenage, Bullying, Fighting, Fall-outs And What Next?

 

[VickiA]

How have things gone with the vet @IamcalledElle ?

 

[IamcalledElle]

How have things gone with the vet @IamcalledElle ?

my parents never ended up making a time to take him. it actually seemed to clear up after we put a mite thing on him! but its kinda gotten worse again.. but we are using the mite stuff again. if it does get worse i will persuade my mum to take him to the vet, as i still believe may be nessecary.

 

[Wiebke]

my parents never ended up making a time to take him. it actually seemed to clear up after we put a mite thing on him! but its kinda gotten worse again.. but we are using the mite stuff again. if it does get worse i will persuade my mum to take him to the vet, as i still believe may be nessecary.

PLEASE see a vet and do not home treat on spec. Low dosed pet shop mites treatment will not cure a bacterial infection/abscess. Your guinea pig needs an rodent-safe antibiotic, which is a prescription only medication (POM) in the UK.

Please also be aware that the right to veterinary treatment is enshrined in law in the UK as the third Animal Rights Freedom - that from pain, injury and disease since 2006.

 

[Piggies&buns]

my parents never ended up making a time to take him. it actually seemed to clear up after we put a mite thing on him! but its kinda gotten worse again.. but we are using the mite stuff again. if it does get worse i will persuade my mum to take him to the vet, as i still believe may be nessecary.

Please do not use a mite treatment From a pet shop. They aren’t not effective and can in the long term make things worse. Your piggy needs a vet for diagnosis and the correct treatment For any condition.

 

[Siikibam]

I hope you can convince your parents to take him to the vet. Remind them that (as the adults) they took on the responsibility of providing vet care for them - see the animal right that Wiebke mentioned above.