We noticed it within a couple of weeks and took him to the vet immediately. They have said it isn’t a severe case but they gave us some medicine, told us to drop his weight by 100g and too keep the cage dry and not to use a wire floor (which we never have). The main problem we are having is stopping the daft water bottle dripping!
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Hi!
Has your vet checked whether it is actually the start of a completely harmless dead skin spur, which are very common in guinea pigs?
How piggy savvy are they?
It does definitely not look like bumblefoot. Unfortunately, online research can be very misleading. Because bumblefoot can be potentially fatal, it is getting all the press, and any little thing is mistaken for it.
What most people doing their research don't realise is that it is actually rather rare in well kept piggies, living in regularly cleaned cages without wire flooring. The piggies most at risk in good care are guinea pigs with long term mobility problems because they cannot take any weight off their weight bearing front legs or older and very frail piggies whose blood circulation and immune system are both poorly. Most often it is a combination of all these high risk factors.
Without seeing the piggy and the problem, we can only react to what we are told by the poster and we can only see things through their filter. that is why we can never replace vet visits (not that we or any other online places are medically qualified to do so).
Please take a look at this link here, and you will perceive the difference: A spur is a growth of horny skin usually on the edge of a foot pad while a bumblefoot sore is always right in the middle of a pad where pressure is highest.
Guinea Lynx :: Guinea Pig Feet and Foot Problems
As to weight management, please take the time to read these links below.
The weight management guide does not only tell you about weight but also more crucially how to check whether your boy is a good weight for his size or not - and our method works for all sizes and ages independently of their absolute weight.
If your boy is really too chunky for his size, then the weight guide and our balanced general diet guide link will help you to achieve this in a healthy and sustainable way. A good hay based diet without lots of high sugar/fattening veg/fruit and pellets can really make a difference in general health and life span. Veg and pellets should be rather treated like a daily treat and not as the mainstay of the day, which is hay. It is the balanced quality of any veg and pellets and not the amount that counts; recommended amounts are being downgraded all the time.
While our general diet may not be the ultimate one, at least we do have the feedback and personal experiences of our long term members behind us, who all practice a diet centred around our recommended sample diet. We have hardly any bladder stone problems or opportunistic illnesses that point to a less than optimal immune system until our piggies reach old age or unless they develop health problems not in our control. Our guinea pigs are generally living 1-2 years longer than they used in times before. I would say that that is not the worst place to start from.
Weight - Monitoring and Management
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
. My daughters have adopted 2 gorgeous Guinea Pigs. They are both 2 years old and have not had the best start in life 
and has a magnificent tri-colour coat that has a life of its own. Then there is Apollo, he is super chilled, loves his cuddles and has a silky black and white coat.
